# My pet Smallmouth bass



## Bass Assasin Slaton

I recently introduced my new pet in a 250 gallon fish tank and hes made a quick impression on the other tank mates...their terrified of this 5" tank...which i have yet to name..( any ideas?)
I kept him because i wanted to personally study these species and have learned a few new things..i kno 250 gallon is big but when he reaches 14" im letting him go..he has a endess supply of tropical baitfish to hunt i love him so much! Caught him in a clear stream hes gorgeoue but has eaten 10$ in trop. Fish lol 
Heres his first pic


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## Snakecharmer

Kevin van Bass or Roland?


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## fishin.accomplished

Let it go before it dies.


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## catmando

How bout Law breaker?

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## Aqua Man

It's not legal to keep a wild caught game fish. If you want to keep native game fish, you can legally buy them from places like Jones fish farm. Heck, you can even buy live game fish at Jungle Jims.

Also, now that this fish has been exposed to and has consumed non native species of fish, it may have come in contact with a pathogen, virus, disease, etc. that native fish don't have a defense against. This is largely why it is illegal to release non native fish into local waters, introduction of invasive species and introduction of diseases / parasites that indigenous fish have no defense against.


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## M.Magis

You guys giving "legal advice" should at least make an attempt to know what you're talking about. It's perfectly legal as long as the body of water he caught it from doesn't have a size restriction, and he caught it by legal means. You need to get over the fairy tale dream of bass being some sort of magical creature, they're just fish.


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## BobcatJB

Totally legal

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## Shortdrift

M.Magis said:


> You guys giving "legal advice" should at least make an attempt to know what you're talking about. It's perfectly legal as long as the body of water he caught it from doesn't have a size restriction, and he caught it by legal means. *You need to get over the fairy tale dream of bass being some sort of magical creature, they're just fish.*




Well said Mike.


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## Perch

Go check the front door, its the ODNR !!!! :Banane21:


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## Bass Assasin Slaton

Hey fishin accomp..im gonna go try finding a net so i can catch my own bait..i might go fish there tomorrow evening

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## Bass Assasin Slaton

Are mosquito fish considered tropical?

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## SMBHooker

M.Magis said:


> You need to get over the fairy tale dream of bass being some sort of magical creature, they're just fish.


lol . . . lol . . . and . . . LOL!!!!




Sent from . . . off and over there.


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## jkeeney20

I have a huge tank in my classroom as I teach biology....I have 2 smallies in it, as well as a few other local species. I have had ODNR talk to me about them and so on. No problems. I even take time to get craws/minnows/tad poles/ etc.. for feeding purposes...Kids at school love them and I have learnt a lot about them as well! Whats the big deal anyway??? BTW I have had mine in there for about 8 months and they are all still doing just wonderful! Usually let them go at the end of each school year and get new ones at the beginning! No issues yet


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## SMBHooker

jkeeney20 said:


> I have a huge tank in my classroom as I teach biology....I have 2 smallies in it, as well as a few other local species. I have had ODNR talk to me about them and so on. No problems. I even take time to get craws/minnows/tad poles/ etc.. for feeding purposes...Kids at school love them and I have learnt a lot about them as well! Whats the big deal anyway??? BTW I have had mine in there for about 8 months and they are all still doing just wonderful! Usually let them go at the end of each school year and get new ones at the beginning! No issues yet


Way cool . . we need more teachers like that!!!!



Sent from . . . off and over there.


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## Bass Assasin Slaton

Nice!! The tank hes in is plenty big and is decor like a river..its awesome

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## LilSiman/Medina

That's pretty cool! I have a few in my pond and watch them right about this time of year as they chase little gills around!


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## CO_Trout

I talked with ODNR a few years back when I wanted to put a Rock Bass in my aquarium. They told me that Yes I can have a Game Fish species as a "pet" in an aquarium as long as I followed 3 rules/Laws:

1. it must be caught thru a legal means, ie fishing.
2. it CANNOT be returned back into ANY public water (river or lake), can be put into your own private pond.
3. in an aquarium it can count toward your Daily bag limit.


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## Lowell H Turner

Yrs ago a friend set up a 200 gal tank with various native fish including an almost 10" smallie, a 12" channel, a 11" walleye and several smaller panfish, and crayfish. Guess who absolutely RULED that tank with an IRON FIN ? The walleye and channel cat cowered in opposite corners and about everything else hid whereever they could, trying to escape the attention of "the BOSS". Alas, several wks later the "Boss`s" gluttony got the better of him; although he was about 10 1/2" long he choked to death trying to stuff the walleye down in 1 bite...there were no crayfish left, all but the biggest `gill were memories, the cat was on the verge of suicide banging blindly into the opposite sides of the tank and of a dozen minnows or goldfish every few days sincerely doubt 1 or 2 were eaten by anything else in the tank. Rest in peace, "Boss"...


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## tadluvadd

lol funny stuff man.you gotta love those folks that pull stuff out from between the cheeks and then give false advise.hey,they are trying.lol


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## Bass Assasin Slaton

Thats a relief i seriously thought i was fine and it was completely legsl until that ond dude said i was breaking the law..

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## Bostonwhaler10

Ohhh I can imagine the posts if I showed everyone my snakehead in my 200 gallon aquarium.


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## steve113535

Where did you get that big of tank at?


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## Bass Assasin Slaton

Its 250 gallon my friends dad owns it

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## Aqua Man

I think that the point I was trying to make was missed.

I don't know where the fish was caught but 5" is under size in many bodies of water. For example, at CC the size limit is 15". If this is not the case where you caught it and it was caught by legal means than this does not apply to you.

How ever, you stated that once it got big you would just "let it go". that is not legal and potentially very dangerous to the naturally occurring fauna. I _think_ that it would be legal to release it into a privately owned pond or lake though but don't know that for sure, would need to look that up.

Don't get me wrong, I am not against keeping game fish, I have have owned and set up several native fish aquariums and think they are awesome. I just dont condone poaching (which may not be the case here) and am very against the release of aquarium fish and plants into local water. I don't think people genuinely understand how devastating to our waterways it can be to do so.


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## laynhardwood

That's cool but it really maybe illegal since most places are atleast 12in minimum to keep I wouldn't post to much more about it since you caught it on public water 


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## AnglinMueller

Most rivers and streams in ohio don't have size specific regulations relating to largemouth and smallmouth bass. So if caught out of one of those or a private pond or some smaller lakes then size wouldn't be an issue at all. I've been thinking about getting a big enough tank to put some small native fish in since i catch plenty of smallies in the 5 to 8 inch range while creek fishing.


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## Bass Assasin Slaton

I caught him in a creek in my backyard ..

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## AnglinMueller

What are you planning on using as a food source for him once he eats the rest of the fish in the tank?


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## Bass Assasin Slaton

Mainly small craws and minnies

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## inrll

You can get feeder fish at any pet store for cheap. You'll probably need them this winter when the craws and minnows are hard to find.

I used to have a pet tiger musky, that thing could eat!

Before any lawdogs come down on me, I bought it at a pet store. lol


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## jonnythfisherteen2

fishin.accomplished said:


> Let it go before it dies.


and you are?


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## avantifishski

M.Magis said:


> You guys giving "legal advice" should at least make an attempt to know what you're talking about. It's perfectly legal as long as the body of water he caught it from doesn't have a size restriction, and he caught it by legal means. You need to get over the fairy tale dream of bass being some sort of magical creature, they're just fish.


Id say bass are magic,after the Boat, Rods, Tackle and endless tourney fees and gas.they have made Lots of my Money dissapear!

cant fish, gotta go catching...


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## Bass Assasin Slaton

Yea they definately good at sculpting wallets

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## StuckAtHome

I've had several sm in tanks over the years, one lived five years, had it setup like a small rocky creek, with native minnows ( no snail darters, lol) crawdads, with two huge pumps that made the tank like a stream. I even had two bluegills bigger than the bass spawn in the tank, bed and all, they didn't let anything near the bed, but never saw anything hatch. 

Enjoy your tank, you did nothing wrong

Razr maxx


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## Bass Assasin Slaton

Well ive learned one thing very interesting..i have a school of tiger barbs ..natural color and some albinos..and hes eaten every albino one..and is leaving the natural colored ones alone..

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## BunkerChunker

Bass Assasin Slaton said:


> Well ive learned one thing very interesting..i have a school of tiger barbs ..natural color and some albinos..and hes eaten every albino one..and is leaving the natural colored ones alone..
> 
> Outdoor Hub mobile, the outdoor information engine


There's a lesson in natural selection for ya!


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## 14shadow

I am about to get my tank ready for some fish now. I have had fresh water fish in my tank for years now. I have had perch, blue gills, green sunfish largemouths and small mouth bass. My friend and I sein them when they are an inch or two long and then I let them grow for a year or two and then release them. The perch were probably the most docile the smallmouths probably the most violent. When I released them into a little creek that I cought them out of I know that they quickly ruled. I am sure that in the year and a half that I had them they were probably twice as big as their bothers and sisters in the creek.


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## CO_Trout

AnglinMueller said:


> Most rivers and streams in ohio don't have size specific regulations relating to largemouth and smallmouth bass. So if caught out of one of those or a private pond or some smaller lakes then size wouldn't be an issue at all. I've been thinking about getting a big enough tank to put some small native fish in since i catch plenty of smallies in the 5 to 8 inch range while creek fishing.


As a guide, I have a 125 gal aquarium, and it is TOO SMALL for a 7" Rock Bass. I had 3 to start with, and only 1 made it past the 2nd year. All started at about 4 inched. The last one stopped growing at about 7" and stayed at that size for about 2 years until it died this winter. One should get at least a 200 gal aquarium or bigger for Smallies.


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## Patricio

I had a pet gar, it ate almost everything else in the tank, including a sturgeon that was about the same size. only the eels survived, as they were able to hide in places the gar couldnt get to. fed the thing live mice. it was gruesome to watch him eat.


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## BassHarasser

I'm partial to the name ''Hugo'' was my pet bluegill's name. lived 4 + yrs. in a 30 gal tank. ate crawlers, extra minnows, and fish food. Was bout 3'' grow to 8''. good luck with your tank


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## Bass Assasin Slaton

Hes already gotten an inch bigger i swear and hes fat..but lonely in a 250g...

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## longhaulpointer

thats awesome, the only way ipassed 9th grade biologywas bycatching a couple of smallies for my teachers aquarium. then maintained the passing grade by seining minnows and catching crawls. Learned everything i really needed to know about biology the next year


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## Fishaholic69

Thanks for the great idea! I believe I am gonna go to Caley Reservation to the ponds that are overrun with thousands of baby gills and catch me a few diff types with my 3wt fly rod and barbless hooks and put um in my 75 gallon. It held 3 nice sized piranha for 12 years or so. They have all gotten old and died now. Already has natural colored pebbles and some driftwood and stones. Could add some more. Will also add some plants! This is gonna be awesome! keep everyone posted! Hope to get a couple diff kinds and you can feed um anything. crickets, feeders, worms, even dough balls or baloney! lol


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## Fishaholic69

Bass Assasin Slaton said:


> Hes already gotten an inch bigger i swear and hes fat..but lonely in a 250g...
> 
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I have had some chiclids who rather be lonely! lol They were mass murderers! Small mouth are territorial. They will destroy anything you put in there. That is why I think I am going the sunfish bluegill route.


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## Bass Assasin Slaton

My tank can sustain a couple more natives..im on the search. Spike the smallmouth already chose his fav. Spot to chill right near the bottom near the base of a stump.

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## MassillonBuckeye

Hungry Jack. Bass are eating MACHINES.


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## NateTessler13

14shadow said:


> I have had perch, blue gills, green sunfish largemouths and small mouth bass. My friend and I sein them when they are an inch or two long and then I let them grow for a year or two and then release them. The perch were probably the most docile the smallmouths probably the most violent. When I released them into a little creek that I cought them out of I know that they quickly ruled.


Please be careful about this. It is certainly *not* legal to take these species with a seine. The ODNR takes this matter seriously, as I have been stopped a number of times when seining bait, and had my minnow bucket searched for game species.

I've kept those species in aquariums before, and they're certainly a delight. It's tough to find fish species that are more aggressive and territorial than green sunfish, largemouth bass, and smallmouth bass. Were you able to keep them housed in the same aquarium without them harassing each other?


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## Bass Assasin Slaton

Tank is empty and spikes hungry gonna go catch some food for him

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## Bass Assasin Slaton

Here he is about 1" bigger than when i got him a few weeks back..in his favorite spot in the tank..
Hes not camera shy at all

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## Skish

Many, many years ago in college I had a 200gal. tank for cichlids, an Oscar and a Jack Dempsy got to be 7 and 8 in. respectivly. Just regular feedings of gold fish were not enough, so we started "fishing" for them. We would take turns sitting on the couch with a spool of thread while some one else would use a needle and pierce a goldfish, usually trough the tail and then tie it off without the needle. 
You would have to wait until one of em got a good bite on the goldfish then try to haul him out of the tank before they could spit it out. 
It all ended when a big enough splash shorted out the TV under it ( tank was above tv on reinforced mantle).

and yes plenty of drinking was usually involved.
:beer:

And if anyone wants to tell me this was illeagal, the statute of limitations has expired.


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## JamesT

CO_Trout said:


> As a guide, I have a 125 gal aquarium, and it is TOO SMALL for a 7" Rock Bass. I had 3 to start with, and only 1 made it past the 2nd year. All started at about 4 inched. The last one stopped growing at about 7" and stayed at that size for about 2 years until it died this winter. One should get at least a 200 gal aquarium or bigger for Smallies.


Give me F.O. smallie and a 90 gallon tank and I'll keep it alive until it dies a natural death. Not the ideal situation, but its all about water changes. I've had koi in 38 gallon tanks and a 3000 gallon pond (dug it myself). The people really into koi say 2000 gallons/koi. Hogwash. Its all about how frequent you do water changes/your filtration/etc.


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## Redheads

longhaulpointer said:


> thats awesome, the only way ipassed 9th grade biologywas bycatching a couple of smallies for my teachers aquarium. then maintained the passing grade by seining minnows and catching crawls. Learned everything i really needed to know about biology the next year


I would hate to hear what you had to do to pass English class.......lol


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## Bass Assasin Slaton

Got spike a tank mate a 6" sunfish..and caught him food today..any name ideas hes gorgeous





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## CO_Trout

JamesT said:


> Give me F.O. smallie and a 90 gallon tank and I'll keep it alive until it dies a natural death. Not the ideal situation, but its all about water changes. I've had koi in 38 gallon tanks and a 3000 gallon pond (dug it myself). The people really into koi say 2000 gallons/koi. Hogwash. Its all about how frequent you do water changes/your filtration/etc.


Yes you can have a smaller tank for a smallie, BUT it will stunt its growth. Fish will only grow to the available surrounding environment. 

One can put a 4" smallie in a 30 gal aquarium and it will do just fine. The main difference to keeping in a large aquarium, is that the fish may only reach 8" in the 30 gal and may reach about 12-15 inches in a large 250 gal aquarium.


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## ralfff

Largemouth are more fun they become pets, small mouth don't do much . The fish are not stunted by the size of the tank. As long as the water is clean and they are fed well they will grow. Had one reach 4lbs in a twenty gallon tank, jumped thru the top wile I was out or would have gotten bigger. believe it or not a one a day vitamin once a month in the water will do wonders. Also they eat plants so try to get some live plants going they will pull them up. You can learn some things but they get so tame it's like having a house cat, act about the same, and in the end the bass will be the only fish in the tank no matter what you do. Good luck hope you have access to allot of bait you'll need it.


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## TRAILGATOR

Bass Assasin Slaton said:


> Got spike a tank mate a 6" sunfish..and caught him food today..any name ideas hes gorgeous
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
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You should name him Speck


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## 10fish

looks like a longear sunfish to me.

SCIENTIFIC NAME: Lepomis megalotis


How about LEPO for a name ? 



What are your fish's names ? Spike and Lepo kinda sounds cool IMO/


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## Lewzer

> _Got spike a tank mate a 6" sunfish..and caught him food today..any name ideas hes gorgeous
> 
> You should name him Speck _




_I was going to say name him Gil. The perfect name for a fish._


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## CatBassCrap

Looks like a largemouth to me

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## Mr. A

My 6 yo son looked at the pic and said you should name him shark bait! He totally stole it from Nemo but heck... he's 6.

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## Fishaholic69

CatBassCrap said:


> Looks like a largemouth to me
> 
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I thought the same. Black lateral line in the 1st pic looks like a largemouth to me.


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## Bass Assasin Slaton

spike the smallmouth
sharkbait the sunfish


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## KWaller

spike and speck

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## DC9781

Go with Mike.. Spike and Mike..


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## MassillonBuckeye

Name him Spot heh


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## Bass Assasin Slaton

well spike and spot have fought the past couple days but they have finally finished and they both are happy with their respective spots in the tank..


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## boostdscoob

thats a smallmouth, and sharkbait, lol, awesome movie, and i literally started quoting myself the movie.. be careful, and ive caught a largemouth on a bluegill before, and the damn largemouth was choking on it(5" bluegill, 14" LM bass) smallmouth dont really feed on bluegill of good size(since their mouths wont open as big...)


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## AnglinMueller

He's definitely a pretty sunfish. I caught one when i was out creek fishing the other day that was extremely gorgeous. It had bright blue stripes on the gills, colorful spots and his fins were outlined in a bright florescent orange. Really awesome coloration. If i had a big enough tank right now i would have totally kept him for it.


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## boostdscoob

a warmouth with the yellow fins would be nice addition, catch em all day at the northern pond at twin creek..


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## Bass Assasin Slaton

I need to put more structure before new tankmates i only have a few logs..so each fish can have his own territory

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## Bass Assasin Slaton

Spike has eaten a dozen minnows in a week..

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## Buckeyefisher7

Is there ever the smell of fish at all in your house because of the tank?


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## keith_r

i've got about 140 or so "pet" perch, a few bluegill, 10 tilapia, bunch of rosy red minnows (fatheads) crays, a berried marmokreb, glass shrimp, scuds and snails
the perch, gills and tilapia are destined for the table


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## Bass Assasin Slaton

Tanks dont smell if you keep maintenance up..and nice pool of fish looks cool

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