New Purple Gig

[ajt12]

Just took delivery of a small purple gig from ibluewater.com. They really have their shipping method dialed in. This is form an email they sent me: "When you open the plastic bag containing the anemone you will likely encounter and odoriferous scent, that odor is fro our use of seachem prime to neutralize any possible ammonia, nitrite and or nitrate spikes during shipping. The slight yellow coloration in the bag water is from our use of nitrofurazone a broad spectrum antibiotic to prevent any possible infection during shipping."

This pic is from 2 hours after I introduced it in to the tank. It only took a few minutes to attach and retract its stomach.

Words cannot describe how beautiful the colors are under a Kessil 350.

 

[Jpugh73]

Nice!

 

[hajas]

Great looking gig. What was your acclimation procedure?

 

[ajt12]

I was kind of freaked out by the yellow water and FedEx was a couple hours late, so it was fairly hurried. Just scooped out bag water and added tank water for 10 minutes. Let it attach and then turned flow on.

 

[D-Nak]

I'd keep a close eye on this one. Though iBlueWater claim they QT, there still have been issues with their gigantea. If it deflates even once, move it to QT and treat with Cipro or Septra.

 

[Greg 45]

I would stick with the med that were using
It seen a few company's are using this nitro dip
Don't know if it's something new but it is also for bacterial infections

 

[ajt12]

They made me wait to buy it. So I do believe that they quarantine. Trust me, I am keeping a close eye on it... It has expanded more since the pic and is looking happy.

 

[ajt12]

It has moved down to a crevice and it appears to be fully expanded now.

Video: http://youtu.be/H0mbbqa69wQ

 

[D-Nak]

It has moved down to a crevice and it appears to be fully expanded now.

It's not fully expanded, in terms of tentacle extension, which is why I'm always concerned about newly acclimating gigs. Their owners (please don't take this personally) typically don't know what a healthy gig looks like, so they think it's healthy.

Healthy gigs have tentacles that are at minimum .75" long. Only when a gig appears to look like a shag carpet do I consider them acclimated. They should also have a brown undertone, accented by what ever color the tentacles are, purple in this case. If the nem has a pastel color it usually means it's sick.

Regarding waiting for a nem from iBluewater, it doesn't necessarily mean they're QTing it, just that they don't have it and have an order out for one. I don't mean to sound harsh towards Bill and his operation -- I think he's a smart guy and is very knowledgeable about anemones -- but he's also a businessman and those who I have spoken to about gigs in particular from him don't believe that he QTs them for a month as he claims, in the manner in which he claims. Otherwise they wouldn't have received partially bleached gigs from him. I just don't want other people to think that paying a premium from iBluewater means that they are getting a healthy specimen and not to pay close attention to it when they receive it.

Regardless, I do wish you the best of luck and hope this one pulls through.

 

[ajt12]

It's not fully expanded, in terms of tentacle extension, which is why I'm always concerned about newly acclimating gigs. Their owners (please don't take this personally) typically don't know what a healthy gig looks like, so they think it's healthy.

Healthy gigs have tentacles that are at minimum .75" long. Only when a gig appears to look like a shag carpet do I consider them acclimated. They should also have a brown undertone, accented by what ever color the tentacles are, purple in this case. If the nem has a pastel color it usually means it's sick.

Regarding waiting for a nem from iBluewater, it doesn't necessarily mean they're QTing it, just that they don't have it and have an order out for one. I don't mean to sound harsh towards Bill and his operation -- I think he's a smart guy and is very knowledgeable about anemones -- but he's also a businessman and those who I have spoken to about gigs in particular from him don't believe that he QTs them for a month as he claims, in the manner in which he claims. Otherwise they wouldn't have received partially bleached gigs from him. I just don't want other people to think that paying a premium from iBluewater means that they are getting a healthy specimen and not to pay close attention to it when they receive it.

Regardless, I do wish you the best of luck and hope this one pulls through.

Wow... Gotta love forums. I am not a moderator on here, so all I can do is respectfully ask that you take your personal issues with ibluewater and start a separate thread with them. If you have opinions about the health of the nem and want to offer a constructive comment, great. My estimation regarding being fully expanded was based on ibluewater's measurement -- which was 5.2" inches. It seems about that now.

 

[D-Nak]

I have no personal issues with iBluewater, merely concerns, and it's more about the well-being of the nem. I did offer constructive criticism and I wanted to make you aware that there could be potential issues, so to be on the look out. I post commentary in this forum all time, particularly when it comes to gigantea. If you plan to stick around, then we'll need to get used to each other. :love1:

 

[ajt12]

I have no personal issues with iBluewater, merely concerns, and it's more about the well-being of the nem. I did offer constructive criticism and I wanted to make you aware that there could be potential issues, so to be on the look out. I post commentary in this forum all time, particularly when it comes to gigantea. If you plan to stick around, then we'll need to get used to each other. :love1:

I am respectfully bowing out of further involvement with this thread.

 

[olemiss reb]

Regarding waiting for a nem from iBluewater, it doesn't necessarily mean they're QTing it, just that they don't have it and have an order out for one. I don't mean to sound harsh towards Bill and his operation -- I think he's a smart guy and is very knowledgeable about anemones -- but he's also a businessman and those who I have spoken to about gigs in particular from him don't believe that he QTs them for a month as he claims, in the manner in which he claims. Otherwise they wouldn't have received partially bleached gigs from him. I just don't want other people to think that paying a premium from iBluewater means that they are getting a healthy specimen and not to pay close attention to it when they receive it.

I ordered from Bob a couple years back and the above is spot on. I was in conversations with someone that ordered a blue Gig at the same time and the two stories we got as to why our nems weren't shipping contradicted each other greatly. He eventually got a blue and I got a yellow. I doubt either were QT'd and both died about a month later.

 

[D-Nak]

I am respectfully bowing out of further involvement with this thread.

Please don't bow out. This forum is meant to help. There are plenty of people who read the threads but don't comment. I just want those who read this thread to be aware of what they're getting and that no vendor can guarantee the health of an animal, so to keep an eye on the new acquisition, especially when it comes to gigs. For example, another person purchased a gig from Live Aquaria, a vendor that probably has the best reputation in the industry. They claim to QT as well. Unfortunately, the gig still died, even with careful QT protocols. So, it's buyer beware. I'm not saying not to buy from iBlueWater or Live Aquaria. Bob (not Bill, I was thinking of C-quest for some reason) knows his anemones.

I apologize if you were offended. I just meant to clarify what I thought might be misconceptions. If my hunch is correct, the nem will need treatment within three weeks. There are plenty of people here who can and want to help you.

 

[Reefahholic]

Nice blue!

How much did bob charge you?

 

[TinManx]

I am respectfully bowing out of further involvement with this thread.

Don't do that!!! D-Nak is just passionate about anemones and wants to see them all live a long life!

That anemone is far from acclimated or healthy as evidenced by its lack of pigmentation and short tentacle length. He is just giving you the heads up. You should have some cipro on hand. As soon as it deflates once, start the treatment outlined in the sticky thread above. If it doesn't deflate over the next month, count yourself as one of the lucky few who have gotten healthy gigs that didn't die or require treatment.

 

[MachPilot]

Its tentacle length is short....when its really healthy you will know. It is beautiful though. I wish you the best success as this species is so hard to keep unless you QT them first.

I too am so leery of ordering online after my recent bad luck, so I will watch your thread closely to see how your anemone does.

 

[ajt12]

Apparently this thread lives on without me.

Just a quick history. Before purchasing this gig, I spent a couple of months reading everything, and I mean everything, I could find online about their care and acclimation. I also spoke to several long term owners. So I know what I am getting myself into here. The tank it is in only has the gig, a small bta and a Perc. So it can be converted to a HT in minutes.

Regarding ibluewater, it's not like there are dozens of places you can buy a small puprple gig. Do they QT? Guess we cannot say for certain. However, they sent me videos of my choices so I knew exactly what I was getting. I am very happy with my experience with them.

This is a marathon, not a sprint. So I was a little disappointed that there were so many negative comments a few hours after receiving it. Took this pic this morning. The tentacles are about three times longer than yesterday. It has eaten and continues to show signs of positive progress.

Should it begin deflating, I will seek support elsewhere. Too discouraging to read what people are posting here. However, one month from now I will check back with good news or bad news. My Perc and I will now go back to enjoying our new Nem. It hasn't even been 24 hours yet...

 

[sc50964]

I think this forum is the best one I've participated in. There are more help. Yes sometimes the language could be a bit harsh, especially for new comers, but the intention is mostly good. In this particular thread, I personally don't think the posting was overly harsh.

 

[sc50964]

New Purple Gig

Great looking anemone, BTW.