[BrynnaCC]

We all have one!

Mine is the honeycomb catfish I ordered in the mail. It was unseasonably hot out, and the UPS guy had decided that "Live Fish" meant "keep it in a hot truck for hours," so when she arrived, on top of being thin and weak, she was on her back with heat stroke. So I spent the next few days scooping her with my hand and feeding her worms with an eyedropper, and she made a full recovery. But now, whenever I put my hand in the tank to prune, or move something, the fat little mermaid swims out of her tunnel to sit in my hand. She's probably mad at me for not stuffing her face with worms anymore, but I like to think she's being affectionate.

Who's yours?

 

[Camber]

It was unseasonably hot out, and the UPS guy had decided that "Live Fish" meant "keep it in a hot truck for hours,"

Knowing a FedEx driver, they'll never alter their delivery route. They're just trying to get their job done properly. A further expedited delivery option would've been a safer option for you.

My Rainbows like to try and eat my fingers since they see that's where food comes from. My Amanos like to climb on my fingers too!

 

[WaterLife]

Panda Garras in general aren't shy to come over and suck on your hands when they are in the tank.

My personal "Friendliest" fish though was my Jardini Arowana (raised from just a 2" fish and kept him until he was 13" then had to rehome to a friend with a more appropriate huge tank). He would constantly come rub against my hands whenever I would be working in the tank. Kind of didn't want him doing that all the time so I wouldn't compromise his slime coat too much, but never had any issues. He'd even stay still and let me cradle/hold him in place, pet him and even hand feed. He even had some unique characteristics, he would swim through decorations in the tank as an obstacle course, maneuvering his body in crazy snake-like ways. I would frequently rearrange the decorations and he'd run swim laps through them, even changing course, doing it in reverse or changing it up and go different directions. He also would often do the same exact dance that Clown Loaches would do (pretty much swim up and down the glass in a "S"/Zig-Zag pattern). The sight was pretty cool to see his long knife-like body be so flexible and his scales reflecting the light as his body would bend at different angles. I had not trained him to do any of these "tricks", it was all his doing. Most human interactive fish I have ever kept (and I've kept thousands and thousands of fish). And I've had quite a few other Arowanas in the past and none of them were as human-interactive as this individual.

Really great fish! I need to visit him again soon. It's been a year since I've seen him and gave him to my friend. Would be interesting to see if he behaves that way with my friend or if he'd remember me at all. Not sure I'd stick my hands back in the tank though to try and pet him (he's likely huge and muscle-packed, so a snap at my hand wouldn't be very pleasing haha).

For those of you that have read about my Arowana jumping out of the tank (he was trying to snatch a fly that kept landing on the glass lid) and being nearly dead when I came home to him on the floor (dried out and almost no sign of life), but I acted quick and saved him, this is the same Arowana. He still had the same human interaction as before that incident, so more proof he did not have any brain or sight damage.

My German Blue Rams are pretty interactive, but nothing comes close to my Jardini Aro.

 

[FuzzyCrawdad]

I have four.

First off is Queen the crayfish. I've only had her a couple months, and for most of it I've thought her dead, but last week (after the removal of the tilapia... coincidence? ) she reappeared and she's easily got the largest personality in the tank (housing koi and comets)! I have a mangrove root that has a hollow bulb on the top with three openings. She normally has her one-clawed front half sticking out the side hole, as if she's a Queen addressing her subjects, but if I offer her an algae wafer with tweezers she takes it so gently. She's even started taking it upside down so that if she drops it, it lands on her face instead of in Monstro's mouth. If she sees me approaching the tank (or feels?) she'll scramble up to her perch to wait, and she likes climbing my arm. I have yet to be pinched by her, and I hope to keep it that way.

Secondly is Dubloon. I've raised her since she was a tiny yellow squiggle. She's a dojo loach, with large brown patches that have developed all over her body and head, giving her a rather unique look. I can't get anything done in her tank, since as soon as my hand is in the water she's wiggling over and writhing through my fingers like many connected living rings. I treat her like she's made of glass since a case of Ich nearly took her, and she's been especially affectionate since Paddle, her mate, died. But she's by far the friendliest fish I've ever met.

Lastly, are Monstro and Sarasa the sarasa comets. They and Dubloon share a tank, so I commonly have yellow rings and orange gloves on if my fish have anything to say about it. My brother and I caught Monstro and Sarasa in a flow-through years ago. Monstro will rest in my hand if I cup it (and he's a biggun), while Sarasa just swims in circles around it. I like to think they appreciate being removed from the flow-through and put in the safe, stable environs of a tank.

Fish like these are the main reason I love the hobby so much and keep getting more. Having a fish just bursting in personality really destroys the mindset that fish are easy, boring pets, and while constant contact with them can become dangerous, I still feel special that my fish allow it.

 

[BrynnaCC]

Knowing a FedEx driver, they'll never alter their delivery route. They're just trying to get their job done properly. A further expedited delivery option would've been a safer option for you.

My Rainbows like to try and eat my fingers since they see that's where food comes from. My Amanos like to climb on my fingers too!

Oh yeah, I switched to FedEx after that. They're much more reliable. I'd used UPS before for non-live things and they tended to show up fairly early in the morning, but just to make sure, I used the most expedited option you could get on UPS, and was given an 8am delivery time. It was 2pm when the guy showed up. No more UPS for me.

Also, I love the occasional shrimp climber!

 

[Nazdaq]

my dwarf puffer has more personality than i would ever have imagined. I have him on a nano on my desk where i spend alot of my time, every now and then he pops up and says hi. or begging for food or sometimes just scanning with his big round eyes. He is very curious and also not afraid, i can pat his back with my finger. He seems to enjoy life, but i feel bad for keeping him in a 5g, might get a bigger tank for him.

 

[BrynnaCC]

my dwarf puffer has more personality than i would ever have imagined. I have him on a nano on my desk where i spend alot of my time, every now and then he pops up and says hi. or begging for food or sometimes just scanning with his big round eyes. He is very curious and also not afraid, i can pat his back with my finger. He seems to enjoy life, but i feel bad for keeping him in a 5g, might get a bigger tank for him.

I love my dwarf puffer, too! She's so inquisitive. Her tank sits on my kitchen bar so she watches me cook. She's not into touching the way yours is, but she's definitely one of my most interactive fish.

 

[Freemananana]

My Rosaline sharks would swim up to the glass if I walked by. They would all sit pretty and stair at me while I cleaned the glass or anything like that. Really good fish! I had about 8 or 9 of them and they were just the cat's meow. I loved them.

 

[AWolf]

Bettas. Just bettas. They are very trainable. I can catch mine without a net. They swim into my hand. They learn your hand if you put it in the tank often and leave it in there so they can check it out and bite on it. I wonder if they would know if it was a stranger's hand? I'll have to talk someone into sticking their hand in my tank and being bit by Bettas. I have sons that are grown men, and are afraid of this little fish bite. :} So funny. It can really pinch and is so fast that you can't get out of the way. Sometimes I pull my arm out and the betta is still attached!!! They are like the pit bulls of freshwater fish. Too cute. (Visions of bettas hanging off my arm. Wearable art?)

 

[garfieldnfish]

I would have to vote for goldfish. I was able to pet mine. Only fish I ever named.

 

[ct60g]

My guppies are super friendly. I have three that just cruise around the tank and never pick on any of the other fish (when they aren't napping). They love people, and follow you if you walk past the tank.

 

[thedood]

Red Top Labidochromis sp hongi. Gorgeous fish, lots of personality.

 

[Freemananana]

I guess I should throw this out there: Koi. I've seen many people hand feed them and pet them. They are literally water dogs. I've even pet other people's Koi.

 

[Axelrodi202]

How do you define friendly? Cardinal tetras were certainly enthusiastic about hand-feeding and recognized me as their food-provider, but when it came to feeding time they definitely weren't particularly friendly to each other or other fish. Marbled hatchets played a bit nicer and were also amenable to hand-feeding.

 

[GrampsGrunge]

Had a macropodus ocellatus, Round-tail Paradise fish in a 15 gallon tank that would eat pellets from my fingers. He also liked to help me adjust the forest of Water Sprite in his tank. He'd swim ahead of my hand, and direct where the plant I was holding should go. Funny because later he'd spend the rest of his time just lazing in the fronds of the plants I didn't bother to move. Under-rated fish, and quite intelligent. I'm surprised more Betta owners haven't tried them. They 're one of the first aquarium fish to be kept (..back in Victorian times.), they tolerate cooler temperatures and are OK with smaller tankmates.

 

[BrynnaCC]

How do you define friendly? Cardinal tetras were certainly enthusiastic about hand-feeding and recognized me as their food-provider, but when it came to feeding time they definitely weren't particularly friendly to each other or other fish. Marbled hatchets played a bit nicer and were also amenable to hand-feeding.

I guess it's open to interpretation but my definition of friendly is the fish that cozy up to you when you're doing maintenance, etc. All my fish get excited for food, of course, but there are a few who also seem to want attention.

 

[jackmerius27]

Peacock Gudgeon is mine

 

[seove]

The Blind Cave Tetras [because the are blind? ;-) ] and the small Dojo Loaches (fearless and friendly).

 

[pmcarbrey]

Saltwater, my big male cross hatch trigger is by far my friendliest fish, he'll eat right out of my hand and likesee having his side rubbed occasionally