GEORGE HENDERSON : MEET AN AQUARIST SERIES by Howard Norfolk

George Henderson’s nickname at work is “Jungle George”, and when I visited his home recently, I could clearly see why! George, his wife Cathy, and their three children Sarah, Ashley and Dillan, live on a 1½ acre hobby farm in a suburb of Vancouver Canada, surrounded by pet animals of many kinds, and they must surely hold some kind of record for number and variety of mouths to feed !

George with Ashley and African pygmy goats

The living room is largely devoted to fish, about which more later, although it is also frequented by the little house dog Jessie, and three cats (one of which just had kittens). The kitchen/family room is dominated by a very large bird cage, the territory of Charlie, an African grey parrot. Opposite Charlie are cages for a lovebird and a budgerigar. More lovebirds, and cockatiels, are bred in the basement. Dillan, the Henderson’s seven year old son, keeps goldfish in his bedroom, and also hamsters and gerbils.

The real action begins when one steps outside. Immediately behind the house is a large dog run containing three rottweilers. George’s original rottweiler died, so he went to the SPCA for another. He found they had two, and one would have been destroyed if it couldn’t find a home, so kind-hearted George adopted both. The female subsequently had twelve pups, and George kept one of them, which recently had pups of her own.

Near the dog run is a small pond of 300 gallons, filtered by two Laguna filters. Here George keeps koi and goldfish.

The property’s previous owner used to breed Arabian horses, and the stables remain. They are now filled with rabbit cages, which daughters Ashley and Sarah breed and sell to pet stores. The stable yard is a hive of activity, and when George approaches, a dozen African pygmy goats come running up to be stroked and fed, closely followed by a couple of dozen geese and goslings and two types of domestic duck. Chickens run around underfoot, but are mainly kept in an outdoor chicken run. George is also currently incubating seventy black Jersey giant chickens.

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George’s interest in pets began early. He had his first fish tank at the age of seven, and, by the way, his first mishap. He bought two catfish but they wouldn’t move around enough for young George, so he tapped on the glass to stir them up – but a little too enthusiastically since he broke the glass ! He got away with it by blaming it on his younger brother.

George soon started hanging around his local pet store, until he got a part time job and then a full time one. At the age of fifteen he was given the responsibility for ordering fish, of which he was very proud, and by the age of eighteen he was managing the store. Leaving the pet business for a while, he bought a truck and worked ten years for a cartage company, and then he spent another five years with his own cartage company. Then briefly back to the pet business around 1990 for a year at another pet store, before starting his current job as a dispatcher for his local City Works Yard.

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86 gallon community aquarium

George has tried many aspects of our hobby in his time, including breeding angelfish and keeping salt water aquariums, but he has always appreciated the beauty and interest of large well planted display tanks with a variety of community fish. That is what he has now: four impeccably maintained display aquariums in his living room.

Upon entering the room one first sees an 86 gallon tank on a wooden cabinet stand. As with most of his tanks and equipment, George bought this second-hand. George made the wooden light canopy himself and the tank is well lit, with a Power Glow and three 5000k plant tubes. The plants are set in gravel mixed with sand, and with laterite underneath. George is a member of his local aquatic plant club, and gets many of his plants, including some rare ones, through exchanges at its meetings. Filtration is by a Fluval 303, plus a power head with sponge filter. The tank has a C02 injection system. Fish are numerous, and included are platies, cardinals, cherry barbs, whiptail cats, flying foxes, Siamese algae eaters, otocynclus, red tail sharks, zebra danios, and angels.

48 gallon community aquarium

Opposite the above tank is one of 48 gallons. Like the large tank it is well lit and filtered, and it is serviced with C02. It used to hold breeding discus, but recently while George was away, a cat knocked over the C02 bottle, which disrupted the system and killed the discus. The tank is again very heavily planted and contains many fish, with an emphasis on livebearers. George is particularly fond of livebearers since they reproduce readily and keep his tanks stocked with home bred fish.

Underneath the 48 gallon tank is a 27 gallon double hexagonal tank, again with a variety of community fish and plants. The plants in this tank do not do quite as well as in the others since it is not lit quite so brightly.
George’s fourth display is a 20 gallon tall tank near the window. It has a built-in Eclipse filter.
Finally, an unusual coffee table ornament is two fishbowls complete with male bettas, which incidentally the cats find to be handy drinking bowls! George went to the wedding of one of his aquarist friends, and these were part of the banqueting table displays. Seating was at random, and it was announced that anyone who found fish food taped underneath their chair won a fish bowl. Naturally George ended up with two!

Clockwise: hexagonal tank, 48 gallon tank, George with Charlie the parrot, Betta bowls

How he finds the time I don’t know, but George has interests other than his pets. He is a keen ice-hockey fan, and also likes to spend time with his computer and digital camera. He also frequently gets away “to drink beer” at his trailer in a family camp ground in the B.C. mountains. Recently whilst fishing in the Fraser River, he caught a four foot long sturgeon (which of course was released).