News & Updates

Ever tried to eat just one Pringle Chip?
Ever tried to go through life with one pair of Nikes?
Not possible …right?

With the emergence of Covid and the lockdowns either Government issued or self-imposed Pet Keeping has exploded in Australia and indeed around the world.

One of those hobbies comes with an issue!

A syndrome that existed in the world pre Covid has gone to greater heights over the past year because we are stuck at home. The syndrome is known as MTS. There is no known cure and sufferers will continue in silence not knowing when the condition will end. 

So, what is MTS?

It is known as Multiple Tank Syndrome and is a condition that touches all Tropical Fish Keepers and Fish Breeders. 

It begins with a single aquarium and even just a single fish. As your interest in fish keeping begins the syndrome begins to infiltrate, you discover new species of fish that the pet store says cannot be kept together so you need a separate tank, so you get a second tank and a third and a fourth and…you get the idea. As the syndrome takes hold of you, space become a major issue. You want bigger tanks but cannot throw away the smaller ones.

Keep them at Kennards!

The type of people at risk of developing MTS would be anyone with a mild interest in fish keeping. I started with a single goldfish, … I suspect the goldy was carrying MTS when I purchased it, there is no way to confirm the source through contact tracing. For other people, it could have started visiting the local aquarium, out shopping, walking past a pet store and see the window display. The syndrome is highly addictive, and strikes when you least expect it.

MTS is not just limited to having multiple tanks, sufferers also feel the need to own anything to do with aquariums – lights, filters, heaters, plants, substrate, décor, rocks, driftwood. Then there are the bottles:  medications, test kits, water conditioners, fertilizers, and more. You need nets, siphons, buckets, air pumps, random containers, Co2 tanks, diffusers, and drop checkers – there are no limits!



As the symptoms of the syndrome progress suffers move down the rabbit hole to an area that has no restraints. They want the newest technology for their tanks. Better lights and filters, inline heaters and co2 diffusers – the cooler it is the more they want it. Your fish must have best and at times the most expensive food to survive even though you have had them for a year eating the supermarket fish food. Your mind plays tricks on you, convincing you they need live food, frozen food, colour enhanced food …..there is no end!



But where do you store all the older tanks and technology that you cannot bring yourself to throw out? That’s where Kennards Self Storage come into it … secure, cheap storage units open 24hrs, 7 days a week, should you need that extra heater, filter or extra tank cause your prize fish just dropped 200 babies overnight. 

Rent online here today 

People who suffer from MTS will spend hours replanting plants, rearranging fish, and changing water.  If you know someone with MTS, you can offer them help, but most of those afflicted with the illness will not want you anywhere near their fish, tanks, or piles of supplies. Back away slowly, speak in a calm, reassuring voice, and get out of their way ASAP.

If you live with someone with MTS, the best way to keep them comfortable is allow them to enjoy their hobby. If you deny them what they want, the chances are they will become agro, not a pretty site. 

Try not to comment when you think they are in the process of setting up YET another aquarium, pretend to be interested, smile, nod at appropriate intervals, and do not make direct eye contact.

I am convinced that MTS is contagious, as in the past few months my own son has set up two tanks in his bedroom, he was also spotted in the sunroom last week with a tape measure in his hand, I think I infected him in one of my many babbling sessions.

 If the syndrome becomes too much to handle by yourself there are plenty of support groups available in the community their called pet shops, where you can find like-minded sufferers spilling their hearts out to each other, but if that fails your close enough for a quick fix, buying another tank. 

Got too much, don’t forget to Keep it at Kennards. 



Author: Mark Shepherd, Kennards Self Storage Newcastle West