Clown loaches don't come out

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Jan 29, 2007
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I brought 7 clown loaches into my tank 3 days ago. Until then there were only 15 tiger barbs. Loaches were getting along with the barbs wery well.
Last night we changed ca 20% of water. GH and PH remained the same. In the morning I saw 6 loaches swimming, during the day they kept disappearing. Now I turned off the lights but they wouldn't come out at all any more...Is this some sort of normal loach behaviour or should I do something?
 
You should buy them an alarm clock. They probably overslept.

No, seriously, I wouldn't be worried too much. Can you see the loach pile in the cave?
 
Clown loaches are notorious for being really shy. The only reason you saw them at first might be because they were panicking looking for a place to hide in their new environment. Drop in a bottom feeder tablet or a piece of one every other night just before lights out and give them a couple weeks, they'll come around. Promise :-)
 
They may take a while to get comfortable. Mine dont often come out into the open unless thier getting hungry. But my tank is heavily planted and even though they dont come out it the open, they often forage around through the plants and you can still see them. The oldest of them are about 2 years old now and they will still dart away if you walk by the tank to fast or hold up a camera. But if I sit infront of the tank they will usually come front and center and beg for food.
 
My two clowns are great - they come and ask for food, they get involved with the rest of the community, BUT they spend a lot of time in a cave and at around 9pm they simly go into the cave, lay on their sides and go to bed!

have another question though - how do I catch them? I want to move them from a 66 gallon tank to a100 gallon, but the htought of trying to catch them......! Any suggestions gratefully received!
 
Well, that would depend on your tank really. When I have had to catch them I have placed my extra large net in the tank near one of the normal exit routes they take. Left it in there for an hour so they get used to seing it. Then I take a smaller net and corral them into the larger one. If there being very difficult about the only other way I know is to drop the water level down almost all the way, to like 6 inches, and remove all items out of the tank. Then with the big net and another normal sized net shouldnt be to hard to catch anything.
 
Wait til they go into the cave, throw a net over the entrance and move them cave and all.
 
the more hiding places there are in your tank, the more likely you are to see them because they'll be happier and feel safe knowing it is easy for them to hide again
 
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