I need another fish or two to as a final touch to my tank--but what?

[TeaPea]

Well, I thought I was stocked on my 29G with the addition of a school of Cardinals last month--but they all died. So I added 5 platy's and called it a day, but two of them died (they're the ones that brought ich to my tank, which I have cured).

Now that everyone's healthy and happy I think my tank needs one or two more "feature fish", but I just can't decide what!! The problem with my current set up, alot of times when you look in the tank you literally see nothing but my one lone leopard Danio swimming around. It needs a fish that isn't shy! My husband thinks we should get a few more Danio's since they're always visable but they just aren't atttractive to me. Plus they can be annoyingly fast swimmers.

Here's what I have now:
29G:
2 dwarf Gouarmies (They spend most of the day sitting up top)
3 Sun wag Platy's (spend alot of time in the plastic plants)
4 Cory Cat's (When they're active they are so cute but when they're resting they literally look dead!)
1 Bushynose Pleco (I hardly ever see him at all!)
1 lone Leopard Danio (who was supposed to go back to lfs a long time ago but I couldn't catch him!)

Please don't suggest more neons or cardinals because I was heartbroken when they all died. I want something fairly hardy, I'm a first timer ya know! Other than that I'm open to suggestions! Thanks alot guys!:)

[JamisonBWolsh]

Any fish in the RAINBOW family is nice Ex: Boeseman rainbow (male is Very colorfull). or sone dwarf neon Rainbows.

[Sum-X]

You could go with boesemanis... But if it's schollers you're looking for...I'd say, add 4 - 5 celebes rainbows (very pretty, schoolers) and you're good to go.. ;)

[Faramir]

I don't think very lively fish will be appreciated by the gouramis. Something more sedate is probably called for. I have a school of bleeding heart tetras in my 48" planted tank and they look awesome - very visible, very attractive.

[JamisonBWolsh]

Those are nice too..... anything from the Rainbow family is nice. They are one of the few australian fish...

They breed every morning (mine does anyway) and show their colors off the best at this time of the day. For the boesimans, its a BRilliand orange yello color in the back and a spectacular blue color in front and many colors in between.

[FishmasteR2002]

You have one Leopard Danio? Hmmm get oh about another 11 and you should be good. I had 12 Zebra Danios in my 29G and they were everywhere!! If you want a feature fish, get a rainbow fish or a blue eye. I have a forktailed Blue eye in my 20G and he is one of the prettiest fish I have ever seen. Their pectoral(sp?) fins are clear with a yellow strip at the top of the fin and it looks like wings. It looks like he flies around the tank rather than swim.

[dwayne]

Can't go wrong with Zebra Danios. I bought 5 in July of 2001 and 4 of them are still alive and well! They're very zippy little guys, and will add lots of motion to the mid/top of your tank!

[Faramir]

...which will totally freak out the dwarf gouramis. I would not put fast moving surface fish in this tank.

[Pootspete]

Maybe a few Serpaes would add some redish/orange color to your tank.

[val]

Very hardy, go well with gouramis, inhabit the middle of the tank. Cichlids are usually mentioned as needing a dither fish, to keep them out and about, and I found out the same was true with dwarf gouramis. Barbs make great dither fish, they are esay to feed, easy to sex (the males have a black ridge on a reddish dorsal fin), fairly available, and the colors are rich, yet subtle.

My favorite shoaling fish...

Val

[TeaPea]

Thank you for all the great suggestions. I appreciate them all. I looked up the fish you all reccomended and like the looks of the boesamani rainbow alot. Does anybody know if they are particularly hardy, and if they are readily available. (I'm going to take a trip to lfs store later but was just wondering if they're rare since I've never noticed them there before).

[bettaman]

What about a smaller rainbow or red-tailed shark?

[TeaPea]

Bettaman: I've considered these two as I think they look great but they are too agressive and from what I hear they spend alot of time in hiding. I've asked about them here in the past and got some negative feedback...

[val]

Here's a good word about red tailed black sharks, a great fish with scads of personality. I've had two, neither of them hid, and they weren't particularly aggressive, although they are reputed to be aggressive if kept with their own kind. One of the big concerns with a bullying-type of fish is that it might hog all the food and disrupt the other fish that way. You know, I never saw the RTBSs that I had eat. Ever. I had my first one for four years and the second one for a year before I traded him for 40 neons. A really fine fish. Mine left my dwarf gouramis alone.

Val

[bettaman]

True, they look great but tend to be aggressive, I actually had to remove my rainbow shark because he kept shoving my cory cats and clown loaches.

[Archer]

What about a couple of angelfish?
They are fairly hardy and smart fish, always aware of people when approached. They eagerly wait near the front of the tank when feeding time, like puppies wagging their tails. Lots of personality.

[TeaPea]

Archer: I do kind of like them but had ruled them out because I thought they were territorial and aggresive. Would they get too big for a 29G? And would I be overstocked with my exsisting fish?

[redwing]

As much as I love my bosemani rainbow school IMHO your tank is to small for a group. They grow to about 4 inches each. How about dwarf neon rainbows(melanotaenia praecox)? They stay small 2-3" and have nice colors. Just remember when you look at rainbows at lfs that when the fish mature they will be 10 times more colorful!
My bosemani rainbows have been with dwarf gouramis and swords with no problems. There is no doubt that my female rainbows rule the tank!

[Archer]

Originally posted by TeaPea
Archer: I do kind of like them but had ruled them out because I thought they were territorial and aggresive. Would they get too big for a 29G? And would I be overstocked with my exsisting fish?

Usually, they get aggressive only when breeding.
Otherwise, they're mostly a good community fish, IME.
Sure, you get an occasional bully, especially if you get them when they're fully grown. If you get them when they're pretty small, they usually behave better.

I have 4 medium angels in my 25G (I got them when they're small) with several cardinal tetras, and they're doing well. The angels never bother the tetras.

I suggest getting at least 4 small ones since they like to school when young. When they're grown a bit, you can just keep 1 or 2, and should be OK in your 29G, IMO. They're much easier to catch than your danios. :)

Here's a nice link on angelfish:
http://www.aquahobby.com/gallery/gangel.html

[Shibbies]

Give your platies time...ours will almost eat out of our hands and always come to the top/front of the tanks when we walk by. As for another fish, I would suggest some type of swordtail....they're friendly towards other tankmates and can add some more life to your aquarium....we have 3 swordtails and 5 various platies( 17 if you include the babies!) in our 29g and they make for a nice arrangement.

Good Luck!

[NJ Devils Fan]

If you want color, maybe get a few painted tetras.

[goldfries]

hehe.

1. Betta Splenden - might have conflict with your gouramis. my betta worked well staying with my pearl gouramis. hope yours can too.

2. swordtails - beautiful and bright addition to the tank. put like 3 or 4 inside. 1:1 or 1:3 ratio of male to female. Add some think plants and you might have more swordtails in no time.

[Ashes]

NJ Devils Fan - I do hope you were joking about the painted tetras! Aren't they dyed like painted glassfish?