View Full Version : otto and neon
i bought one otto cat yesterday to accompany my other two otto cats in the tank because i heard they like to be groups. it went well and i saw the three of them happily chasing each other, eating together and staying on the same leaf. but when i got home today two otto cats were died. and i suspect they were my first two otto cats and not the one i just bought! what happen?? can someone tell me?
also i have two rams in my tank. is it them who are nipping my neon tetra's tail? what will stop them? must i move them out?
thanks for all the help!
cdawson
08-19-2003, 11:04 AM
First off, how big is your tank? It doesn't sound very big, because all those fish should happily live together. However, depending on the species of ram you have. You have to remember that they are cichlids and have the typical cichlid attitude when it comes down to it. I would say that most likely your rams killed the two ottos and having been trying to kill the neons, but can't catch them.
wetmanNY
08-19-2003, 11:06 AM
There are too many reasons for newly-acquired Otocinclus to die to hazard a guess from a distance. After a group have acclimated for a month, they'll be much hardier, IME.
Rams aren't generally fin nippers. Ragged fins are more usually a combination of minor ectoparasites followed by fungi and bacteria that take advantage of compromised fin edges, also IME.
cdawson
08-19-2003, 11:26 AM
What are the water parameters in the tank? How long has it been up and running?
i have a two feet tank. about 45 litres? my rams i'm not sure what type they are but according to the lfs they said that they can live in a community tank with no problems. one of them is orange the other is pale with black strips. my ammonia is 0, nitrite is 0, pH is 7. my tank has been running for perhaps 1-2 weeks. actually it is an establish tank of 5 months plus just that bubbles started coming out of the gravel. so redid the whole tank but the filter media was saved. my first 2 ottos managed to surivive through the whole transition but upon the addition of one new otto on monday, the next day they died! i have really no idea how this happened! i really loves my first 2 ottos.. =(
cdawson
08-20-2003, 10:47 AM
It sounds like the tank is re-cycling. When did you last test the water?
cdawson
08-20-2003, 10:25 PM
I've seen rams down right attack other fish to death so it's possible that happened. Ottos are basically a smaller version of a pleco so what a pleco is capable of, I would guess an otos is as well. Anyone have any thoughts? would an oto attack another?
it's possible the new oto went rogue =)
its a bolivian ram if i am not wrong. and i realize my 2 albino corys has also been nipped on the fins!! i have no idea what else to do either then feeding them excess so that they won't be hungry and nip my other fishes or buy another tank to put them in!
what would you suggest?
thanks!
wetmanNY
08-21-2003, 9:38 AM
Fin-nipping isn't related to hunger in any way.
And not all fin erosion is due to nipping by other fish. Often it is a secondary infection of bacteria and Saprolegnia after single-cell parasites have broken the tissue surface.
Are the barbels on the albino Cories "wearing down"?
LMOUTHBASS
08-21-2003, 2:27 PM
woul you put cichlids in with community fish???
wetmanNY : nope the barbels are not wearing down. in fact they are perfectly normal except for the fact their top fins are nipped. should i
a) take them out and medicate them?
b) medicate the whole tank?
c) leave them alone and see if the fins grow back and if after a few days it doesn't then go to (a)?
LMOUTHBASS: my sister saw them in the lfs and she though they were beautiful. one of them is a butterfly ram the other a bolivian if i am not wrong. apparently the lfs told her that they were perfect for community tanks. after they were bought i also went online to check what species they are and whether they are aggresive. apparently most websites say they can be kepts in commnunty tanks as well! when i first had them i also had many corys. they never attack anyone including the neons tetras i had! it was only after my tank had some trouble (bubble in gravel) and i took them out to spare tanks (they only nipped the neon tetras in the holding tank) and put them back that they started nipping the two lone albino corys as well as the neon tetras! this sudden weird change of behavior caught me by surprise. so i ended up giving away the bolivian ram which was attacking my corys. i am still holding on to the bolivian ram. if it starts nipping (i;ve never seen it nip before) then i'll have to try and find someone else to take them!