View Full Version : HELP! hillstream loaches
marinkafuschia
11-27-2008, 3:18 AM
So I did an impulse buy (I know bad idea!) and i ended up with two cuties. Petco called them Borneo catfish, pfft.
I asked the girl working there what they needed and she said they eat alge, ok, and can live in temps of 72-80. I believed her since, ok I really dont know why I belived her!UGH still beating my self up over not researching first:wall:!
I'm home now doing research on them and I'm freaking out since I dont have a air pump (they like fast flowing highly oxeginated water) just a power filter and my water temp is around 76 degrees! I turned my hearter way down already. they look like their doing ok swimming around stuck on the glass, but I know this may not be the best set up for them. I was wondering if people have sucsess stories and if they can be kept comfortably at around 76 (will add air stones as soon as the store opens friday!) or should I just give them back?
Don't fret, mate. Here.
http://www.aquariacentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=151712
Let me know how else I can help you.
plaalye
11-27-2008, 8:33 AM
Usually in this area Borneo suckers or catfish are a mix of gastromyzon species-scitilus,stellatus,occilatus,zebrinus etc. But at Petco who knows? Check the species index at loachesonline for ID. I think I'll check my local Petco today, never seen them there before. Good luck with them, they're one of my favorites.
fishorama
11-27-2008, 9:54 AM
Instead of a air pump & airstone get a power head, LOTS more water movement. They can be ok at 76F but warmer water holds less oxygen.
marinkafuschia
11-27-2008, 11:45 AM
ok so I looked them up to the best of my ability and their Gastromyzon Ocellatus! the problem I have with them is their in my community tank with a ADF ghost shrimp and a bamboo shrimp. plus I would have liked to add a dwarf gourami in there butboth these species wouldnt do well in the same place becasue of their diffrent water requirments, corrrect?
But now that I have them perfect time to set up a river tank! :)! they are incredibly cute!
plaalye
11-27-2008, 1:21 PM
My LFS just got some g.ocellatus also and I bought 2 more along with a g. zebrinas. I have a small 20gal long rivertank for them with plenty of flow. I have experimented with temps and mine seem more active at 78 deg. so that's where I keep them. I have tried to feed everything on the market but have never seen them eat anything other than their constant algae grazing. So make sure they have plenty of good algae and add some current and they should be fine. How big is your tank? Maybe a koralia nano or a maxijet with sponge pre-filter.
http://i192.photobucket.com/albums/z229/bigsky_photos/DSC_4629.jpg
marinkafuschia
11-27-2008, 1:59 PM
my tank is 30 gallons. I was reading on some site about them that since this species is the one most common it is sometimes breed then sold to the LFS, by doing that they have a higher tolerance for hot water. would you say this is true? So as long as I add the extra water flow and air they should be ok at higher temps? will my future gourami freak out at the water flow? sorry I have so many questions, its my 3rd tank besides bettas! :)
plaalye
11-27-2008, 2:39 PM
Don't worry about the questions, that's why we're all here, to learn and share info. I'm no expert, I've been keeping hillstreams for about a year. As far as I know gastromyzons haven't bred in captivity. I get all my info from loachesonline. Some of those folks have been keeping them for many years.
Fish vary even within species as they may come from different regions or watersheds, so we can give general info but it can vary. I raisd and lowered my temp(slowly) and observed the fish as I did and they seemed to be less active at the low 70s, better at 76-78. They are caught in clear fast moving streams with high oxygen and they need plenty of algae to feed on. I think it's our responsibility if we're going to support taking them from the wild to provide an environment that is as close to their natural habitat as possible.
marinkafuschia
11-28-2008, 5:51 PM
yes that is why I'm so concerned! I think people mistreat fishes way too often and I'm determined to try to make their little livs as stress free as possible. their at 75-76 ish and look active and happy, I'm going to try feeding them some algae tabs and see if they take to those, but I'm also growing alge stones as well.
fishorama
11-28-2008, 6:04 PM
Try bloodworms too. Someone here had a recipe for fish foods & egg white that you paint on rocks & let dry. It was for her plecs as I recall but worth a search. Did you look over at loaches.com too?
Plaalye, it seems to me warmer temperature increases their metabolism which explains why they are more active. At this point, they tend to become more hungry looking for food. Dwarf gouramis are fine but you surely don't want to mix stagnant water dwellers with those from fast flowing rivers. Hillies like powerful currents in their tanks.
Marinka, did you read my article? If you take a look at the diet slot, you will find there tips of how to culture algae. It's very simple enough though.:)
DAVIDFBT
11-28-2008, 6:12 PM
I wouldn't put a dwarf gourami in a hillstream loach tank. The DGs don't like current very much.
marinkafuschia
11-28-2008, 8:20 PM
yeah I did. the page on hillstreams didn't give too much info on diet besides putting some rocks in the sun.
cheeseb0y
11-28-2008, 8:57 PM
I had three of some variety awhile ago. Once summer hit and the ambient temp pushed my tanks a little above 80F they all died quickly. Make sure you'll be able to keep the tank cooler. That's the only advice I have. I might try them again now that i'm living somewhere with air conditioning.
yeah I did. the page on hillstreams didn't give too much info on diet besides putting some rocks in the sun.
They can be fed with anything else you can give them actually, just not too much proteins but algae is their primary diet with aufwuches clinging on it included which is why it doesn't say much. They're not really fussy but takes a little while longer to get used to foods.
marinkafuschia
11-29-2008, 2:10 PM
I have the rocks sitting with some frets and fish food right now, and i tried to give them some alge wafers too. well see how that goes, they have been just sticking to the glass and not trying to graze off the wood/plants or rocks. I hope they get their appitite up soon!
marinkafuschia
11-29-2008, 3:50 PM
by the way sorry lupin! didnt mean my second to last post to sound as snappy as it did! lol.
fishorama
11-29-2008, 4:01 PM
Here's what jenn did http://www.aquariacentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=161120&highlight=egg+white for her plec, might help your loaches too. Be nice if they'd eat prepared foods at least sometimes.
marinkafuschia
11-29-2008, 5:08 PM
awesome! I'm going to try that right now as my algae rocks are still growing!
cheeseb0y
11-29-2008, 5:47 PM
I have the rocks sitting with some frets and fish food right now, and i tried to give them some alge wafers too. well see how that goes, they have been just sticking to the glass and not trying to graze off the wood/plants or rocks. I hope they get their appitite up soon!
In the few moths that I had my three, they all spent about 99% of their time on the glass. They were growing, so they were obviously eating something, but they still spent the most time on the front glass which tends to be as devoid of algae buildup as I can keep it.
marinkafuschia
11-29-2008, 6:01 PM
strange. Mine seem to be happy. they have better color than they did when i first bought them so that's a good sign. do you think they may forage after dark? I didn't think they where nocturnal but I hope their getting food somewhere.
marinkafuschia
11-29-2008, 9:39 PM
ok so i got their egg painted rock in there and of course they wont even get off the glass to go check it out! they certainly are frustrating (but cute) fish!
fishorama
11-30-2008, 10:27 AM
Good color is a good sign. There's probably a clear bio-film on the glass unless you're a fanatic cleaner ;) or the tank is newly set up. It often takes a few days for new fish to get comfortable.
I think Jim Powers over at loaches.com feeds blanched kale (or some green I don't eat, lol). Maybe use a veggie clip with a suction cup to put it right on the glass. Try spinach or romaine, if that's what you have, soaked in hot water,maybe with some garlic.
Good luck!
marinkafuschia
11-30-2008, 11:49 AM
great Ill try that too! thanks a lot fishorama!
snoopy65
11-30-2008, 12:20 PM
When I first got my hillstreams I didn't know they liked cooler, fast water. When I found out and before I had a tank for them, I put a bubble curtain in the tank vertically with one end at the bottom of the tank and the other pointing straight up and the aerator hose attached to the bottom end. The loaches loved it as it made lots of movement straight up the tank giving them the illusion of very fast moving water moving over them, but it still left the rest of the tank pretty calm. They would hang out there most of the time letting the air and water move over their bodies. They love the algae on the glass and in time started nibbling on the algae wafers left for them at lights out.