View Full Version : ut oh, pictus catfish ate my neons?
Importskyline22
10-09-2006, 2:01 PM
Ok...i had 4 neons and 2 sunburst dwarf platies in my tank the other day.
I looked last night and there was 1 sunbust missing and 1 neon missing....and i look again today, i havea n other neon missing.
Did he eat them?he is about 2.5 to 3in. long...
Thanks
blackwolfXKAV
10-09-2006, 2:05 PM
Yes, they are known for consuming smaller fishes such as your tetras.
I would either return him or use the remaining fish as feeders and set up a pictus tank.
What size tank?
Importskyline22
10-09-2006, 2:07 PM
crap. those were my g/f's fav. fish in there lol
its a 10g. I know i know too small for him. But i was gonna put him in my dads 55g when he got too big.
-sky
blackwolfXKAV
10-09-2006, 2:10 PM
what fish does he have in the 55?
fishcatch22
10-09-2006, 2:12 PM
yep, pictus is the muncher, no doubt about that. like he said, what fish are in your father's 55g?
Importskyline22
10-09-2006, 2:14 PM
hmm....
5x lemon t.
1x Neon (his 11 friends died because of issue)
2x clown loaches
2x gold fish(one with a big body and long fins, and other with a slim body and long fins(with a red dot on its head))
*2x red platties
*1x micky mouse platty
*1x long finned rosy barb
*1x guppy
the ones with stars came from my tank when i relized it was way over stocked.
fishcatch22
10-09-2006, 2:20 PM
well, I beleive your father should get rid of the comet goldfish, it would get too big for his tank, ditto on the clowns but you can wait a while on them. the fancy goldfish is fine, dispite popular beleif they do just fine in tropical tanks and mix fine with tropical fish. my mom had a pearlscale live in a 55g tank with a trinidad pleco for years. also, you pictus is gonna have a grand time munching on all those little fish in your dads 55.....
Importskyline22
10-09-2006, 2:24 PM
also, you pictus is gonna have a grand time munching on all those little fish in your dads 55.....
lol! Well half the fish that were in my aquarium i didnt want much neways (g/f wanted tons of fish....so i had to make her happy)
one of my LFS could give me store credit for him possibly.
The main fish i want to keep are my tiger barb, maybe more of them.....and id love to get several moer neons. And something small to patrol the bottom and a snail or 2.
-sky
fishcatch22
10-09-2006, 2:33 PM
tiger barbs get too big for a 10... and the less you have, the more likely they'll attack you other fish. my suggestions are: get 5 more neons, and maybe a small gourami, such as a dwarf. for a bottom feeder, you could go with a small pleco like a bristlenose, or a khulii loach, though some say you need to get at least three of them... ( I don't hold that standing, i've kept many a khulii alone.)
Importskyline22
10-09-2006, 2:42 PM
Alright. Well i guess i will get the catfish outta there. Get more neons as you said. I did see a really pretty dwarf gorumi at the LFS that the peeps there directed me to. I have also wanted the pleco as you mentioned. I will keep my tiger barb in there by himself. He is my buddy, been with me since day 1 :)
What about a snail? yay or nay?
fishcatch22
10-09-2006, 2:46 PM
like I said, tiger barbs are pretty agressive alone, and they are lonely too. I think the best thing for your little buddy is to give him back to the LFS so he can be in a big tank w/his own kind before he snaps and stars kicking the crud out of your other fish. a snail would be fine. try to establish some hitchiker snials in there, they are great at eating algae. make sure you get a small type pleco and not a common one. like I said bristlenose would be good; aso would a clown.
jm1212
10-09-2006, 2:52 PM
fancy gold fish do not do well with tropical fish because they need different foods and the tropical fish will out compete them. if you feed a goldfish a high protien diet, they are going to have problems later in life like constipation, etc., and the tropical fish like tetras, do well with the protien in their diets. your mothers pearl scale did fine with a pleco because plecos are vegetarians and dont compete with it for food at the surface.
fishcatch22
10-09-2006, 2:55 PM
fancy gold fish do not do well with tropical fish because they need different foods and the tropical fish will out compete them. if you feed a goldfish a high protien diet, they are going to have problems later in life like constipation, etc., and the tropical fish like tetras, do well with the protien in their diets. your mothers pearl scale did fine with a pleco because plecos are vegetarians and dont compete with it for food at the surface.I know, I meant that they do fine in tropical temperatures,and his fathers fish don't seem like the kind that would out compete his goldfish, and you can always target feed them, or put softed veggies in ther for them. many tropical fish commoly kept together have very different dietary needs also.
kraemerwa2003
10-09-2006, 2:55 PM
leopard plecos are nice and small too. They are a little expensive ($13 for mine) but it is great at getting it's job done and doesn't get too big at all.
CaptnDan
10-09-2006, 5:42 PM
(g/f wanted tons of fish....so i had to make her happy)Aw come on... Be the man here! Tell her how it's going to be, your mind's made up, and that's that, because you are the man! That's how it works at my house.
(Please don't tell my wife) :joke:
I think you're on the right track taking the catfish back. A lot of people don't think of a catfish as being predatory. People have this idea that catfish are lazy, laid back, and slow, like they are in cartoons or something.
Catfish are very efficient eating machines. They have an amazing ability to turn food into body mass. Unfortunately, they sometimes like to eat body mass that we would prefer they leave alone.
OK, these seems like as good a time as any to break my n00b silence and jump into the fray.
I've recently added a pictus to my 20 gallon, and he seems to be doing great. We talked with our LFS about the temperment of the pictus, and understood that they are "marginally" agressive. Last night we noticed that the two fantail goldfish in that tank seem to have had their tails nipped. So much for "marginally" agressive. We've already got one agressive tank with a couple JD's, a pink convict and a crayfish... so we're not really looking to start another agressive tank. I'm hoping that someone here might have some insight into dealing with this pictus and what, if any, non agressive fish might cohabitate well with him. I guess I should add that he's relatively small at this point... 2-3" at the most.
Thanks for any help/advice!
fishcatch22
10-11-2006, 3:03 PM
OK, these seems like as good a time as any to break my n00b silence and jump into the fray.
I've recently added a pictus to my 20 gallon, and he seems to be doing great. We talked with our LFS about the temperment of the pictus, and understood that they are "marginally" agressive. Last night we noticed that the two fantail goldfish in that tank seem to have had their tails nipped. So much for "marginally" agressive. We've already got one agressive tank with a couple JD's, a pink convict and a crayfish... so we're not really looking to start another agressive tank. I'm hoping that someone here might have some insight into dealing with this pictus and what, if any, non agressive fish might cohabitate well with him. I guess I should add that he's relatively small at this point... 2-3" at the most.
Thanks for any help/advice!well... I hate to say this, but your tank is way too small for any of those fish full grown. to keep all those fish together as adults, you would need a 75g, maybe more, those fanitails will top 8" and the pictus can get to about 10", I think. I doubt the catfish is the nipper, as they don't have small enough jaws to nip effectively, and their mouths are turned downward in most cases. most likely your goldfish are turing on each other because your tank is too small. also, you should make your own thread on this subject. posting in someone elses thread asking for help while they are is known as hijacking.
well... I hate to say this, but your tank is way too small for any of those fish full grown.
Understood. All are small at this point, and the plan is to acquire a larger tank before they outgrow this one.
most likely your goldfish are turing on each other because your tank is too small.
A 20 gallon too small for a couple goldfish? You've got to be kidding. They are less than 2" at this point. They have plenty of room. They were moved to the 20 gallon from a much smaller tank, and had no issues with agressiveness in that tank. Just how much room do you think 2 small fantails need?
also, you should make your own thread on this subject. posting in someone elses thread asking for help while they are is known as hijacking.
Thank you for the internet lesson, oh wise one.
:bowing:
fishcatch22
10-11-2006, 3:30 PM
A 20 gallon too small for a couple goldfish? You've got to be kidding. They are less than 2" at this point. They have plenty of room. They were moved to the 20 gallon from a much smaller tank, and had no issues with agressiveness in that tank. Just how much room do you think 2 small fantails need?yes, way too small, unless of course you want them to be stunted and die an early, painful death. you just asked a question, and I gave the wholly acknowleged answer that you would get from anyone else here. and they won't be "less than 2"" of long. they'll outgrow that tank in a few months. 2 young fantails (there is no such thing as small with goldfish, it's young.) would need a good 55 gallons, because even though they can live in a 20G when they are small, it's best to start them out right, in a tank that they would need for life.