Which Angelfish?

[dougie]

Hi everyone. I was wondering about buying angelfish. Is it better to buy juvenile angelfish that arent more than 3 inches tall or semi-mature angels that are about 6 inches tall?

[jm1212]

what size tank?

what other fish are in the tank?

how tall an angel is has nothing to do with how mature it is. i have seen angels that are 4" long, but a 3" long angel was "taller" than it. how tall an angel is will tell you the quality though. the tallest angels of their size have had the best care and have the best fins.

[Gumby131]

i like albino angels, and those pure black ones aswell.
just my 2 cents

[dougie]

I have a 29 gallon tank. The thing is, people have told me angelfish will be hardier if they are bigger.

[jjanoch]

there is a reason why most people sell smaller Angels for cheaper....and the cost of food is not really it. Mortality rate makes younger fish cheaper. While using size is not 100% with angels many stores well small-med-large and most of the time large are older than med & definately small.

When I tried Angels I went for med, but the choice is yours.

[dougie]

so this store sells small medium and large angelfish. I am willing to get the medium angelfish which are about 6 inches tall. I want to watch them grow a little bit. Sound good?

[archerman22]

I also have a 29 with 2 angels in it that are probably about 6 inches tall. but i bought them as small and have gone through 6 fish. I had 3 big fish, but one of them died a couple months ago. I think that one of the other angels killed it. Personally i don't think that it will matter what size fish you get because angels do grow relatively fast. The only advice I would give is, as you may already know, buy all of the angels at the same size because they are semi-aggressive and will pick on smaller fish of the same species until dead. Good luck on whatever choice you do go with.

[FreakIndeed]

I say buy them small. It's enjoyable to keep a quality tank with a varied diet and watch your Angels grow and grow.

This guy was about the size of a nickel when I got him back in July (2006). He's now bigger than a silver dollar.

http://www.aquariacentral.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=8751&stc=1

[psilo]

I would also buy them small as they do grow very fast and it is nice to watch them grow. I have bought them at all sizes and have seen no real difference in hardiness or mortality.

[tjBlotto]

I bought mine when they were about the size of a quarter. Now they're about the size of my hand w/ fins. They even paired up and spawned. Lucky me!

[Mgamer20o0]

i wouldnt get more then 2 angelfish for a 29 gal. they get big with long fins.

[jm1212]

i would get two little angels so you can see them grow up and they will be able to establish territories that are the same size.

still, a taller angel only has to do with its qualitly. the petsmart by me has angels with stumpy fins, so i would never get angels there because the other LFS by me has the same size angels with longer, taller fins.

[christhefish]

BUY THEM SMALL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
alot less fights
happy aquarium

[dougie]

I guess I'll go small. I go to a very nice aquarium store in CT. Their "small" angelfish are about 3 inches tall. I'll get two of them.