Rtbs

[Wacky Wafflez]

:confused: i recently bought my rtbs from a pet store and from what i can tell it is young. but what i noticed is that all the rtbs tails in the tank at the store did not have a bright red or almost any red they were just gray. i asked the employee why thier tails were more of a gray then red and he simply siad that once the grow older theyl get the red is this right or are the fins diseased or something and he was just tryn to get me to buy it or something. And another question is for the bala i have i dont think ill be able to have 3 of them in my crampt 25 gallon tank with an angelfish and a rtbs so would 2 be alright or will it adapt to being by itself. oh and the pet store employee was recomending the sharks as a good tank mate for the angel fish so dont get mad at me for making the bad idea.

[ChilDawg]

Hey, I'm not mad at you. I'm mad at the pet store employee and happy that you found AC.

RTBS generally look washed out in poor water conditions. They do not colour up as they get older--unless your water conditions improve as they age.

Your bala needs to go back for sure. They cannot be alone, get to be about a foot, and swim like crazy. If you are not willing or able to invest in a 90 gallon tank and several more balas, you should not keep them. Again, this is the pet store employee's fault for selling you this fish, but returning it is your prerogative.

Think of this as a learning opportunity. The lesson is to research fish before you buy them, and not to take the word of an employee at a pet store. We'll help you do the research if you stick with us! :D

Welcome to AC and Hope this helps,

Matthew

[Wacky Wafflez]

okay............. im not sure ill be able to return them becuse its been 2 days now so !ouch! and i aksed my mom and a 90 gallon is out of the question so no luck thier. grrr im not gonna even ask them to return them because theyl just fall back on some return polocy. i have no friends or anoyne i know who has a large enough tank to give them away. What SHould i DO!!!

[Dangerdoll]

in addition to ChilDawg, your angel should be ok with your rtbs, I have kept them together for a few years now without a spar between the two. The rtbs will most likely find a corner or cave in the tank and claim it as his own and be most focused on that. The only problem you'd have is if you got another rtbs (or something similar, such as rainbow sharks) and tried to put it in with them. The rtbs can be a bit territorial once he's staked claim somewhere, but never has there been a problem with my angel swimming too close to his cave.

in addition (just saw your new note) those balas are going to be a big problem quickly, they can get quite skittish and will be evident to you shortly in that size of tank. I would return them as soon as you can (whenever you can) and go with the store credit......sooner or later, you will see, you will use it.

[ChilDawg]

2 days? Most stores have at least a 3-day return policy. Find out what this store's is, and then return the suckers, or, if nothing else, put them up for sale here. I *might* rescue the RTBS, but your store SHOULD take them back. Try it tomorrow, and let us know.

[ChilDawg]

Thanks, Dangerdoll...once again, real-world knowledge beats up on the theoretical.

[Slappy*McFish]

heheh. Yeah man, take that bala back... or take him anywhere that sells fish.

[Dangerdoll]

good facts are from all over Chil...in reading and experience. We give what we can and as is evident, we do our best. ;) :D ;)

[Wacky Wafflez]

grrrr i just asked my mom if we cna return them tommarow (or try) becuse iuts 930 over here and they are closed she wants me to call the place first tommarow so yea . and the rescue the rtbs thing how would you send it in the mail?and id give it away if youd really want it or wtver lol

[ChilDawg]

We'll talk later about the RTBS rescue. However, the store people should be cognizant of their mistake and take back the balas and the RTBS (if you so choose). As DD has stated, your RTBS may do fine with the Angel, so I'd ask for advice on how to make that work, if there is anything else special necessary for this process.

[Dangerdoll]

The only thing I would advise in keeping the rtbs and angel together (because it can be done) is to be sure you have a cave or planted corner with nooks to keep him satisfied with an area for him to claim as his own.

[Wacky Wafflez]

yea i do have a cave thing in the middle bottom of the tank its not very big is like a little log wiht plants on it and it does seem to spend a lot of time in it so maybe its already set.

[ChilDawg]

I'm glad to hear that your RTBS is set (honestly, I am, because they are pretty cool fish and everyone should have one at some point!)...now, the store should take back the Balas...

[Dangerdoll]

Yep, chances are that if he's already spending time around the log a lot, he has already chosen this as "his spot".

I agree Chil, they are neat to have..... I think of all the years I've been keeping fish, there's always been a rtbs.

[scott]

Childawg-if you are still doing that glossary: rtbs:confused:

[Anaxus]

Speaking of rtbs. How are they with cories, danios, and plecos? I was thinking of adding one of them to my tank.

[ChilDawg]

RTBS = Red-tailed Black Shark -- already in there, but good suggestion, Scott!

I don't think that keeping them with any other bottom dwellers in a tank smaller than 30 gallons would be a good idea. I'm not even sure that it would be a good idea to keep them with more placid bottom-dwellers at all, especially if hiding spaces are not readily available.

[Wacky Wafflez]

youd think im aat school.... but im not .. im at the one place that has more computers then my hous

[ChilDawg]

:confused:

[Wacky Wafflez]

im at my dads work rihgt now until about 5 and ill try calling ther pet sotre when i get home. im defenetly going to this other pet store where its more about fish and birds then puppies and stuff like that... and i rmeeber when i went in they had sepret tanks for male and female for each species so you could buy exactly what you wanted. and the lady thier might actuly help instead just tryn to get her fish sold. When i return(if i can) the sharks (i think im going to return both of them just to be safe) What kind of fish would be good for a 25 gallon wihth a medium sized angel fish in it??

[Dangerdoll]

Have you given Dwarf Cichlids any thought? I recently got into getting them for my tanks and couldn't be more happy. I think my favorites so far have to be the rams, though they are the only other cichlids I have with the Angel, otherwise I have the rtbs (as discussed) a few bottom dwellers, and a single danio that I couldn't catch when I gave the rest of his shoal away. There's also the puffers but I wouldn't suggest them as they can have the tendency to be notorious nippers, depending on the individuals (I've been fortunate not to have that problem). If you want color, I say look into the apistogramma cichlids or the rams.

[Wacky Wafflez]

good news i returned them both for store credit and bought 3 plants (fake) im going to wait wsith my angel until my water is perfect then maybe get some other fish maybe a rtbs from a diffret shop (im not buyin fish from that shop nemore)

[Dangerdoll]

could be a smart move.....good luck when you get things rolling again ;)