Striped Raphael Catfish questions?

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armada

AC Members
Feb 22, 2009
177
0
16
Charlotte, NC
Around March 2010, a friend of a friend gave me their tank and all inhabitants in it, since she was moving halfway across the country. The fish included were 2 neons, 2 platies, 2 guppies, 2 goldies, a betta, and an unknown catfish. (I didn't keep them all in the same tank of course, but she kept them in a mere 10 gallon.) Over time, the goldies and betta fell to an unfortunate death. Things have stabled since then, and I've now got the platies, guppies, neons, and cat together in one tank. For the longest time the cat was unidentified, and for some reason I was okay with that. The other day, I decided to do some research and found that the fish is actually a striped raphael catfish. The previous owner had possession of him/her for a couple months, and I've had him/her for almost... two years! My question is... I haven't seen it gain even a centimeter since the day I've had it - it's still under (or perhaps right at) an inch long. Is the fish stunted for being in an overstocked, overly small tank for so long? These cats are supposed to get rather large to my knowledge. Could it be his diet? I haven't been feeding him anything in particular since I had no idea what he was (not very smart, I know).*
Could anyone give me any information? It'd all be appreciated.
Thanks!
 

DaisyTattoo

AC Members
Jan 11, 2006
1,395
29
51
Illinois
They are very slow growers. It is possible it is stunted, but also possible it will still grow. They have a tendency to get fat rather than long. I had one for several years in a 125G and it still didn't get very big.
 
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