Clown loach attack

[IceH2O]

I'm not sure if its actually attacking...but it sure is bothering our goldfish.Even though the goldfish is like 5 times his size.At 1st they would swim together...never bothering each other but all of a sudden today its like the clown is trying to latch on to him or something..sometimes its at his face but mostly its like he is trying to eat out his a*s..He doesn't bother the other clown.They both swim with the goldfish,its as if they think its a bigger clown and is there leader.Maybe its trying to breed?

I've had all these fish together for the past 2 months.The only difference is that before I had this huge cavern that the loaches always hid in and we never saw them.I took it out and put in a rock ledge cave and a jug looking ornament that looks like one you'd find at a shipwreck..I also added more plants for hiding.They love to hide in the cave and jug but they also have been more open to swimming around the tank now.Which I thought would be a good thing.

Any ideas?

 

[IceH2O]

in case you wanted more info I added my tank setup in a signature.

 

[jec0995]

Does the goldfish try to get away quickly? If not, they are probably just swimming with him. My clowns do this all the time. They will swim with pretty much any other fish and sometimes it looks like they are attacking. Seems they just like to be close to others. It's interesting behavior.

Keep an eye on the goldfish. If he appears fine (all fins and scales intact) then i'm sure they are just making friends. LOL!!

 

[IceH2O]

Yeah he moves away quickly..He doesn't try to avoid the clown but you can tell he is being annoyed by him..If the Clown just swims beside him he is fine with it..but sometimes the Clown tries to what looks like to me,swim up his a*s...

I don't see any damage yet but I'll keep an eye on him..

 

[Spunky]

I know clowns like to be in bigger groups, so because there are only 2 of them they adopted the goldfish as their own… Out of curiosity how many clowns do you have jec0995? I was just wondering if the behavior goes away if there are more clowns together? Or if they just super friendly.

Right now I have 4 clowns with no other fish (just a pleco) so I do not have the opportunity to observe any behavior…

 

[jec0995]

Spunky,

I currently have 4 clowns. Generally, they shoal with each other. Sometimes my weather loach joins in on the fun though. Clown loaches tend to be curious little buggers, IMO! They are always checking things out. Nothing ever seems to get past them, LOL!

IceH20, if there is no visible damage to the goldfish, I imagine they are not hurting him. They may be annoying him though. He'll probably get used to that. Just keep watching to see what happens. Let us know if anything changes. Good luck.

Jimmy

 

[willy:-)]

Just fyi you will eventually need a bigger tank and you could just leave your goldie in that one so it can have the prop. temp and food and some peace from those buggers.

 

[IceH2O]

Well I had my wife watch for any more "attacks"..She said she hasn't even seen them swimming with the goldfish today..Either they figured out he isn't one of them or the goldfish let the clowns know he didn't appreciate the closeness...

Either way thanks..

And yeah I plan on upgrading...Might even go super size and get a 100 gallon so i can get more loaches..kuhli and whatnot..

 

[Roan Art]

Boy, that's a crowded tank. The goldfish alone should have its own 30g tank, especially at the size you indicate he is. What kind of goldfish is he? If he's a comet, he actually will need 50gallons to grow out in and then a pond.

You really should not have a goldfish in with your tropicals nor keep him in a small tank. Yah, he may be doing find for now, but he's not going to do well in the long run and if you keep cramping his space he's going to die much earlier than he should.

Goldfish can live 20+ years IF they are cared for properly.

Your tank is also too small for clown loaches, too. They grow slowly, but like goldfish they are long-lived -- 50 years -- and don't do well in small tanks.

The fact that your loaches were hiding so much tells me they don't feel safe. Taking away their hiding spots doesn't resolve that issue, it can make it worse. That may be why your clowns are swimming up the goldfish's butt.

Get a new tank for the goldfish, 30 gallons. Then see how the loaches act. Please consider putting their hiding spots back. Clowns LIKE to hide. Also consider upgrading that tank to 50 gallons.

And yeah I plan on upgrading...Might even go super size and get a 100 gallon so i can get more loaches..kuhli and whatnot..

You will need need a tank that big for clowns alone, since they grow to 12+ inches. They also like to be in groups. If you want to keep them happy then you need at least 3 clowns and the space to swim in.

Roan

 

[IceH2O]

. What kind of goldfish is he?


Your tank is also too small for clown loaches, too. They grow slowly, but like goldfish they are long-lived -- 50 years -- and don't do well in small tanks.

The fact that your loaches were hiding so much tells me they don't feel safe. Taking away their hiding spots doesn't resolve that issue, it can make it worse. That may be why your clowns are swimming up the goldfish's butt.

Roan

I don't know what type he is..he/she has a long flowing double tail ..I think he/she has already hit max size bc he/she hasn't grown in quite a while..His/her body is 5 inches long.Most sights have fantails maxing out at 6 inches,which i think he/she is

The loaches are still very small..maybe 2 and a half and 3 inches...all the other fish are an inch max....

I didn't take away the loaches hiding places..they still have 2 very good hiding spots plus a few well placed plants...Their coloring is fine...from what I understood they will fade when stressed...they're very vibrant.They are now very active in looking for food and playing.They move slowly around when searching for food..No quick darting as if they were scared looking for a safe haven.When they aren't eating or playing they are in the jug or the rock cave.

In time I will move them to bigger tanks..But I don't think its a dire emergency..