Is my sucking loach unhappy?

[emufish]

I have a gold sucking loach, he's about 3 inches long.

I see him feeding, and he does come out from under the bogwood where he has made a little hidey-hole. But when he comes out, he just sits. Sometimes he is so still that the other fish try to have a little nibble.

He doesn't seem to mind the yo-yo loaches giving him a once over, I have not noticed any damage to his skin. A couple of the platies also investigate, he is less tolerant of them, and chases them off. The tiger barbs do not even try to touch him!

I bought some herbivore wafers for him, which he does not seem to touch. He likes the algae and any leaves which may be dying off.

If I approach the tank, he swims off very quickly to his hiding place. Sometimes I hear him moving the gravel around.

He used to swim up and down and perch on things, but now he just sits in the same place.

I don't know, he just seems a bit unhappy, is this normal? And is it normal for the other fish to nibble at him? (Not in an agressive way)

I've only had him for about 2 weeks, he was rescued from a 15 litre tank, as were the barbs, all had outgrown it.

 

[bluekrissyspike]

i've never heard of a 'sucking' loach, but most loaches like to have a lot of water movement and live in groups of six or more. if they don't have that they get 'depressed'

 

[Lupin]

Do you have pictures of this fish? I have a hunch this is a golden variant of Chinese algae eater (Gyrinocheilus aymoneiri). If my hunch is correct, this is not a true loach at all. CAEs are solitary by nature. Juveniles do not need to be kept in groups at all. They do eat algae but their taste for algae eventually disappears and they become more aggressive looking actively for protein source particularly slime coating of other fish. This must be avoided as this subjects the fish to undue stress and higher vulnerability to skin problems. Small fish will suffer much from the constant belligerence displayed so be very careful with what you mix. A lot of feistier loaches such as tiger loaches (Syncrossus sp.) will work extremely well with CAEs but the likes of angelfish, silver dollars, discus and goldfish must be avoided. CAEs come from fast flowing waters so they need powerful submersible pumps to keep themselves comfortable in their environment.

 

[emufish]

Ah, yes he is the gold variation of a Chinese AE, I wasn't sure if he was a Chinese one, also didn't know he wasn't a true loach.

He's around 3 years old, and has no taste for anything except algae right now. I would post a pic, but he doesn't stay still long enough. As I said, he was given to me as part of a tiny tank which he had totally outgrown. I found out a bit about them, and know that many of these species move on to bigger food eventually. If he ever develops a taste for my other fish, I'll take him to my local Aquarist. He's a good specimen.

The yo-yo loaches bother him in particular, I have had them before and they've always been very peaceful, but they won't leave him alone if he is stuck on the glass.

I have also noticed he is more active in the morning, when only natural light is in the tank.

I put a piece of cucumber in for him, which the yo-yo loaches have eaten the middle out of!! They're hungry little yo-yos! I got them as snail destroyers, but my tiger barbs beat them to it! They are keeping the snails right down though.

 

[emufish]

Here's a pic I found on the net.

I always knew he was an Algae Eater, but also thought that people referred to them synonymously as Gold Sucking Loaches.

Since I posted about his relative depression, he's been a lot more active!

 

[Lupin]

The poor fish must have been stunted when the previous owner had it before you got it. Heaven knows these things grow to 10 inches but it's unlikely this one will reach his potential.