New German Gold Rams

tjg2007

tjg2007

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Sep 20, 2007
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I stopped at one of my favorite fish stores, Jack's Aquarium in Cinncinnati, Ohio, on my way home from the in-laws after the Christmas holiday and picked up a pair of German Gold Rams. That was on Wednesday when they went into the tank and I am getting to be a bit concerned about their eating. They seem to be waiting for the food to hit the bottom before they even try to get it, and then if there are other fish around they will just watch it get eaten. Tank mates are 6 dwarf neon rainbows, 3 neon tetras, 5 painted platies, and for now about 11 fancy tail guppies in a 55 gallon tank. Water tests show 0 ammo, 0 trite, 5 trate, 8.0 ph (I know this is high for the rams but I used a really slow acclimation and I just really wanted them). Does anyone else have german rams that they feed some sort of fast sinking food to? I would like to find something before the lack of eating becomes a real issue.

Also on a better note I got a new to me tank. I gave my 29 gallon tank to my wife's grandmother and got a slightly larger one in return. The main reason I did the switch is that the tank I got is just too tall for Grams to do anything with. It is kind of an oddball size tank. Measurements are 29.625 in. long, 22.5 in tall, 12 in deep which according to the conversion calculator is 35 gallons (rounded up from 34.68). When I am taking the measurements I am using inside measurements (inner glass to inner glass) versus just measuring the outside. Has anyone else come across a tank this size before? Hoping that the 29g glass tops will fit it when I order a new one.
 
It's only been a day or so if im reading this right. Give them a couple more days to feel comfortable.

My GBRs usually come to the top to eat, but i've had them for month and months. Have you tried shrimp pellets? They sink pretty fast and the GBRs could eat them off the bottom. Also if you go to any pet store i believe there are something called granules made by tetra (i think), its a great product for feeding GBRs/discus .
 
They will be fine once they settle in.... My GBR's have never been aggresive eaters...They just swim around and get what they can..but then they are smart enough to move to the bottom and start feeding while all the other fish are still waiting for stuff to fall in thier face :)
 
The Gold Ram is a color morph of the blue ram(ramierzi)
they like their counter part prefer warm slightly acidic water(mostly for breeding).

they should be kept in water 82-84 degrees which you might not find compatible with the other tank mates. they al;so will require water that is considered pristine(usually means at least 2 water change weekly and usually 30% as a minimum) they pair wel with Discus which also require pristine water to thrive. you will find them coloring up more in the warmer water.

that said..
find a good sinking pellet foot if you notice the mouth of the ram is adapted to 'pick' food off the bottom..they are Mikrogeophagus (mini eartheaters) tho there is some push to move them as well as the Altispinosa(Bolivian) ram to the Papiliochromis tho this is still in debate..
I keeo rams with discus and angels so my rams compete with the tank mates..I feed flake and dropp pellets in when the others scramble for the flake.
you can also drop in flake and feed the pellets away from the location of the flake.
the rams will find the food on the bottom.,
you will also find the rams like brineshrimp and bloodworms.
 
Thanks for the replies. I have been using the TetraMin Granules which sink faster than any other food I have though the Aquadine stuff sinks pretty fast too. Just seems like the guppies get the stuff at the top and the rainbows, platies, and neons get everything in the middle. I have tried feeding on one side then dropping some granules on the other so they can make it to the bottom but the rams seem to understand that the food is going in on the one side and just kind of hang out at the bottom over there. Wish they would listen when I tell them to go to the other side. Will look for the faster sinking pellets to try them.
 
I think I've seen a tank labelled as a 37 that had the same footprint as a 29, which is about 30 x 12, but was a few inches taller. It sounds like what you got. Its probably 37 the way a 29 is 29. Real volume has little to do with the label. To be kind you use outside dimensions and round up and sometimes it matches the label. When I measured my 29 by filling it, I got about 26 gallons after making a 2 gallon allowance for the gravel. It holds about 24 gallons of water.
 
tjg2007 said:
Thanks for the replies. I have been using the TetraMin Granules which sink faster than any other food I have though the Aquadine stuff sinks pretty fast too. Just seems like the guppies get the stuff at the top and the rainbows, platies, and neons get everything in the middle. I have tried feeding on one side then dropping some granules on the other so they can make it to the bottom but the rams seem to understand that the food is going in on the one side and just kind of hang out at the bottom over there. Wish they would listen when I tell them to go to the other side. Will look for the faster sinking pellets to try them.
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I use the tetramin color bits(granuals) most small fish tend to leave these alone.

you may also try releasing a pinch under the surface of the water ..they tend to sink a bit fastger this way.
 
"GGR/GBR" are both technically Blue rams or more specifically Mikrogeophagus Ramirezi
they are the same fish often referred to as German Blue Ram ..the German part is associated with the German version of the Blue ram where they tried to enhance the blue in the ram. I believe the Czech's debate the validity of this fact.

I leave off the German portion since most are not German bred rams.
;)
also when considering food look for the smaller bits as the rams have relatively small mouths.
 
I think they'll get a bit more aggressive once they realize they're not in any danger. Mines did the same thing for about 3 days, then I introduced some Amano Shrimp to the tank and they feel more relaxed. I don't have to worry about the platys out competing them for food anymore.
 
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