Rubberlip Pleco hasn't stopped moving!!!!!

Morbius

Morbius

The Living Vampire
Aug 24, 2006
156
0
0
55
Saginaw Mi
Hello,all.I have a 35 long....it's been cycled for almost 2 mos.I have 6 lemon,and 6 red minor tetras.I also have 1 Mystery snail.Red Minors and snail have occupied the tank for about 2wks,the Lemons about 1/2.I just introduced a rubberlip Pleco around 7:00pm sat. I had him floating in the LFS bag...adding my water in 15 min intervals for about an hr.After putting him in the tank(didnt add their water!)he swam to the bottom...sat for a min and has been moving eversince!Now when I say moving...I mean he's moving across all sides of the tank,nonstop.Sometimes he eats the algae....but for the most part he just goes from one sode to the next,fast.he then goes down to the gravel,swims across it for a sec but then he's right back on the sides.I can't find any "concrete" info on rubberlips,one site said they prefer a ph around 6.8 to 7.8. It also stated that the pleco would acclimate to the water of my tank.But I found one thread here that stated they dont really like brackish water.My params are as follows:
Ammo: 0
Nitrites: 0
Nitrates: 12.5
Ph: between 7.5 and 8.0
Gh: 9
Kh: 5
Temp:75-78 degrees

What should I do??? Will it get used to the conditon of my water?or do I need to soften it? Or is what he's doing normal and I just need to relax???? Also,if look @ the pics of my tank I kinda have some spots he could hide,but I might need to get something just for him. Any ideas?? http://www.aquariacentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=84707
 
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I looked at the tank but couldnt really tell, are any of those items in your tank a cave for him? Mine settled once I gave them a cave big enough.
 
Thanx for the reply baers! I dont think what I have in my tank right now is big enough,I will try to find something.But are you saying that your RLP's swam all over the place like mine is??
 
hello fball. That's just the thing,he hasn't really stopped moving since I got him yesterday.When he hits the sides of the tank,he's not cleaning anything....he's just moving from one side to the other.He might stop to clean for a min,but then he's @ it again moving from side to side.Then he glides off the side,moves across the bottom...then hits the wall again.
 
Yep thats exactly what mine did looking for food. Even when food was right there *laugh* took them a while to figure out what was food :)
Once I put caves big enough for them, they settled down considerably when they had a place to rest.
And they still act like that when they come out to eat. Flying all over the lettuce, algae tab, sweetpotatoe etc Almost seems to "lose" the food now and then and then redisover it , makes me laugh :)

What do you have in there for them to eat?

Kath
 
Morbius said:
hello fball. That's just the thing,he hasn't really stopped moving since I got him yesterday.When he hits the sides of the tank,he's not cleaning anything....he's just moving from one side to the other.He might stop to clean for a min,but then he's @ it again moving from side to side.Then he glides off the side,moves across the bottom...then hits the wall again.
Click to expand...

Since you just got him he is probably just not used to a new environment. Give him some more time, he will probably calm down.
 
hey fball. As of right now he's relax'n behind one of the decorations I have in the tank,so ur right...he prolly has to get use to his new environment.But the question baers posed is a good 1,what exactly aside from algae tabs do plecos eat? I see she mentioned lettuce, but do they like it the same way mystery snail do...somewhat rotten?or will blanched be sufficent?
 
Don't use iceberg lettuce, it has little nutritonal value. I use romaine. Dark leaves. And once they figured out it was there for them, it looks like lace in an hour lol
I just rinse mine in hot water and put it in. I don't cook/blanch anything I feed them.
I also feed them sweet potatoe, regular potatoe, brocolli. All just rinsed in hot water.
 
you might not have enough oxygen in the water and he's constantly moving to keep water flowing over his gills. Rubberlips come from very fast water with a high oxygen content. My guess is that adding a powerhead will increase the oxygen content and allow him to settle in somewhere. Giving him a cave or rock near the current will make him very happy.

In my experience, a healthy pleco is one that doesn't move around much unless it's eating, fighting, or breeding. Yeah, there are exceptions, but constant movement is probably not completely healthy.

Also, feed him zuccini if you can. Buy a lettuce clip and give him a fresh slice every 24 hours. I feed all my plecos this way. My L18, L204, L128, L1, and albino bristlenose all love zuccini. My L260 and L66 nibble at it, too. You can treat him with shrimp once week or so. Yours may take a while to recognize it as food. Once he does, he'll munch there all night. My plecs avoid lettuce, in general.
 
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