tankmates for a dempsey

J

jadefoodog

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Dec 15, 2005
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what would be some good smaller takmates for a dempsey

im getting conflicting reports on covicts some say their great someone else says they would kill the dempsy (i dont want that)

i want something bout 5 inches. anyone think if i get 2 males maybey they wouldnt hurt the JD because they wouldnt be spawning??
 
I would suggest getting 1 Convict 2 males my fight aswell. Firemouth, severum, Nicaraguense these are a few good choices they may get abit bigger than 5" but not too much if you want to check out some cool pics and get some info on american cichilds this is a good site

http://www.cichlidscene.com/
 
a salvini, A barb, robertsoni, fire mouth, oscar, and much more.. Cichlid or any fish? Does it have to be smaller? JD do well with oscars.
 
your only gonna have what a 50 to 55 gallon tank? thats barely enough tank for one oscar and nothing else . does it have to be a cichlid? if not i am a huge fan of bichirs a nice albino senegalus would be a great tank mate for a dempsey and very hearty as well i know dempseys like oscars are messy cichlids and bichirs dont need perfect water to thrive. and albino senegals tend to run a lil smaller than the non albinos and they growth rate is extremely slow. not picky eaters. equals wonderful all around cool a** fish.
 
I suggest against the bichir I had one in my cichlid tank and they picked his fin off and he died.
 
You may have read my post about the firemouths in a convict thank. The problum with this is it was to many convicts in the tank.
You don't want your cons to pair up in a tank with 1 Dempsey. 1 con should be fine either sex but If you want to make sure get a female. They tend to be a bit smaller and they can defend them selfs.
No matter what sex convict you get if it's only 1 in the end your dempsey should have anywhere from 2 - 6 inch in size on him or her.

Plus a Dempsey is more agressive then a Firemouth from my experience.
 
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when cons are spawning, all bets are off... nothing is safe(well, maybe a jag, midas, or red terror)..

In a 55, all you really have room for (if its a 48 inch footprint) is a jack and one con... maybe a 4-5 inch pleco also..

I've found the female cons to be nippier than the males when not spawning..
Get a male con with the jack and they should do well with your tank..if the jacks not already very large..

I've also found the smaller female cons could get picked on by the jack... the male could also, but he's going to be bigger and can defend himself a little better if need be..

When it comes to jd's, their temperaments are extremely varied from fish to fish.. I've had some that were very docile, and then some that were the king of the tank...
 
I have to agree with the temperment of the Jacks. It's a coin toss.

Why not get a few Jack Juvs and a few male cons juvs. You can donait them to the fish store after they grow and start fighting for turff. Pick out the best colored and best behaved for yourself. Plus it is fun to watch them grow. Your tank wont seem so empty waiting for the fish to get big,
You might be able to traid them for feeders or something at a privately owned pet shop.
 
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I keep a bunch of Red Forest Jewels in the same tank along with my Jack Dempseys and they get along pretty well. The Red Forest Jewels are fast enough to get out of the way of the Jacks, but my Jacks are timid and they just ignore the Jewels.
 
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