Tips on quarantining kuhli loaches?

[M00n3at3r]

I'm am the proud new papa of 5 Kuhli loaches and like most father's, I'm unsure what they need. I read that a 2+ week QT is very important, but if they do contract something, how should I treat them? Somewhere I read said they are very sensitive so I am unsure of what chems may be used. General health tips also welcomed. Never owned them before so I'm completely new.
Thank you all!

 

[huapala]

I think the most important part is your filtration unit and preventing any kuhli from finding it way into it. They can fit through any size hole and will, so make sure you are prepared. They like current and sand to dig in. Make sure your tank has plenty of hiding spots and those hiding spots are made of smooth material (plants or drift wood are the best). The hiding spots will put them at ease and they will show themselves more. They have no scales so they are easily damanged by sharp edges and are known to find their way out of uncovered tanks (tho mine is uncovered and they have never ventured out). Make sure your main tank is well established because they can be affected by drastic water changes (more the change in water chemistry and ammonia spiking that can occur in newly established tanks). Enjoy them they are very awesome animals.

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[M00n3at3r]

I think the most important part is your filtration unit and preventing any kuhli from finding it way into it. They can fit through any size hole and will, so make sure you are prepared. They like current and sand to dig in. Make sure your tank has plenty of hiding spots and those hiding spots are made of smooth material (plants or drift wood are the best). The hiding spots will put them at ease and they will show themselves more. They have no scales so they are easily damanged by sharp edges and are known to find their way out of uncovered tanks (tho mine is uncovered and they have never ventured out). Make sure your main tank is well established because they can be affected by drastic water changes (more the change in water chemistry and ammonia spiking that can occur in newly established tanks). Enjoy them they are very awesome animals.

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I have had the tank established for a couple months now, but the levels have all remained ideal. I can add in some drift wood for them to hide under. I have asked this multiple times before on another site, but I will ask here, is lava rock too rough for them? It's not my substrate, I just have a few pieces for decor...

 

[huapala]

I would say for safty sake you will want to use smooth rock for hardscape. "Lava stone" is a very subjective word because it can refer to many types of rock that are of volcanic origin. Here in Hawaii we have aa lava and pahoehoe. The latter is sharp and jagged (not suitable for scaleless bottom dwellers) and the former is smooth like glass. There is also basalt lava stones that crumble from the moutain faces and fall into the water ways where they are polished and made smooth by the constant flow of water. They display the porous qualities without the sharp edges that could damage scaleless fish such as kuhli loaches. These are the stones I use.

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[M00n3at3r]

I would say for safty sake you will want to use smooth rock for hardscape. "Lava stone" is a very subjective word because it can refer to many types of rock that are of volcanic origin. Here in Hawaii we have aa lava and pahoehoe. The latter is sharp and jagged (not suitable for scaleless bottom dwellers) and the former is smooth like glass. There is also basalt lava stones that crumble from the moutain faces and fall into the water ways where they are polished and made smooth by the constant flow of water. They display the porous qualities without the sharp edges that could damage scaleless fish such as kuhli loaches. These are the stones I use.

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Well then mine would be like the pahoehoe. It's somewhat rough, it is older so it isn't as sharp as I'm sure it could be, but I worry they may scrape themselves. That rock however makes up a large portion of my scaping so I don't want to pull it. Most of it is buried under the gravel, like the bottom of it, so it would be easier for them to simply hide in the gravel then go under there. I think I may have made an oops in my QT though. Someone recommended sand just to make them feel more comfortable. Well my whole back yard is sand, the property used to be part of the local quarry, so I get a bucket, shoveled it up, sived it out and put it in, now they are running up and down the side of the tank. This is one of those times I wish I could read their minds...is this helping or hurting guys!? 0.0

 

[huapala]

I apologize for my mistaken wording but I meant to say that, "the former "aa" is the sharp and jagged"

I have some of it in my quarantine tank. I took it out of my community tank because I did not want the Corydoras paleatus to damage their barbells on it. They are also bottom feeders that enjoy clinging and hovering closely on hardscape.

As for the sand, P. kuhli swimming up and down the walls of the tank is nothing to be worried about. This behavior is one of the reasons I enjoy keeping them. The fact that they want to be seen means they are feeling comfortable. I do not think that collecting sand from your back yard is the best practice, but I use home made soil for substrate so I guess as long as you trust the source you are fine. If anything bad happens to those guys you have another variable to account for when trying to diagnose the problem. There is more gurantee on the composition of store bought sand which makes problems - when they do occur - easier to analyze.

 

[M00n3at3r]

I apologize for my mistaken wording but I meant to say that, "the former "aa" is the sharp and jagged"

I have some of it in my quarantine tank. I took it out of my community tank because I did not want the Corydoras paleatus to damage their barbells on it. They are also bottom feeders that enjoy clinging and hovering closely on hardscape.

As for the sand, P. kuhli swimming up and down the walls of the tank is nothing to be worried about. This behavior is one of the reasons I enjoy keeping them. The fact that they want to be seen means they are feeling comfortable. I do not think that collecting sand from your back yard is the best practice, but I use home made soil for substrate so I guess as long as you trust the source you are fine. If anything bad happens to those guys you have another variable to account for when trying to diagnose the problem. There is more gurantee on the composition of store bought sand which makes problems - when they do occur - easier to analyze.

I hope your right and I'm not slowly killing them I would feel awful! I love my fish and God made so many pretty fishes so I try and take the best care of them that I can. I do have a couple of cories in my CT and they seem to be alright with the rock.

 

[fishorama]

Kuhlis are cool fish, congrats. Swimming up & down is what they do when excited, new tank, water change etc. Mine loved to hang out in plants, even floating ones. They never hid in sand. 2 weeks is a minimum quarantine period, I do 4 weeks. They don't usually get "skinny disease" like botia type loaches can but they can be underweight. Really, just make sure they're eating well & don't have anything obvious like ich.

 

[M00n3at3r]

Awesome! Thanks!

 

[fishorama]

Oh,...& we'd like some pics if you can...I have to live in "kuhli-land" vicariously ATM. Kuhlis are not fussy eaters, flake, tabs, frozen, wafers,...it's all good!