Will the Fire Eel survive?

[oscarfish1395]

i am thinking of getting a fire eel for my new 180 gallon tank. Unfortunately it is only 8 inches long and will be going in with 2 large oscars, two 8 inch jaguar cichlids, and 1 12 in pleco. There will be plenty of hiding places and lots of room for it to swim in. will it be alright or will i need to find a bigger one for sale?

 

[Lupin]

I'd get a bigger one just to be safe. Hard to say what will happen with jaguar cichlids in it. Try MFK for some sales.

 

[BigFishKeeper]

Just make sure it has plenty of caves. get a bigger one to be safe!!

 

[Squawkbert]

My money's on the Jags.

 

[diavids]

i don't think the fire eel will be able to compete for food with the larger fish. I used to keep them some years back and they were somewhat timid eaters compared to the cichlids.

 

[wataugachicken]

if i was going to do that, i would probably get a bunch of pvc pipes, cut them to about 12-14 inches long each, and make a stack of tunnels. wide enough for the eel (and wide enough so the pleco won't get stuck in them, because he will go in them too), but too narrow for the others. then you could also spot-feed right into whatever cave he is in at the time. if he's smart, you probably won't see him much. if he's not smart, one day you won't ever see him again.

 

[Hurley]

Eels grow pretty quickly. Can you keep him in a grow out tank? I would think he would get eaten at that size. You can try looking around to see if anyone has one thats getting too big for their tank. People buy them without realizing how big they get.

 

[oscarfish1395]

i will have a spare 46 gallon, would that work

 

[BigFishKeeper]

For a little while. He'll out grow that in about 3 months.

 

[oscarfish1395]

yeah that would be when i put him in my 180 gallon