Hey guys, new to the site and love catfish. I just had to release my Bullhead of three years, he was just too big for my 35 gallon tank, and he was the only one in it. Very cool and interesting fish to watch. Anyway I have replaced him with some baby Channel cats and want to continue the "Lake habitat" and I was thinking of some Bass, or sun fish species? Any other ideas? Thanks for any help!
JTR
Roomates for my 2" Channel Cats....
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PlecoCrazy
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Its a 35 or 55gal long, lots of room at the bottom for them to cruise and hide. I know they will out grow it and I will have to release them eventually, so Im trying to keep my temp at the min for these guys and watch what they eat. Heres a shot...
Heres my buddy I had to let go he was 8-10" never really measured just eyeballed...
Let me know what ya think! Thanks for the replys!
JTR
Heres my buddy I had to let go he was 8-10" never really measured just eyeballed...
Let me know what ya think! Thanks for the replys!
JTR
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SEMGilbert
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Releasing?
What exactly do you mean by released? I have a 10 1/2" pleco named Gilbert who I love dearly, but I don't have a clue what to with him.
When I got him in 1998 he was only a mere 1.5 inches. Since then he's grown way too big. For a while I had put him in a 25 gallon tank at my mother's house until he attacked a perfectly healthy chinease algea eater. He was always so docile, hid and left everyone else in the tank alone. Since he emaciated that poor fish I have had him in isolation in a 10 gallon tank by himself. I've had to remove all the rocks and everything but the plants so the poor guy can move around. He grew at least 3 inches since he's been in isolation. Where I live I don't really have the capacity for a larger tank. I've asked people who have fish tanks if they would like him, but no one has accepted him. I feel bad for poor gilbert in his little tank by himself. Other then Gil I only have a small betta in it's own 5 gallon tank.
I really don't have a clue what to do with him. If I was to get a larger tank, what fish are safe with him? If anyone can give me suggestions they would be appreciated.
Thanks,
Suzanne
When I got him in 1998 he was only a mere 1.5 inches. Since then he's grown way too big. For a while I had put him in a 25 gallon tank at my mother's house until he attacked a perfectly healthy chinease algea eater. He was always so docile, hid and left everyone else in the tank alone. Since he emaciated that poor fish I have had him in isolation in a 10 gallon tank by himself. I've had to remove all the rocks and everything but the plants so the poor guy can move around. He grew at least 3 inches since he's been in isolation. Where I live I don't really have the capacity for a larger tank. I've asked people who have fish tanks if they would like him, but no one has accepted him. I feel bad for poor gilbert in his little tank by himself. Other then Gil I only have a small betta in it's own 5 gallon tank.
I really don't have a clue what to do with him. If I was to get a larger tank, what fish are safe with him? If anyone can give me suggestions they would be appreciated.
Thanks,
Suzanne
Last edited by SEMGilbert on 31 May 2006, 16:08, edited 1 time in total.
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MatsP
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I think what JTR is referring to is that he released the fish back to where he caught it - which actually isn't a particularly good idea, both for that fish and other fish in the same body of water.
Fish kept in captivity may loose their wild instincts, get used to having food given to them a few inches/feet away and there are no predators in the tank to try to escape away from, and when they are then released back again into the wild, they don't know how to "behave" to get food and avoid predators. Thats assuming all things go reasonably well.
The worse scenario is that the captive fish is carrying soem dicease that will transfer to other fish in the release-environment. If the fish has had contact with any other fish in captivity, this is a possibility.
Even worse, of course, is releasing fish that isn't naturally occcuring in the local fauna. This is definitely a recipe for badness... There are far too many "alien" plecos around in various places, because they have either escaped (San Antonio Zoo in Texas for instance had a major aquatic breakage and some big Plecos went into the S.A. river and they are now established, causing havoc for the native fauna, not only eating a lot algae and unfairly competing with native algae-eating species, but also causing problems with native bird populaton that doesn't realize that these monsters are spiny and difficult to swallow - several birds die each year in Texas and Florida because they have "stuck" plecos in their mouth).
Big plecos are sometimes sought after by big-tank people that have big (agressive) fish that tend to destroy smaller fish, so most fish-shops will take big plecos - you may not get any money/store credit, but most shops will find a good home for them eventually.
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Mats
Fish kept in captivity may loose their wild instincts, get used to having food given to them a few inches/feet away and there are no predators in the tank to try to escape away from, and when they are then released back again into the wild, they don't know how to "behave" to get food and avoid predators. Thats assuming all things go reasonably well.
The worse scenario is that the captive fish is carrying soem dicease that will transfer to other fish in the release-environment. If the fish has had contact with any other fish in captivity, this is a possibility.
Even worse, of course, is releasing fish that isn't naturally occcuring in the local fauna. This is definitely a recipe for badness... There are far too many "alien" plecos around in various places, because they have either escaped (San Antonio Zoo in Texas for instance had a major aquatic breakage and some big Plecos went into the S.A. river and they are now established, causing havoc for the native fauna, not only eating a lot algae and unfairly competing with native algae-eating species, but also causing problems with native bird populaton that doesn't realize that these monsters are spiny and difficult to swallow - several birds die each year in Texas and Florida because they have "stuck" plecos in their mouth).
Big plecos are sometimes sought after by big-tank people that have big (agressive) fish that tend to destroy smaller fish, so most fish-shops will take big plecos - you may not get any money/store credit, but most shops will find a good home for them eventually.
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Mats
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SEMGilbert
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Thank you. I could never release him, he's been in captivity for as long as I have known. I thought about bringing him to a pet store, but I can not morally do that. As a fish parent I do care for the big guy. I would only give him to someone who I knew would care for him as well as I have tried.
I'm still in dark as how to handle this. I am thinking baout getting a larger tank, I'm just unsure where I will be putting it. I might have to rearrange some things.
Again, which tank mates could would be safe from being attacked by a seemingly aggressive pleco? If i'm going to invest my time and money to a bigger tank, I might as well create an entire new captive ecosystem.
I'm still in dark as how to handle this. I am thinking baout getting a larger tank, I'm just unsure where I will be putting it. I might have to rearrange some things.
Again, which tank mates could would be safe from being attacked by a seemingly aggressive pleco? If i'm going to invest my time and money to a bigger tank, I might as well create an entire new captive ecosystem.
Gilbert is a Liposarcus pardalis
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MatsP
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This is way off the original topic of this thread, perhaps some moderator can split them up...
Ok, so you have a fish that you can not properly care for, and you don't know what to do. We do get that every now and again here, unfortunately [and I guess many other fish-care web-sites do too].
I understand your concern about the care of the fish. It's a difficult choice. I suspect your pleco is a "common" pleco, which in that case most likely will grow well beyond 10.5". A ten gallon tank is certainly not big enough for a 10 inch fish... I bet the fish can just about fit between the back and front of the tank without "bending".
A bigger tank is a good idea, but to make the fish really comfortable long term, you'll be looking at some seriously big tank . Soemthing like 6 x 2 x 2 (feet) - 175 gallon, preferrably larger...
A decent tank size for your fish at the moment would be something that is at least 40 inches long, 18-20 inches back to front and 18 inches at least height.
As for compatible fish, they aren't very sensitive to companions. They don't particularly like "similar" fish, so other big plecos isn't a good idea, but most tropical type fish are fine. And with a decent tank-size, you should be pretty free in choice - just no channel cats or red-tailed catfish that grows even huger than the common pleco's.
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Mats
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Mats
Ok, so you have a fish that you can not properly care for, and you don't know what to do. We do get that every now and again here, unfortunately [and I guess many other fish-care web-sites do too].
I understand your concern about the care of the fish. It's a difficult choice. I suspect your pleco is a "common" pleco, which in that case most likely will grow well beyond 10.5". A ten gallon tank is certainly not big enough for a 10 inch fish... I bet the fish can just about fit between the back and front of the tank without "bending".
A bigger tank is a good idea, but to make the fish really comfortable long term, you'll be looking at some seriously big tank . Soemthing like 6 x 2 x 2 (feet) - 175 gallon, preferrably larger...
A decent tank size for your fish at the moment would be something that is at least 40 inches long, 18-20 inches back to front and 18 inches at least height.
As for compatible fish, they aren't very sensitive to companions. They don't particularly like "similar" fish, so other big plecos isn't a good idea, but most tropical type fish are fine. And with a decent tank-size, you should be pretty free in choice - just no channel cats or red-tailed catfish that grows even huger than the common pleco's.
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Mats
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Mats
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SEMGilbert
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Thanks,
He's comfortable, he hangs out on the back glass wall most days. Once in awhile he comes near the front. He HAS room to move, but its not very generous. I think I will be pricing some tanks this weekend. But a 20 Gallon I think is all I can handle, I only live in a small studio. When he gets too big for that then I'll be back to where I am now. After I get everything set up, I'll try to post a picture of my little monster. Thanks for your advice.
He's comfortable, he hangs out on the back glass wall most days. Once in awhile he comes near the front. He HAS room to move, but its not very generous. I think I will be pricing some tanks this weekend. But a 20 Gallon I think is all I can handle, I only live in a small studio. When he gets too big for that then I'll be back to where I am now. After I get everything set up, I'll try to post a picture of my little monster. Thanks for your advice.
Gilbert is a Liposarcus pardalis
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MatsP
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Calculating backwards, going from a ten gallon to a twenty gallon tank isn't going to achieve a whole lot of extra space for this fish, I'm sorry to say. Around 25% more space in each direction, at best. According to this list of US tank-sizes, the 20 gallon (assuming it's a 20 LONG and you have a not-long 10gallon) tank will be 10 inches longer and two inches wider. It's obviously a better home for your fish, but in my opinion not sufficiently good. Ut's not a case of "when it gets too big for this", it ALREADY is too big to fit in a 20 gallon tank.
I use the guidelines of 4L x 2L x 2L, where L is the length of the fish, to figure out what space a fish needs, with some reductions/extensions based on the character of the fish. This is how I came up with a 40" long, 18-20" wide tank in the first place. It deosn't need to be quite so deep, because these are bottom-living fish...
A 40 breeder, which is another 6 inches longer than the 20 long, and but 18 inches, so 5 inches wider would be a good step closer to what I'd say is OK. It's not GOOD, but it's much better.
Ideally, you want a tank that is suitable for the fish to live out it's life in, and then we're talking something that is excess of 150g...
If you were keeping a BIG dog in a small dog-house, where the dog doesn't have enough space to move around, you'd be liable in court for cruelty to animals, and I believe the same should apply to fish... If you can't supply sufficient space for it, a good fish-shop is a much better place for your fish than a too small tank.
I'm terribly sorry if this is not what you wanted to hear, but I'm trying to be both honest and realistic about your fish, and it's wellfare. [Personally, I hate to write these things, because I feel that I'm cruel to the person posting, but I also feel an obligation to help both the owner and the fish to understand what is best for both of them.]
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Mats
I use the guidelines of 4L x 2L x 2L, where L is the length of the fish, to figure out what space a fish needs, with some reductions/extensions based on the character of the fish. This is how I came up with a 40" long, 18-20" wide tank in the first place. It deosn't need to be quite so deep, because these are bottom-living fish...
A 40 breeder, which is another 6 inches longer than the 20 long, and but 18 inches, so 5 inches wider would be a good step closer to what I'd say is OK. It's not GOOD, but it's much better.
Ideally, you want a tank that is suitable for the fish to live out it's life in, and then we're talking something that is excess of 150g...
If you were keeping a BIG dog in a small dog-house, where the dog doesn't have enough space to move around, you'd be liable in court for cruelty to animals, and I believe the same should apply to fish... If you can't supply sufficient space for it, a good fish-shop is a much better place for your fish than a too small tank.
I'm terribly sorry if this is not what you wanted to hear, but I'm trying to be both honest and realistic about your fish, and it's wellfare. [Personally, I hate to write these things, because I feel that I'm cruel to the person posting, but I also feel an obligation to help both the owner and the fish to understand what is best for both of them.]
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Mats
Re: Roomates for my 2" Channel Cats....
I would just suggest you get rid of the channel catfish and find something else for that tank, as has already been said letting fish go back into the wild is not a good idea. Look into madtoms, small relatives of the bullhead and channels that will never outgrow your tank. You could set it up with some various cyprinids, smaller sunfish like the black banded and some darters. I have two native community, both with madtoms and they are my favorite tanks to watch.JTR wrote:Hey guys, new to the site and love catfish. I just had to release my Bullhead of three years, he was just too big for my 35 gallon tank, and he was the only one in it. Very cool and interesting fish to watch. Anyway I have replaced him with some baby Channel cats and want to continue the "Lake habitat" and I was thinking of some Bass, or sun fish species? Any other ideas? Thanks for any help!
JTR