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Latest Animal Stories on Aquarium Tropical Fish (6177)

Tan Hui Chun - 2009-11-26
Hi, I wish to ask some question. How come my red tail catfish easily die? For example, I just buy one today, it die after two or three days? Thanks.

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Fishman - 2010-03-26
All specimens of this fish are wild caught and they don't fair well being shipped if you absolutely have to buy one then buy them from a place with an arrive alive guarantee. Also how big is the tank they're in these are messy fish and a juvenile has a 50 gal minimum but they will grow and they will grow fast it probably got stunted and died or it had parasites when you got it.
Nick T. - 2010-07-23
It could be many things, but it is probably the water temperature or the PH level. The temperature for a Red-Tailed Catfish should remain between 70 to 80 degrees Fahrenheit(21 to 26 degrees Celsius), although it may vary a few degrees either way. The PH level should also remain between 6.5 and 7.5. I hope this has helped some!
Josh - 2011-07-18
No way dude most 55 gallons are 48 inches long, and that is 4 feet and a redtailed catfish can grow 5 feet but grows 3 feet at a minimum 3 feet= 36 inches, that would mean your catfish could not even turn around, not only that but he wouldnt even fit in the tank
Jerry j - 2013-03-24
I have a large redtail catfish about 51/2 inch. I put him in a 125 gallon tank with my blue channel catfish which is about 6/7 inch. But noe my red tail has white spots all over him and he don't really move around much. Wat can I do to save him before its to late
Jeremy Roche - 2013-03-24
Jerry, I would raise temp and treat with a little aquarium salt. Or can treat with ich medication.
Clarice Brough - 2013-03-24
Generally if the spots look like it is sprinkled with salt, then it could be ich, but if they are larger it could be fungus. Be very careful when treating catfish as they are scaleless. They can be treated with pimafix or melafix but should not be treated with potassium permanganate or copper based medications. (Many ich medications have copper, so be sure you check the ingredients before you treat.) Malachite green or formalin can be used at one half to one fourth the recommended dosage. All medications should be used with caution.

kris - 2013-03-23
I have 32 of these fish in my community tank and they are my cheapest and most favorite fish I have. They keep my tank from being boring, they all group together and swim from side to side of my 100 gallon aquairum. They really are a beautiful sight to see... I have a blue light bulb and a white bulb on my tank and wow their colors really pop out! The gold stripe looks fluorescent and they are so happy. Mine never hide they are not shy at all... I have them in with large veil angels, mollies, platies, all types of tetras, clown loaches, cory cats, rainbows, dwarf gouramis, bumblebee catfish, green & pink kissers, chinese algea eaters, plecos, cuckoo squeaker catfish & a red and blue crawfish...I LOVE MY TANK!!!!

cepe20 - 2013-03-23
i have kept this fish but they are quite hard to keep. These fish need to be handled with care because they get stressed very easily.

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Jeremy Roche - 2013-03-23
I would check your water supply. These fish are usually extremely easy to keep. May be something odd in your water. They do tend to get aggressive though.

Mike - 2004-07-18
i had a salvini for a while, they are nice to have. he never attacked any of my fish but he always hid in a little house. i noticed my firemouth and convict were messing with him. his blue strips turned black and thats when he got very aggressive. the next thing i know he locks on with the firemouth and twist his mouth and the firemouth runs, then he locks on the convict. he was so aggressive i had to remove him from the tank.

then my jack dempsey went into his house and i put the salvini back in the tank. he got mad again because the jack dempsey was in his house, so he attacked the jack dempsey. they locked on but the jack dempsey was a little bigger, same lengh just he was fatter, so the jack dempsey over powered the salvini. ever since that day i had to sell my salvini. it was a big tank and i had 3 houses in it, but he wanted that one. i suggest if you get a salvini put him in a tank alone.

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knifefish - 2013-03-08
Nice story.
ivan.houseago - 2013-03-23
hi mike, as with all territorial cichlids you must change the décor around on a regular basis this will cut down on aggression. Soon as the battles over real estate start, move house!

Leo - 2013-03-22
The next few questions might sound a bit odd but I’ll give it a shot. I activated another tank and chose to do an experiment with feeder fish. I purchased 12 Comet feeder fish and 24 Rosy Red also feeder fish hoping to become pets? My expectations might be a bit unrealistic but they have spectacular markings that are interesting and beautiful. I do realize that they may have stunt growth but is there a change of recovering as a quality fish? Should they be feed differently? And can they live as long as the so-called quality fish?

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Clarice Brough - 2013-03-22
Feeder fish can make fine pets! Treat them with the same type of care as you would for any other goldfish, including the right environment (a large aquarium with good filtration), good food,and regular maintenance. The Rosy Reds are tropical type fish rather than coldwater fish, so be sure to have a heater and thermometer to keep the tank warm enough for them. Also, goldfish are a dirtier fish, adding a large bioload to the tank, so frequent water changes will be needed to keep everybody healthy.
Leo - 2013-03-22
Thank you for your honesty. I love this site. It is a great place to learn from others.

estrondo - 2009-06-20
I am looking for somewhere to get a hold of more of these puffer fish. We originally had 3, but lost two. We absolutely love them, but have had no success in being able to replace them. Does anybody know where (in Canada) I can get more of these wonderful fish?

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Anonymous - 2010-03-29
I've seen them at Big Al's in Edmonton Alberta just the other week.
steve m - 2012-08-26
You can find them at Big Al's fish shop in Hamilton Ontario if this is in your area, maybe they can ship!
Anonymous - 2012-12-08
I got mine at Pisces Pet Emporium in Calgary.
Cory - 2012-12-16
Big Al's Aquarium Services in London Ontario has about 7 of them right now. Ask for 'Tony' the week-day fish guy. He is really great! :) I just got one. Absolutely adorable!
Max miller - 2013-03-21
I need help fast ! My South American puffer is not eating anything he is in a 50 gallon with. Just 10 pea puffers the pea puffers are eating beef hart . But the. Puffer is just not eating anything like beef hart, live worms and gost shrimp.
Clarice Brough - 2013-03-22
Hey Max, if your South American puffer is new to the tank, it may just be getting its bearings, so I'd be patient. You could also try offering brine shrimp, as shrimps help mimic their natural diet. However if you've had it for a long time, check its teeth. Their teeth constantly grow, so puffers need crunchy foods like snails in their diet to wear the them down. If the teeth get too long puffers will refuse to eat, and so the teeth must be trimmed.

Anonymous - 2013-03-22
hey i have a giant gourami. I bought it recently. I find it aggressive! It killed my silver carp and now it is after my shipping . Why is it so? Aren't silver carp and gourami compatible with each other? please tell me the name of fishes compatible with gourami.

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Clarice Brough - 2013-03-22
Sorry to hear about your carp, however, the Giant Gourami is rather aggressive when it's small. It may mellow out as an adult, but some males stay aggressive. They also need a really big tank, small spaces can aggravate aggressive behaviors. Although they are considered 'community' fish, companions need to be the more reserved type that stay out of its swimming area and tend to hide. Good tankmates of this sort are like knifefish, some eels, loricariids, and other large catfish. Sometimes large quiet fish like Silver Dollars and Red-Belly Pacus can also work if the tank is large enough.

Leo - 2013-03-21
I recently did an 80% water change and the last few days I noticed the two oldest shubunkins seem to be sleeping a lot lately and they’re not eating all their food as usual. One occasionally sleeps vertical or I think he’s sleeping with his head downward for approx. three to five minutes at one time and not moving. The same one on occasion has sticked his head in the back corner not moving and appearing to be punished. I’ve never seen this type of behaviour. The other appears to be sleeping horizontal on the gravel underneath a stone bridge and one or two smaller shubunkins appear to be laying down beside him. It’s charming to observe but is there any cause for concern?

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Clarice Brough - 2013-03-22
That was a pretty big water change. Goldfish can be sensitive to big changes in their environment, and it may be why they are laying down. Hopefully they will pull out of it.

Cheri - 2011-02-20
I just started my new 20 gal cichlid tank. I have a red zebra, a bumblebee, and an electric yellow. Do you think these fish are all ok together? I want to add one more...is there enough room? How do you tell if these fish are male or female?

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Paul Miller - 2011-03-27
Not sure about the red but I have a bumblebee and two yellow labs in a 25 gal. and they seem to be doing awesome together. Going to get a few more yellow lab, but I have the same question about sexing them. I think mine may be too young to tell but would like some help in possibly determining the sex of them.
rachel - 2011-04-01
I can help you with the bumblebee, but I don't know much about the others.
If your bumblebee has 1-2 egg spots (small yellow circles) on its anal fin, its a female. But if it has 2-5 egg spots its a male.
The male will grow to about 6 ft; and the female to 5 ft. A 50 gallon tank will work for a single fish, but you need a 100+ gallon if housed with other compatible fish.
hope that helps!
rachel - 2011-04-02
Sorry, not 6ft and 5ft, but 6in and 5in.
Danny - 2013-03-21
A 20 gallon is way 2 small. U should have at least a afr55 gallon to house African cichlids. They wont become aggressive until there adults and u need 2 females to 1male. They get about 4-6 '. U need plenty of hiding places. Over stock (in the right size tank) to lower aggression. And u can tell male from female by venting. Loom u.derive

Dylan - 2011-04-06
Hello! I have two different age Black Moors and the older fish is starting to get really big. he acts as if he is hungry all the time. he sits at the top looking like he is trying to eat. Do I feed him more fish flakes or is there another food to give him since he is bigger?

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Anonymous - 2013-02-13
Hello The best thing to do in your case is to feed tiny amounts just a few flakes up to 3 times a day or use a different food I'm a carp fisherman and use a bait called a boilie crush them up in a blender or in a bag and hit gently with a rolling pin these last for hours and will keep your fish happy as can be I have 3 blackmoors and she loves them u can buy 1 kg my sure what this is in America for about £ 10 hope this has helped
jennie - 2013-03-21
I feed my Moore pellets from petco with a pic of mores on the bottle. he realy loves them. so good luck. mine is from middle finger tip to the end of my hand. so he is pretty big too

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