Animal Stories - People Talking About Labyrinth Fish



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Latest Animal Stories on Labyrinth Fish (576)

Steve - 2012-03-21
Hi I have a giant gourami. He is 22 inches and a great fish. he's been kept for 26 years now but just the other day was swimming fine then all of a sudden sunk to the bottom and now stays like that most of the day. He still eats well and swims about for about 10 mins after feeding but then sinks again. Any advice?

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Steve - 2012-03-22
Thanks for your advice he is back up swimming and playing about he's a great fish and part of the family so was pretty gutted to see him down like that.
Jeremy Roche - 2012-03-21
Great job on keeping a fish that long. He is getting up their in age. Could he be constipated? Peas can help with that. I am thinking it may just be his age.
Jeremy Roche - 2012-03-22
Great!! The peas worked?
Steve - 2012-03-22
Nah didn't use the peas. I opened up the hood left it open all day gave him some kiwi and he was back splashing about straight away!

Meaghan Busch - 2011-01-23
Two days after Thanksgiving last year, I went to PetSmart to get two fish. I had always had goldfish growing up and I love fish, but I couldn't stand getting more goldfish. First of all, Petsmart really helped me out. I also needed a fish for a biology lab with a self-contained ecosystem and there was an aquarium part in it. I needed a hardy fish and they pointed me out to the gouramis. I also said I wanted fish to keep for myself, because the fish I brought for biology I would be bringing home. I got the last two Red Fire Dwarf Gouramis there (both male). When I brought them home and put them in the tank, one was a little less colorful, but a bit bigger than the other. So, I put him in the project so the smaller one would claim the tank a bit (I also fed him a bit more so he'd grow to be a bit bigger). Oh, and the colorful one is Iago and the less colorful one is Simba. About a month later--just before Christmas, I brought Simba home and now Iago, who is about the same size as Simba now, started bullying him. Over about a week, however, they started getting along. Much more recently, I went to PetSmart and purchased a Blue Mystery Snail (I named him Clyde) to clean up after Simba and Iago. Now, they all get along--although Simba and Iago like to rub up against and uproot the two plants I have rooted in the gravel so I have to keep replanting them.
I also noticed when Simba came home and Iago was bullying him, that Simba would turn almost sideways--someone else mentioned similar behavior in their two conflicting gouramis. After much observation, I believe it is a submissive behavior, such as dogs rolling over and showing their bellies. Of course, I'm just a sixteen year old girl who has a little too much time on her hands--most of it used to watch said fish--and not a world class animal behaviorist. Anyway, that's my observation. I know my tale has been pretty long, but I hope my fish story answers some of your questions. Like, when Simba and Iago were bullying each other, I was worried and thought about getting a tank divider of some kind. However, over time, they got used to each other and started getting along. Now, they're inseparable.
Also, these are by far the smartest fish I have ever seen--then again, I'm mostly familiar with goldfish. They get used to routine and know what time they are to be fed or what time the lights go out so they can rest. These are my favorite fish ever and definitely fish I would recommend for anyone!

--Meaghan Busch

Angelo - 2011-07-27
Years ago, a friend gave me a "Blue Paradise Fish" because it bullied his other fish when he added it to his aquarium. All I had was a small rectangular glass container----maybe two gallons and no aeration or thermostat, kept in a laundry room that would get cold in the Winter. I put aluminum foil on the top to keep the fish in. That fish lived for years----would actually jump from the water to take food from my hand. He would swim to the front glass and pose when someone walked into the room.

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Charlie Roche - 2011-07-28
Good story and good for you

Cassandra May - 2012-03-07
My yellow gourami ate two of my tetras and ate two of my other fishs tails. Any ideas what to do with Sly? (thats the fishs name)? I chased him with the net for a bit when he would bite the others but that only worked for a day. Should i just find a new tank for Sly? any ideas?

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Charlie Roche - 2012-03-07
I think it best to move him. Seems to have an appetite for live foods, which is not unusual for a gourami. I'd say he has quite the appetite.

abhilash - 2010-10-14
Can we breed blue male gourami and gold female as I have them?
Female is very fat and male is small.

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boss - 2012-02-19
Hi Abhilash,
Of course you can breed a gold female gourami with a blue male but the babies won't be good looking and it won't have a demand in market. You can simply breed and raise them.

Lori - 2011-08-29
I have had 5 Powder Blue Gouramis and they looked good, but they start to get thin and then die. They are eating, don't show signs of disease, then they get listless and die with in days. I have a healthy 55 gallon tank, lots of plants and hiding places. I have Angels, Parrots, Kissing Gouramis, Tetras and Barbs. They all seem to get along, with some spats, but nothing constant. Any suggestions?

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Harry - 2012-01-23
How big is your angel? I have gourami and angel mixed tank and to begin with it was a struggle angels at time can be very aggressive
Especially when fully grown!!
daryl - 2012-02-16
I have the same problem and the same size tank. My other dwarf Gouramis do great just the powder blues are having a problem.. Wonder what is going on no signs of disease.

Uni Krishnan - 2012-02-15
I have 3 inch giant gourami , can anyone tell me how long it will take for him grow to the size which is shown in the images posted by this website

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Jeremy Roche - 2012-02-15
Hello Uni. There are a few things that determine the growth rate of the Gaint Gourami. Tank size is a key factor; as well as amount of fish in the tank. I have had one reach almost 2 feet in length in a 150 gallon tank and it was around 2 years old.

Anonymous - 2012-02-13
Hi,um, every female betta I get becomes super aggresive in 2 weeks or less (one even ate the eye of a live feeder fish after it realized the fish didn't fit in it's mouth). Is there any explaination or way to prevent this because I would like to breed betta fish but I don't want dead fish floating all around.

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Alex Burleson - 2012-02-13
Breeding Bettas is an exciting task! Bettas in general are known for their aggression, even during breeding. Honestly, what is required to breed them, is that you introduce them to each other, slowly. There are a great deal of articles on the internet regarding this. As it would be a grand job to type, feel free to email me with an questions, or comments.
alex.burleson@live.com

Flora - 2011-06-28
A couple weeks ago, my family bought some fish. I'm not sure of all the breeds, but their are two gourami fish in there. I have a pearl gourami and there is also a Opaline gourami. I believe the Pearl is a male and I think the Opaline is as well. There is also a guppy in there as well and I'm slightly worried. From what I've read, smaller fish tend not to last with gouramis. Should I be worried for the guppy? Also, the Opaline gourami has some strange behaviour. Whenever we switch the light off in the tank, it goes crazy. It swims to the top incredibly fast and then zooms around for a while. It tends to circle around the thermometer, on the side of the tank, as well. It chases my pearl gourami around constantly. Is there anything wrong?

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Charlie Roche - 2011-06-28
Since the Gouramis are omnivores and will grow up to at least 6 inches and will eat all kinds of live fresh food, I'd say it's a good chance the Gouramis will eat the little guys. Guppies are pretty small and I would think the Gourami would think it might make an excellent meal. I have no idea about switching the light off in the tank. It might just be a startled reaction that he needs to get used to. Are you switching the light off when the room is dark? You could try switching the light off when the room light is on and then switch the tank light off. I leave a nightlight on for my birds - I don't know if throwing a fish into darkness fast would startle them.
Alex Burleson - 2012-02-12
If you notice your Guppy with nipped fins, or the Gouramis chasing him, remove the fish and place it into another aquarium. Fish are known to act like that when the lights in the aquarium are turned off. No one is entirely sure why, however it may be due to the fact that unlike the Sun, which doesn't simply turn off like a light switch, the aquarium lights do. In an attempt to solve this issue, I would dim the lights in the room the aquarium is located before bed time. Additionally, I would turn the aquarium lights off at a set time, every light, so that the fish can become biologically predisposed as to when the lights are going off. This, should minimize the behavior in the fish.

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Charlie Roche - 2011-06-28
Since the Gouramis are omnivores and will grow up to at least 6 inches and will eat all kinds of live fresh food, I'd say it's a good chance the Gouramis will eat the little guys. Guppies are pretty small and I would think the Gourami would think it might make an excellent meal. I have no idea about switching the light off in the tank. It might just be a startled reaction that he needs to get used to. Are you switching the light off when the room is dark? You could try switching the light off when the room light is on and then switch the tank light off. I leave a nightlight on for my birds - I don't know if throwing a fish into darkness fast would startle them.
Alex Burleson - 2012-02-12
If you notice your Guppy with nipped fins, or the Gouramis chasing him, remove the fish and place it into another aquarium. Fish are known to act like that when the lights in the aquarium are turned off. No one is entirely sure why, however it may be due to the fact that unlike the Sun, which doesn't simply turn off like a light switch, the aquarium lights do. In an attempt to solve this issue, I would dim the lights in the room the aquarium is located before bed time. Additionally, I would turn the aquarium lights off at a set time, every light, so that the fish can become biologically predisposed as to when the lights are going off. This, should minimize the behavior in the fish.

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