Re: Lonely Goldfish?    4/14/06
Hello again!
I hope you don't mind me begging your indulgence once again. My 'lonely' goldfish is now in quarantine (I believe the stress of lively
new companions didn't sit well with her - especially as they viewed her veil-tail as a challenging snack!)
<Happens>
with fin-rot. Fortunately, she's doing very well on her own and appears to be much happier.
(I’ve treated her with salt baths every few days, after starting her out on anti-fin rot medication – I now leave her in her tank without any ‘add-ins’,
doing a ¾ water change every other day. It’s working wonders.)
<Ah, good>
The new companions are now in a new aquarium themselves, I’m not sure how many gallons - but it's massive! – It could easily accommodate more fish,
but I prefer to let the ones in it already have plenty of space to grow.
<Good>
There’s just one problem, and that’s the baby loach I bought, on a whim. It was only after I bought the little fellow (with the pet stores’ non-existent advice on the matter) and did some background research, that I realized he’d grow up to be a bit of a bully; and a territorial bully at that! And, surprisingly enough, he has.
<What species?>
I don’t want this guy in with my goldies, he’s grown since I bought him (several months ago) and has gotten to be a good few inches long; and his
manner has changed dramatically!
<... grown this much... a loach? More likely a CAE... Gyrinocheilus>
My folks have a pond in their back garden – it’s pretty cold, a bit murky (as outside ponds tend to be), but it does contain several large coy, frogs,
and lots of plant life. Would the little guy be alright in there?
<... what is this species?>
It’s a good sized pond, around 4 foot deep – 8 x 8 feet, and if he could survive quite happily in there I’d put him in, rather than taking him back to the store.
<I'd return this fish... too much chance of trouble placing it in your parents pond>
A few words of advice would be greatly appreciated.
<Okay... the government and banks are not your friends>
Thank you -  once again,
Sarah x
<Bob Fenner>

Another Clown Loach for a 10Gal?  12/16/05
Hi Crew,
<Hi, Pufferpunk here>
First off I would like to thank you for your time.  I currently have a ten  gallon tank that has been set up for six months now.  The ammonia level is 0,  nitrites are at 0 and nitrates are <20.  I have a five inch tire track eel, a  two inch silver angel, and two one inch clown loaches.  Yes I do know that  all of these fish get rather large and I will be buying a fifty gallon tank in about six months.  The two clown loaches were purchased about a week ago
and are doing great.  I read on your site that you should have at least three clown loaches in a tank because they are very social schooling fish.  I was wondering if it would be a good idea for me to purchase one more small clown loach for my tank to have a total of three or if it would be too crowded in my ten gallon.  Any advise would help.
<I would definately not buy any more fish for that tank.  Even in a 50g tank, the fish you have now will get quite large.  Clown loaches can reach a size of close to 12".  I have had 2 together for a long time & they seem happy (they are living in my 125g).  It would be nice to have a school of them but even in my tank, that wouldn't be feasible.  Be sure to research the adult sizes of all your fish before you purchase them.  Also, be sure to do lots of water changes, especially while in that small tank.  I do 50% weekly, on all my tanks.  ~PP>
Thank you very much, Stuart

Re: Hypancistrus zebra, to Kissing Gourami, to Clown Loaches
Ah, thanks. Maybe I'll ask Santa for one...
<Only if you and the biz have been good>
By the way a couple of fish questions:
First, my kissing Gourami gets very excited at feeding time. He chases the other fish around, "kissing" them to move them away from the food as it
settles to the bottom. Then, after eating, he seems to kiss or gulp air (can't tell which) at the surface for 10-20 minutes. Is this normal?
<Yes... these are "outgoing" fish...>
Would clown loaches survive outside in pots in the summertime in San Diego/Encinitas? Mine are getting pretty big for my 30 gal.
<Mmm, likely yes... but would keep inside... have seen quite large, very old (decades) clown loaches kept in modest size systems. They don't seem to suffer for being kept in such systems. Bob Fenner>
Thanks.

Re: ... Clown Loaches
OK, Thanks. I'll keep them in. I'm thinking of constructing some PVC "caves" for the loaches. What do you think?
<A very nice idea>
Sort of a loach habit-trail or a loach motel. I move the rocks around occasionally as they seem to like change.
<Yes, life is. Bob F>

Skunk loaches (10/10/03)
<Hi! Ananda here tonight...>
I have a 10 gallon freshwater tank, established.  I have to dwarf gouramis, two zebra Danios, one common Plec, one red tail black shark (just added) and (now) one 1" skunk loach.  
<The skunk loach, Botia morleti, gets to be 4" long; the shark, Epalzeorhynchos bicolor, gets to almost 5". Hopefully you will have larger quarters for them in the future.>
I had two skunk loaches (same size), however, the shark had an ick spot. I treated the tank with 1/2 strength Quik Cure. About 12 hours after the initial treatment, one of my skunk loaches was hanging on top of my heater (I have a submersible). He looked injured on one side right in the gill area, from about his eye back across the gill. I want to know if this is a result of the treatment or did the shark injure him.
<My bets are on the shark -- or perhaps the other skunk loach! This is one of the more aggressive loaches, and with only 10 gallons, that's not a lot of room for them to stake out their territories. Half-strength Quick Cure *should* be okay for loaches, and would not have caused a visible exterior injury.>
The other loach is fine. I put him in a brood net in the tank as I don't have a hospital tank. But, he died within 12 hours.
<Presumably, you mean the injured loach was in the brood net...without a photo of the injury, it's difficult for me to say what caused it.>
I will be upgrading to a bigger tank, 30 gal, in about a week.  I also have a 30 gal already established and fully stocked.  I would appreciate any advice for these loaches.  
Thanks, Donna
<Well, they definitely need the space of the 30g tank. Depending on what fish you have in the other 30g, you might consider moving the loach or the shark. Unlike many loaches, which prefer to be in groups, as an adult this loach prefers to be by itself. More on these guys here: http://loaches.com/species_pages/botia_morleti.html ... By the way...you do plan on keeping the 10 gallon for a hospital tank, right? :-)  --Ananda>
 

Brackish loaches? (1/6/04) 
Hello Bob. I enjoy your site immensely. 
<Me, too. Ananda here tonight...> 
I currently have a system set up for Archerfish, and as it establishes, I've been researching potential tankmates. As a beginner to brackish water fishkeeping, I've found it to be the most informative single resource on the net. 
<So did I. Thanks!> 
I do however have a few questions that aren't covered on the site:  (My substrate is an even mix of sand and crushed coral, with a small amount of smooth pebble-sized gravel. The specific gravity is about 1.005, and the temp is 80F) 
Your section on brackish fishes mentions that loaches, and in particular the Clown Loach are happy in a brackish environment. However, I've found other resources that say loaches are extremely salt-intolerant. Do you know what the real story is? 
<I believe that clown loaches may venture into brackish water, but do not stay there long-term.... Most other sources say *all* loaches are salt-intolerant, and I know that's not the case (more on that in a bit). I have clown loaches, but haven't had the guts to try turning their tank into a brackish system.> 
I've always liked loaches in my freshwater community tanks, so I'd like to add a few. If they do tolerate salt, can you tell me what their upper limit of salinity is? 
<I know they will tolerate 1.003 for at least a few weeks -- a friend treated her loaches for Ich by adding freshwater salt, adding it slowly (over a couple of days) until she got to 1.003, and increasing their tank temp to about 86. I have heard of people who've had success keeping yo-yo loaches, Botia almorhae (formerly B. lohachata) in systems up to 1.006.> 
I'm also a big fan of mollusks, and apparently "freshwater" clams such as Corbicula fluminea can adapt to fairly high levels of salinity. Do you have any experience or comments on keeping these clams (or similar species) in an aquarium setting? 
<I haven't tried it. However, I've heard that freshwater mollusks can be disease carriers.> 
Also, I've been searching for a type of snail that would be suitable for such an environment. Everything I can find on the net seems to be purely freshwater or marine. Any suggestions? 
<Malaysian trumpet snails, also called cone snails, do just fine in brackish systems. They will reproduce to near-plague proportions if you give them a chance. Going from the other end of the spectrum, I've heard that some turbo snails can be adapted to brackish systems. Doing so, however, is a matter of weeks, if not months. And Pufferpunk recently got some freshwater Nassarius snails, so they, too could be adapted. Again, however, the process would be slow.> 
Thanks in advance, 
-Brian 
<You're quite welcome. Do check out the WWM brackish forum at http://wetwebfotos.com/talk --Ananda> 

Chuck Clowns Around with the loaches
I have a 90 gallon show tank with discus, clown loaches and Bushynosed Plecos. It is decorated with wood and single piece of holey stone which gives the loaches many hiding places. The substrate is typical natural colored aquarium gravel. I was considering removing the gravel and leaving the tank bare bottomed so I could keep it very clean. Is that going to be a problem for the clown loaches? 
< I would not remove all the gravel. I would leave about 1/2 inch to 3/4 of an inch of gravel or fine sand. There are bacteria living on the gravel that help break down the fishes waste. If you removed all the gravel you would probably encounter big ammonia spikes every time you changed your filter and that would affect the entire tank. I would service the filter once every two weeks and then gravel vac the substrate on alternate weeks.-Chuck> 
James Nyman

Looking for a Dojo Loach

I was considering a Dojo Loach (possibly gold) for a 29g and have seen some widely ranging information on these in regards to their size.  I have seen postings stating their max aquarium size anywhere from 15cm upwards of 20inches.  In a "typical" aquarium what size should I expect one of these to grow, and would it outgrow a 29g and if so in how long?
< Generally Dojo's are bottom loving catfish that spend all their time sifting through fine sand for something to eat. Fine well rounded sand is best because coarse materials will be abrasive to the mouth and eyes. Go to planetcatfish.com and see all the Dojo's that are out there. Many species are referred to as Dojo's. Most in the hobby only get around 8 inches while the gold variety is smaller around 4 inches.>
Also I have read that they like to burrow and bury themselves.  I am concerned about this as I have a crushed coral substrate which would not be good.  I read they like sandy bottoms which would go with the burrowing.  I do have lots of cover and live plants so at least the layout should be acceptable.
< Fine sand is the only way to go or else you will become an expert in wound control.-Chuck>
Patrick

Golden Dojos/Weatherfish
Thank you so much for your advice.
<Welcome>
I will not get any more Dojos!
<I see>
The tank was given to me by a friend who moved and could no longer keep it. He gave me no instruction on caring for it other than to feed the fish, as
he figured he would come by to do the maintenance (which didn't happen) and when I went away on a 1 month trip, everyone died (the tank was beyond
disgustingly filthy when I returned), so, I started over and researched how to maintain a tank on the net.  However, at the local fish store, I was
never informed as to the size the knifes would get, but since I like them so much, I will move them to their own tank when they get bigger.
<...>
The cichlids I have are 2 electric blue cichlids, 2 Neolamprologus sexfasciatus gold, 2 tiger Oscars.  Since the Knifes will need their own tank
eventually and the Oscars will too, would they work in their own tank together?
<For a short while perhaps (months)>
Both the Oscars and the Knifes are my favorites.
<These two could live together... but the Africans, no>
Since the Dojos are fine and everyone else is happy and healthy, I guess my main question is now, how do I lower my nitrates if the water changes aren't
doing the trick?
<A few ways... the simplest is by regular good-sized water changes... like 20% a week... but using live plants, deep, large gravel, chemical filtrants... and careful feeding should help>
You have a great site, and are very generous with your time in answering everyone's questions.  Thank you again!
Tara
<Again, you're very welcome. Excelsior! Bob Fenner>