Michigan Cichlid Association
General Category => Non Cichlids => Topic started by: fish fan on June 22, 2012, 11:45:36 AM
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Has anyone had any luck with breeding these? These are my wifes favorite fish, and I plan on dedicating a tank to them.
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If anyone's bred these in an aquarium, it'd be news to me.
Last I knew they were almost always bred in ponds overseas. Oddly enough, for them being a slow grower and so hard to breed in an aquarium, back home they are considered a food fish IIRC. There's also certain times of the year either due to shipping or breeding conditions that supply increases and prices drop for a while. If you've watched LFS prices long enough you'll have probably noticed how sometimes they are perhaps as low as $5.99ea @2" and other times $12.99 @2".
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I seen them today at a petsmart for 5:49 each at 2" I am just not sure about getting any fish from any pet smart? I am curious, Would anyone buy these from the Petsmart?
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I would quarantine them for a couple of weeks first.
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I seen them today at a petsmart for 5:49 each at 2" I am just not sure about getting any fish from any pet smart? I am curious, Would anyone buy these from the Petsmart?
All clown loaches come from the same few sources in Asia. It doesn't really matter where you buy it from as long as it is healthy. Also I've been told by a very reliable source that ALL Petsmart's get all their fish from Segrest Farms. Segrest is a pretty reliable wholesaler as wholesalers go. Would I buy a cichlid - probably not. Would I buy a clown loach - absolutely.
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I recommended a quarantine period because I believe Petsmart filtration systems are centralized. Which means one sick fish = potentially many sick fish.
This is not to say don't buy fish from them, just make sure they're healthy before you put them in your main tank.
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I'll buy fish from petsmart every once& awhile. DEFINITELY QUARANTINE
Almost every fish I've gotten from them has at least had ich
& yes as Jeff said Petsmart 's supplier is Segrest& Segrest isn't bad.
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I have 3 clown loaches growing old. 2 of them are from the many clown loaches I bought from stores and the only 2 that I medicated before they looked sick. The third one is one I got from Jeff. Every other clown loach I've ever had grows well for a while, then it's stomach shrivels up, it gets thin, and it eventually dies.
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I have 3 clown loaches growing old. 2 of them are from the many clown loaches I bought from stores and the only 2 that I medicated before they looked sick. The third one is one I got from Jeff. Every other clown loach I've ever had grows well for a while, then it's stomach shrivels up, it gets thin, and it eventually dies.
Any idea what causes there stomach to shrivel up at all, and have you seen this in cichlids as well. I have seemingly noticed this in a few of mine.
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Clown loaches need meat and lots of it. I've kept a shoal of 9 for a number of years now. Feed them the snails from your other tanks and or black worms. That's what I do. They also need to be kept in groups to thrive and for you to witness Clown Loach behavior.
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Any idea what causes there stomach to shrivel up at all, and have you seen this in cichlids as well. I have seemingly noticed this in a few of mine.
The ones I treated with parasite clear are the ones living today. I'd used Kanacyn on the group previously it didn't help, so I'm presuming it was parasitic and not bacterial. IMO anything viral would be a stretch. Not to be a bearer of bad news, but unless you bought fish from a sketchy place, I'd suspect stress/water parameters over parasites. The clown loach issue IMO is that they come from ponds overseas.
They also need to be kept in groups to thrive and for you to witness Clown Loach behavior.
I definitely agree with that statement! FWIW I started with a larger group, but the rest just didn't make it. I've seen some large groups of them in aquariums and it's a really cool sight.
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I have added 6 Loaches to a tank that already had 1 in there. The 1 is about 7" and the new 6 are 2" purchased from petsmart a couple months ago. The 6 newer now have ick and I have read conflicting articles about how to remove it. More are suggesting a temp increase and adding salt vs. medication. Any help would be appreciated!
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The 6 newer now have ick and I have read conflicting articles about how to remove it. More are suggesting a temp increase and adding salt vs. medication. Any help would be appreciated!
Because they have very small scales/thin skin, they are typically more sensitive to medications, thus the suggestions of temperature and/or salt to help combat the ich. Personally, I'd probably use Nox-Ich because I know it flat out works, but do so in a smaller tank (so you'll not need as much medication and because the malachite green will stain the silicone dark green - don't want to ruin the display tank!). Also be careful with the dosage, as typically medications are used at 1/2 the normal rate for sensitive species (loaches, catfish, etc).
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I like the raising temp& adding salt for Loaches& catfish remedy. But, I do use Nox-ich& it does work very well on my Cichlids
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Thx for the input. :)
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Supplement their food with Thera-A...the garlic will help with the other factors you are using to combat the ich.
Clown Loaches almost always seem to get ich just from moving them.
When I was bringing in large fish orders I would immediately put the Clown Loaches in a warm tank (80+ degrees) and add salt.
I would get zero ich on a tankful of 50-100 loaches.
As for them breeding in captivity, it has occurred but merely by accident. Large shoal of large (6-8"+) fish and a lot of tangled branches or piles of driftwood seem to be the common factor.
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Well, I went the temp increase route and it has cleared up the ick. Thank you for the tips.
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Good to hear it worked out
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If you are looking for large clown loaches. I seen today at aquatic gardens in saginaw 3 for sale. They were in the range of 8-10 inches for $35 a piece.
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Wow, I may have to drive out to take a look at them. Thanks!
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I seen them today at a petsmart for 5:49 each at 2" I am just not sure about getting any fish from any pet smart? I am curious, Would anyone buy these from the Petsmart?
** THAT IS CHEAPER THAN THE LFS THAT IS MY FAVORITE PLACE TO BUY FISH IN JENISON, MICH.-THERE-THEY WANT $14.99 EACH..... ON PETSMART.COM IT SHOWS THE CLOWN LOACHES PRICED AT $8.47 EACH AT THE STORE--STILL CHEAPER AND I CAN GET-3-FOR THE PRICE OF THE 2 AT THE OTHER LFS. NOT A BAD DEAL. GLAD YOU COMMENTED ON THIS POST. 8) **
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I also saw a few of the loaches today in the Petsmart. Same sale 5.49. Probly all 3" plus.. Pretty good size to them....
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I also saw a few of the loaches today in the Petsmart. Same sale 5.49. Probly all 3" plus.. Pretty good size to them....
** Bought some...good price for their size and healthy! 8) **
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I suppose its just me, but I don't see the appeal of these fish. Maybe someday i will who know's... ???
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I suppose its just me, but I don't see the appeal of these fish. Maybe someday i will who know's... ???
IMO, they have neat colors, personalities, and it's like a combination of keeping tropheus and synodontis. Similar to my experiences with tropheus, they can be delicate when young, don't always eat well, often seem to develop sickness easily after coming home from the LFS, and are hard to treat if they become sick. However, once they are older they are much hardier. Similar to synos, they are personable, don't grow terribly fast at all and live a long time given proper care. So the longer you have them, the more attached and the greater the feeling of achievement. You don't see big ones very often for a reason, but it's not too hard to find thin ones at a LFS.