Bolivian Ram question

[JustOneMore20]

My Bolivian male is very fiesty...he even gets after my Angelfish which are almost twice as big as he is. My dominant angel is missing a chunk from her tail and I suspect my Bolivian because I've actually seen him nip at them before....so its possible it was the Bolivian. But its most likely the tetras, as I think Phantom tetras can be nippy, especially amongst themselves.

 

[Tukie2kie]

Will the tail eventualy grow back or heal? or will the fish continue to pick on the injured fish, would quaranteening him aide the healing?

 

[Lonewolfblue]

If you have a QT tank, I would QT him. The other fish will keep picking at it.

 

[maxwell1295]

My Bolivian rams were always pretty peaceful, with the exception of some minor spats between them. There was so lip-locking, but nothing too bad. I did have one of them killa dwarf gourami that used to bully him during feedings. I guess he got fed up on day. Other than that, they were very peaceful fish. GBR's have a little more attitude......and when spawning they have a LOT of attitude!

 

[Tukie2kie]

How old is the female? Your friend has had it for a year, but is it much older than that? Try adding a male... you never know what will happen.

Im not sure how old she is but hes had her for about a year and hes seen her grow to this full size and shes been that size for awhile. she is abut 3 inches ish.

if i go to the lfs to get another one (a male) will it matter the approximate age or size if i want them to pair off?

 

[Lonewolfblue]

If too young, they may not pair off. Plus at a younger age, it's near impossible to sex. Yours is full grown now.

 

[NeonJulie]

What is the minimum size required tank for Golden or Bolivian Ram? And can they live solitary? Or is it kinder to put 2 together. My tank is a 12g.

 

[Tukie2kie]

What is the minimum size required tank for Golden or Bolivian Ram? And can they live solitary? Or is it kinder to put 2 together. My tank is a 12g.

earlier on this post someone said they are fine on their own buy you just miss out on any cool intereactions they would have of their own species. Mine is full grown and barely over 3 inches and I have her in a 20 gal.

The Bolivian will do ok by himself, but if the tank is big enough, then adding another will allow you to watch some of their other behaviours you wouldn't see with a single fish.

I looked up some info on them on liveaquaria.com and on their description it says minimum tank size 30gal and I have no idea why. 3 inches is not a big fish, i don't know about gold rams though (unless gold and bolivian are the same thing)

 

[bs6749]

I looked up some info on them on liveaquaria.com and on their description it says minimum tank size 30gal and I have no idea why. 3 inches is not a big fish, i don't know about gold rams though (unless gold and bolivian are the same thing)

No, they are not the same thing. Golden Rams and German Blue Rams are the same specie, just a different morph. Bolivian Rams are a completely different specie. Golds/GBR's grow to about 3 inches and would do fine in a ten gallon. I remember www.liveaquaria.com recommending 20 gallons for them but 10 would be fine. Bolivians should be in 20 gallons, as they can get 4 inches long, and I don't remember seeing anything about them on www.liveaquaria.com

EDIT: Just checked www.liveaquaria.com and they have updated there stocking list since I visited it last. Yup, it does indeed say Bolivians should be in at least a 30 gallon tank. They also have golden rams listed now.

 

[Lonewolfblue]

You can have a single ram or a pair, or several. GBR's seem to do better in pairs or groupss, where Bolivians seem to do good either as a single, or more than one. For tank sizes, minimum 10G for GBR and Goldens, and 20G for Bolivian.

 

[Viperboy]

Hey LWB bet ya didnt know this was my friend .... i actually am having to take down my 29gal and this is one of my bolivians that he got .... she is full grown and i also have 2 other males if he wants them .... i know i havnt been around in a while but i been working on my saltwater tank .... i finally crossed over .... but yea tukie if you want a male i can give you one of mine otherwise they are just gonna get taken to a LFS probably .... how ya been LBW

Ray

 

[Lonewolfblue]

Been doing awsome here, just working lots. Not getting much time off work, lol. And then when I do, I have 8 tanks to clean, lol. Neverending story, lol. but I love it.

Actually, I'm starting to cut down on my tanks. I tore down 2 breeder tanks after my losses, and cleaned them up. They are still on the dual 10G stands, just empty. With my Xmas bonus, I may get myself more Eco and do 2 more 10G tanks, and have just 1 or 2 plant types in each. Will see what happens....

I still have my 3 Bolivians. They are pretty big, almost 2 years old and doing awsome. But one male is a big chicken, lol. He gets pushed around by the other male and the female. But he's not too stressed, just hangs out where he can't be seen by the others, lol.

 

[Viperboy]

Thats exactly how my 3 used to act before i gave this one to tukie .... i know what ya mean about the tanks ... i have 2 SW tanks and 2 FW tanks so the MTS has def sucked me in .... i remember when i first started and all that good advice you gave me .. look where i am now

Ray

 

[Lonewolfblue]

 

[Tukie2kie]

yay fish
yay ray