Otocinclus?

[meegosh]

All my three ottos are still alive, no problems. I had seen them in the fish shop a couple of weeks before I bought them though, so I suppose if there were any losses, they would have occurred in the lfs before I bought them I'd seen them eating algae at the shop so I thought they'd be fine
The shop also taped up the corners of the fish bag. Apparantly ottos often wedge their heads into a corner of the bag on the way home. If the bags moving a lot, it can cover their gills and kill them. Try to get your shop to do that when you buy them. It might make a difference

Just flip the bag over... I always do that when I buy fish locally. That way there is no corners for them to get caught in. I also keep a pack of brown paper bags in my car to put them in so they don't get stressed on the way home.

 

[Fishies86]

Just flip the bag over... I always do that when I buy fish locally. That way there is no corners for them to get caught in. I also keep a pack of brown paper bags in my car to put them in so they don't get stressed on the way home.

Ah, smart thinking I don't know why that didn't occur to me our fish shops always put them in a paper bag and then a carrier bag anyway

 

[mommytron]

i think an important part in buying otos, is buying the ones that have been there the longest. i bought 6 and split them between two tanks, then moved two of them in with the rest of them a couple months after, and just now (a year later) did i have my first loss. the otos i bought had been at the LFS for a least a couple of weeks. i think that really made the difference (because as stated in an earlier post, if there is to be any die-offs it will happen at the LFS and you'll get the good ones.)

also, around here, i have not noticed a lack in otos. in fact, my last trip to the LFS (about a week ago) they had 50 or more of them.

 

[Katto]

I found some! I just happened to be in Petsmart on one of their fish-order days and they had a few in their shipment! Scooped up 5 and brought them home because there really wasn't all that much there and I wasn't sure when I would see some again.

I have them in QT now. They look a bit chubby. Is that normal or could they be bloated? I'll try to get some pictures up soon! Hopefully I can keep these cute little guys alive.

 

[mommytron]

chubby is usually a good sign! it means their bellies are full congrats! make sure to supplement with high quality wafers or blanched veg like zucchini if you don't have algae built up.

 

[ShadoeFox]

Oh good, this answered a question I've been thinking about posting. My oto's are gettin kind of tubby, but that's what I get for having a tank as close to the window as I do. (Thought it was safe, between tree's and the lack of direct sunlight. The algea fairy says I was so wrong...heh.)

 

[Katto]

I've lost one. The other four seem to be doing okay, though. I added some zucchini and wafers for them to munch on, but they don't seem too interested yet.