bolivian ram

[alLexX]

as you may or may not know,i have been looking for a paradise fish for a while(since early august or so).today i broke down and bought a bolivian ram(possibkly german blue,not sure) for the amazing price of $6. he/she looks awesome. i read up on them a lot when i frst saw them at the LFS(couple weeks ago) and am confident i can care for one,but id like to know from owners of these fish how to have him look his best,and be as healthy as possible.

 

[eco23]

Lots of fresh water, low nitrAtes, compatible tank mates, a high quality food and if it is a GBR...a touch of luck.

I've had bad experiences with GBR's, but my Bolivian is doing well. He's not remotely colorful however even though he's a happy fish. If yours is a Bolivian and looks like a GBR, that's a good start.

You should look at some pics and be certain what species he is.

 

[alLexX]

thanks for the help

edit:he looks like a gbr because he has a blue sheen on him,but his fins are longer than the pics i saw

 

[eco23]

What color are his eyes? You should post some pics...we all love pictures

 

[Rene21]

I have a pair of Bolivian Rams (female and male) in my 20g, and they're my favorites. Very inquisitive, and have loads of personality. Despite the occasional bickering between themselves, they are also very mellow, and I've never seen them bother the other fish.

I feed mine cichlid pellets, sinking shrimp pellets, and bloodworms. They also pick at the flake foods and algae rounds, but don't seem to enjoy them.

 

[alLexX]

What color are his eyes? You should post some pics...we all love pictures

his eyes are red and black,and pics will come soon

 

[eco23]

I'm not sure if it's a 100% accurate way to identify...but I'm pretty sure only GBR's have red eyes.

I feed mine NLS Thera +A pellets, h2o stable wafers, frozen bloodworms occasionally and blanched peas once a week. He goes nuts for the wafers...he'll drag them all over the tank and chase the Corys away from it.

 

[absolutangel04]

I have Bolivians and have had very good luck with them. I stayed away form gbr because here is the pricetag attached to them was pretty ridiculous. But, the Bolivians are great. Gbr are so lovely and colorful though. Whichever yours turns out to be, I wish you the best of luck. A blue sheen really does describe the gbr more. Juvy Bolivians tend to not be very colorful at all.

 

[alLexX]

here are pics

http://www.aquariumadvice.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=58589&stc=1&d=1319919842

http://www.aquariumadvice.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=58590&stc=1&d=1319919842

http://www.aquariumadvice.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=58591&stc=1&d=1319919842

 

[absolutangel04]

Yeah, thats a gbr. It appears to be a long-finned variety to me. I have heard of these, but not seen them before. Of course, I have not way of telling you if it was selectively bred for long fins, or if its just a unique fish. Its very pretty though.

 

[alLexX]

Yeah, thats a gbr. It appears to be a long-finned variety to me. I have heard of these, but not seen them before. Of course, I have not way of telling you if it was selectively bred for long fins, or if its just a unique fish. Its very pretty though.

awesome,guess i got a great price(only other place ive seen them at had them for $12). the rest in the store tank were bolivians for sure,guess this guy got mixed up

 

[bruinsbro1997]

awesome,guess i got a great price(only other place ive seen them at had them for $12). the rest in the store tank were bolivians for sure,guess this guy got mixed up

That's sweet! I've seen those long fins GBR in stores, they're around seven dollars here

 

[aqua_chem]

The long fin rams I see in stores seem to always have some fin rot going. Be on the look out for that if you just got them.

 

[alLexX]

The long fin rams I see in stores seem to always have some fin rot going. Be on the look out for that if you just got them.

mine is missing some pieces of his fins,but i think thats from fights. ill look out for fin rot though,thanks

 

[severum mama]

Longfin GBR for sure. Nice pickup.

 

[alLexX]

Longfin GBR for sure. Nice pickup.

thanks
by any chance do you know if he is male or female?

 

[Chasnkevin4ever]

Beautiful ram!

 

[CleverBs]

I have 2 long fin German blue RAM males and they are great fish. I have 3 other gbr and have had very good luck. The key is soft acidic water. I keep mine in soft water with 6.5 ph make the heat 82

 

[siva]

Beautiful GBR! I hope you have better luck with yours than I have. I've given up on them at this point.

 

[almcloud]

Very beautiful fish. I have one GBR as well, very happy with it. Mine is a tough cookie, chasing Corys and being used to LA water (7.5).
Also survived a ammonia peak when added one more fish in the 10 gal I used to keep him in. (Bad advise from lfs) Now he is in my 29 gal.
Make sure you have caves, they love to hide and claim them
Hard to tell if its male or female from pic but if you google the male-female description you can determine that easily.
Good luck!