Ram question -- colors not same as in store!

[bluedragon]

I recently discovered some really beautiful colorful fish in my LFS the other day. He told me they were called RAMS. They were very vibrant, half blue, half orange. I thought maybe they were salt water fish!

Anyway, although in the store they couldn't be more vibrant, when I got them home and put them in my tank they look all washed out and look light brown....

I have a brand new aqua-glo light which is suppose to enhance fish colors....

Any ideas/suggestions on why the fish are suddenly light brown?

The store manager claims it is due to my use of natural colored gravel instead of bright gravel.... anyone have that experience?

Also, they are pretty shy...

Thanks

 

[Menagerie]

What are you using as a background? Dark backgrounds tend to make fish POP! As for the wacky gravel--that's garbage. I have two very natural tanks and my rams are gorgeoua. Do you have German blue or Bolivian rams?
Also, how long ago did you buy these rams? It may take them away to settle into the tank. What are you feeding them? Better foods enhance colors. I feed mine flake, peas, and blood worms, among other things. They also only get fed every other day.

What size tank are they in and do they have any tank mates?

 

[bluedragon]

I don't use a background because my tank can be seen on both sides.

It's 55 gallons, I bought two of the rams, bought them just 2 days ago, I fed my fish color enhancing flakes plus blood worms yesterday. I don't what type of rams they are, only that they were a very solid blue blue and very solid orange orange on them.

Are you saying you have a dark background and therefore you can see their colors real sharp? What would you recommend as a dark background?
The other side of my tank is on the stair way leading up to the house so it isn't 100% necessary there is no background if the fish will look better.

Thanks for the info!

 

[webmoose]

I think your rams will color up once they settle in and get use to the new tank. They are likely stressed and upset and the last thing that is on their mind is coloring up. Any other fish in the tank?

 

[grimlock3000]

In my experience, the coloration of Rams is highly dependent on their mood. Give the fish some time to adjust and see how it goes.

 

[webmoose]

Thanks grimlock that is kinda what i was trying to say.. haha

When my female is really happy or wants to show the tank who is boss she really colors up.. The two males generally don't color up as much as her.

 

[medge00]

are they being harassed at all? do they have plenty of places to hide? these help them be happy, happy rams = good color

 

[Menagerie]

My Germans have a dark, natural looking background, brown rocks and driftwood in their tank. My other rams are in a hex tank and can be seen from all sides and they too are colored up nicely.
Give your fish time to adjust and don't over feed them. I strongly suggest only one type of food per feeding--fish will gorge on food! I also only feed my fish every other day.

 

[TankGirl]

It could be related to differences between the water at the LFS and in your tank. Sometimes they do not do as well in harder, more alkaline water, but if your LFS is on the same water system as you are, and they don't alter the parameters for the fish they have, then you should be okay. It can also have to do with the level of nitrate, if it is drastically different than at the LFS. Of course, the tank needs to be free of ammonia and nitrite.

Be sure your water quality is as good as possible and they should be fine. I adore rams, and you are right, their colors will often rival SW fish

 

[frshwaterfinatc]

I have rams, and their colors fade when they're stressed. Give them a day or two and they should be fine- one of my three took two weeks to calm down. Now they're all vibrant and swimming all over the place. Try stress coat. Also, rams prefer temps between 76-79, lower than most aquarium temps. When my tank heats up during the day and gets up to about 82 they fade.

 

[bluedragon]

Thanks for all of your advice. I was thinking maybe it was stress. I had added stress coat to the tank. Although sometimes I wonder what a number of squirts will do in a 55 gal tank... Should you do it while they are in the bag? My LFS used to add it to the bags and I notice they are cutting back on that.

Hmm, my tank is set at 80 degrees. The friend that got me into fish said it helps prevent disease? Although I found out that guppies prefer cooler temps and I love them so I was thinking of lowering the temp.

There are lots and lots of places to hide, in fact, I haven't seen them yesterday or today! None of my other fish are chasing them. My tank is free of ammonia and nitrates and it is a well established tank so I rarely encounter those problems anymore.

I found out my water is too hard so I added some tank soft to help them out. I also discovered my friend is on town water and it is much softer than my water so I'll be going out to the store to buy 4 5 gallon containers to fill for each water change.

 

[Menagerie]

added some tank soft to help them out

Bad idea. Unless your tank is well buffered, there will be swings in your pH that will stress the fish. Do you know if these fish were bred locally, or overseas?
Natural ways to soften the water include adding wood to the tank, or peat to the filter.

 

[supafreak]

keep in mind that when you observed them in the pet store, they were comfortable, and even possible getting ready for a spawn. Once you disturb them, it can take some time to settle them down. I tend to agree with the gravel theory. Not that you have to go out and get blue, or purple gravel, but some fish look better with a dark substrate, some look better with a light one. I made the mistake of setting up my tank with crushed coral, and put white calvus in it. They were so washed out, that you could hardly see them, I switched to a dark brown substrate, and they look sooooo much better

 

[Guest]

Sounds like you have Golden Rams by your discription.

Another vote for stress. Let them calm down and settle into thier new home. Rams generally thrive in planted tanks, which provides a lot of cover .I've never tried Rams in a non planted tank, perhaps someone can chime in, on that one.

The most important thing in keeping Rams is clean, stable water. A good diet helps, as well.

I've never had much luck with Golden Rams. Tried them three times in two different tanks, with no success. I finally gave up on them. I've had far more success with German Blue Rams and Bolivians. They seem to be much more hearty.

 

[mitche8359]

One thing I can tell you with my Ram, who I thought was 'sick' the last three weeks, is that his color changed while I watched him. He was beautifully colored one minute and quite pale the next. He seems to be feeling better now and his color is very vivid but still goes pale off and on.

 

[webmoose]

Hey great news mitche8359 rams rock!

 

[illuminum]

I think your rams will color up once they settle in and get use to the new tank. They are likely stressed and upset and the last thing that is on their mind is coloring up. Any other fish in the tank?

I gree with webmoose here. Just let them get cofortable in your tank and things will work out.

 

[cheezysquirrelz]

What the heck are these rams you guys always speak of? :|

 

[frshwaterfinatc]

look at the last photo from the sept contest on the homepage... that's a ram

 

[frshwaterfinatc]

Oh, by the way- what Mojo Troll said is true. Forgot about it, but when I first got mine, they were hiding near the bottom. And so I went and bought plants and pagodas, and now they hide in the fauna. They love that. Rams seem to prefer lower levels in the tank, and plenty of cover is a plus. Esp when they hide behind clumps and stare each other down, only to charge out and lock lips in a fight and then hide somewhere else and repeat the process. They're feisty.

Also, temps around 78-84 are great for most tanks, and it helps keep them free of fungal/bacterial infections, but rams do like it a little cooler and do fine. I just read on a site another ram comfort zone is 72-79. 72's pretty chilly!

My tank has black sand substrate. It really brings out their colors!!