GBR experts

[Imat]

I posted this in the wrong forum originally. Lol. Ok. Give me all the info you got! i have done some research but I want personal experience.

I currently have two female GBR's. The first few days the seemed to be fighting (territorial like). One seemed to be attacking the other and i was a little worried that the one would kill the other. Now they are doing fine and swimming the tank together. As if they are a pair. Is this normal behavior for two females? I was thinking about getting two males but am wondering if I should. I know they do better in pairs.... Does that mean M/F or just two rams (doesn't matter the gender)?



I have a 55gallon tank with 6 oto cats

14 neon tetras

8 black neon tetras

2 GBRs



I have really enjoyed these rams and would love a few more but want to make sure they wont get too agressive. Lol.


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[Iamtechno13]

You should be just fine with two males or two females or a male/female pair. It's when you start to have more and they pair off is when they get nasty to each other. Are you sure you got a couple of females? Do either of them have pink on the belly area?

 

[Fishy Smell]

Two males can be a problem, although with the tank size and plenty hiding places you should be fine. If it were me though, I'd go for a male and three females. Sounds like you have a nice set up actually. Keep the water warm for Rams, 28 ish.

They don't breed as easy as some cichlids, but if you did get a pair with 2 spare females you should be ok in that size tank. They will be aggressive with each other when first introduced but normally settle after a few days.

I have a male and 3 females in a slightly smaller tank than that, they're fine. 1 male EBR 2 female Golden and 1 female GBR

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[Fishy Smell]

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[Brookster123]

Two males can be a problem, although with the tank size and plenty hiding places you should be fine. If it were me though, I'd go for a male and three females. Sounds like you have a nice set up actually. Keep the water warm for Rams, 28 ish.

They don't breed as easy as some cichlids, but if you did get a pair with 2 spare females you should be ok in that size tank. They will be aggressive with each other when first introduced but normally settle after a few days.

I have a male and 3 females in a slightly smaller tank than that, they're fine. 1 male EBR 2 female Golden and 1 female GBR

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You really cannot compare apple and oranges here. The reason your rams work is due to the varying color morphs, if you had 4 gbr or 4 ebr you may be watching a different story unfold.. .If they were to pair off chances are the other females would get beat down during spawning... I have a m and 2 f wc rams in a heavily planted tank. Although it doesn't seem like a pair has formed the male will lip lock the females and chase them during feeding. I know it's not all that bad considering what could happen,.my gf can't bear to watch this behavior because it seems so violent to her.. your rams may acknowledge the others as the same species but I doubt they show any extensive interest in each other??

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[Fishy Smell]

They did to start with, they definitely knew they were the same species. There is still occasional chasing now but nothing harmful at all.

I've kept them in smaller tanks before and would agree with your concerns in that regard but when they have enough space they're fine. As I've stated before, lots of plants and caves etc make a big difference also.


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[Imat]

Woke up this morning and one of my rams were dead.

They were both females. Definite pink belly. There colors were awesome, not faded at all (last night). They have been eating fine as well. My water parameters are good. Temp is 80.

I dont see any marks on the dead fish ( from an attack...)

What did i do wrong?

Ive had them for 5 days


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[Brookster123]

Welcome to world of rams, sorry you lost her

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[Imat]

Thanks. Lol. Now i guess i can get 1 male and not worry about the other female being killed by the pair.


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[Fishy Smell]

Yes, they are tough to keep. Buy from the best place (best stock) you can and keep the water warm. It's working for me this time, thankfully.


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[Imat]

Out of the 4 lfs only 1 carries them.

Petsmart. ?

They get new fish in every friday.... So maybe i will go tomorrow...


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[Brookster123]

Order them from yunite on ebay

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[Imat]

I will check it out. Shipping spendy?


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[Imat]

I found it. Ouch on shipping....

I will keep it in mind though. My fish had a 14day guarentee so i should get a free one. If another dies, i will think about buying from the ebay site. Thanks!

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[Fishy Smell]

I will probably start some controversy here but another thing I've done which is working is to put twice the filtration on the tank and change max 10% of the water once a week. Rams hate big changes in water parameters and even slight temp fluctuations, so keep the water change quantity low. Just do more frequently if you can.

All I can say is that it's worked for me.

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[Brookster123]

I will probably start some controversy here but another thing I've done which is working is to put twice the filtration on the tank and change max 10% of the water once a week. Rams hate big changes in water parameters and even slight temp fluctuations, so keep the water change quantity low. Just do more frequently if you can.

All I can say is that it's worked for me.

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I agree with the filtration part anyways, I do up to 60% weekly wc on my ram tank and they're doing fine with it, temp match the water to a degree cooler though, also my water is gassed off/heated for a few days and pre-treated with prime. This ensures almost no parameter swings when a big wc is performed.

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[Imat]

I dont think I am understanding. You put the water somewhere else and treat it before adding it to your tank?

I bought a brand new filtration for the tank. It is a fluval c4. Do i really need to add another filtration system? I havnt done a water change yet, was going to on saturday (a week after the first change).




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[Brookster123]

Wait a mintue.. how old is this tank? You have one c4 on the 55?

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[Imat]

I bought the tank used on cl and it had been in use for a few years. Came with fish but they weren't compatible with the ones we were getting so we gave them to other people. The filter we got was on clearance at petsmart so we bought it figuring it would be better to have a new filter. Been checking the water parameters daily and all seems good.


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[Imat]

And yes a 55 gallon


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