very aggressive yellow lab

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Island_Emt

Aquarium Advice Activist
Joined
Apr 5, 2011
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186
Location
Long Island, NY
I have one yellow lab that is very aggressive and territorial. I added rocks to the opposite side of the tank hoping it would give everyone else some space. Didn't work...he owns that too. Any suggestions? I'm thinking re homing may be only choice.
 
Try rearranging all the rocks again it just kind of confuses everyone and makes them find new spots.
 
I've also done the total re do of rock work when I had my mbunas and it worked wonders. Although eventually I did have to rehome them. But it's worth a shot imo.
:)
 
There's one more trick you could try. I've never seen it mentioned on any website or anything, but a friend of mine who has kept Cichlids for years taught me this. You could try putting the aggressive fish on "time-out," by putting him in a five gallon bucket for about a day (you should put a little airstone or something in there to oxygenate the water well).

Obviously the other methods (re-arranging rocks, decorations, etc...) are the first thing you should try, but the time-out seems to work by allowing those other fish to re-establish territories in there, and it makes that aggressive fish more like a "newcomer." I tried this out with a Venustus (which are already known as having a temper) and now he gets along just fine with the others.

One last note, that "time out" is rather stressful for the fish (anytime you're moving them around it causes stress), so really only use that if you've tried everything else and it's failed. Oh, and remember that you'll probably have to acclimate him to the temperature in the tank again! Also, don't leave them in that bucket for too long (a day is already pushing it), as ammonia could start to build up.
 
:lol: The title said aggressive yellow lab...my first thought was an overly aggressive dog harassing the fish or some such :)
 
The "time out" is also a nice option as a last resort. I kinda feel bad for the bully....he's not mean all the time, but enough to annoy other tank mates. Going to try moving things around a bit first.
 
Yea, that time out should definitely be used only as a kind of last resort. Though the absolute last resort would probably be to try to trade him in at your lfs (if they do that, I know there are many that don't).

And the mental image of a dog harassing fish is hilarious lol
 
tlkng1 said:
:lol: The title said aggressive yellow lab...my first thought was an overly aggressive dog harassing the fish or some such :)

That is too funny. My dog likes to put his paws on the counter and stare at my fish tank. The fish seem to enjoy it.
 
How many mbuna's are in this tank and how many are yellow labs?

What species are in the tank?
 
There are 6 labs ... they are the only mbuna.
Tank mates are:
3 unknown peacocks
2 c. Moori
2 venustus
7 blue ahli
 
mattrox said:
More rockwork?

Do you have a picture of the tank? Sounds like a nice mix of fish though.

I upload a pic when I go on my laptop.
I like the mix and aside from this one issue they all get along pretty good. This will probably change as they mature but that's what makes the hobby interesting.

As for the aggressive lab, moving rocks around has seem to have worked at least for now.

Funny side note: I was checking the sump earlier, and inside the return area was one of my smaller blue ahli. He was sorta giving me the "how u doin?" Look. Lol. Must have been a fun ride for him.
 
I didnt like my full tank shots-to mmuch glare so for not here is a random tank pic.

img_1416568_0_e7a2159ec0f13a1634ad5a0710ec52e4.jpg
 
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