Is this cat going to be too big?

[shawmutt]

OK, I've checked all the water parameters in my tank, and I am almost certain that the planaria outbreak is due to overfeeding. I guess with 4 corys in my other tank, I could be a little more careless with feeding. So...I need a catfish. All the research that I have done points to the synodontis species. The only species know in Lake Malawi is the synodontis njassae, but that along with other synodontis get rather large. So I'm looking into other synodontis. I have 5 yellow labs and a 30 gallon tank...any ideas?

 

[cdawson]

I think there are smaller versions of the synodontis that only get around 6-8 inches. The rest get rather large too big for a 30g, in fact I'd say what you've got in there is too big for that tank.

 

[Madame_X]

Synodontis Nigriventris--the upside down catfish! They only get 4". Just try to get one the same size or a little bigger than your yellow labs.

I have two, and they're a hoot (well, when they decide to come out and show themselves).

 

[William]

I've seen USDCF in some tanks [ I dont have any personally ], In my experiance they don't come out until the room and tank lights are off.

 

[RogerMcAllen]

Have you tried planetcatfish.com?

 

[shawmutt]

in fact I'd say what you've got in there is too big for that tank

Don't have a syno yet, the one I mentioned is the only syno native to Lake Malawi. Are you referring to my cichlids?

Synodontis Nigriventris--the upside down catfish!

will they clean the bottom of the tank? There's plenty of them in pet stores, but they swim upside down (really??? ) and don't seem interested in the bottom of the tank

Have you tried planetcatfish.com?

Yeah, great site, that's where I found the specs for most of the synos.


Things would be so much easier if I could get a bigger tank, but I live in a tiny apartment that can probably barely support the weight of my 30 gal, so I have to work with what I have. I actually had a dream last night that I inherited a wall of tanks from my rich Uncle.

 

[Guest]

Quote:

Synodontis Nigriventris--the upside down catfish!



will they clean the bottom of the tank? There's plenty of them in pet stores, but they swim upside down (really??? ) and don't seem interested in the bottom of the tank

I've had one for around NINE YEARS and I have no idea what he does, what he eats, or anything except he is 100% nocturnal.

Matter of fact, it's tank cleaning day, gotta find him and see how he's doin.

 

[shawmutt]

That's funny, I've had a talking cat in my black water tank for two years that I've only seen when moving the tank. I put him in my 10 gallon tank and now I can't find him again!

 

[TankGirl]

I think in terms of avoiding overstocking, which is a concern here, I would simply cut back on feeding so that there was no food debris lying on the bottom. It's a matter of sitting there and really watching them eat, feeding small amounts at a time until you can determine how much they will consume in 2-3 minutes. This solution to your problem will save you money by using less food, not having to buy a new fish, and preventing other tank catastrophes (many of which are caused by overfeeding and overstocking). Do a gravel vac every week, or if you are still plagued with the planaria do it every other day in small amounts until you don't see much gunk coming up the tube. I am setting up a lake Tan biotope and I think I am going to skip the catfish altogether.

 

[shawmutt]

feeding small amounts at a time until you can determine how much they will consume in 2-3 minutes

The only problem with this is that my cichlids are mean SOBs and eat more or less in waves--from the strongest to the weakest. It's pretty hard to make sure they all get fed, so I err on the side of overfeeding out of guilt for buying a bunch of aggressive fish and stuffing them in a tiny tank. I already lost one, and two of them are now constantly stuffing themselves behind the big rocks where they hardly have room to breathe . I think I goofed and my fish are going to have to pay for it.

 

[TankGirl]

How 'bout taking a few of them back? You might be able to get store credit for them. I was surprised to get a $12 store credit on a full grown angel (sniff, yes, I had to trade him in because I just CAN'T get another tank right now) that was getting beat up by a spawning pair. Most people don't want to buy a full grown fish, but they took him in a heartbeat. Years ago I sold three 10-inch goldfish back to the fish store when I moved, so maybe that would be the best thing.

 

[shawmutt]

From all the research I have done, I found that with these type of cichlids, the more the better. They are aggressive no matter what (yellow labs are supposed to be less aggressive, I wonder what more aggressive cichlids are like) and the more you have the more the aggression is spread out. Most web sites I have researched suggested 15 or more in a 55 gallon tank, so I thought 5 would do ok in a 30 gallon. It's an experiment, and it hasn't failed just yet. I'm going to put a few airstones in back of the rocks to keep them out of there. I'm not worried too much about the aggression, two of them are constantly going at it and they are not damaging each other. I'm more worried that the others that find those hiding places in back of the tank never come out to eat and are starving themselves.

But I'm digressing. Are there any other ideas for bottom feeders for my tank? How about inverts that won't be harassed by the cichlids?

 

[Allivymar]

Theres a great article on planetcatfish.com on plecs n cichlids. I can't get a direct link, but go to http://www.planetcatfish.com/core/ and click on "catfishology" then the "keeping catfish with large cichlids" article.

Hope that helps.