trying to help pt. 3

Q&A About Central American Cichlids

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cjhp
Posts: 5
Joined: Fri Jul 06, 2012 4:59 am

trying to help pt. 3

Post by cjhp »

(Dont refrain from reading our prior discussions I know you help alot of people)
Ok pam The JD I kept is my gem, it responds to my interaction. My wife bought me a SECOND one not knowing all the details. The Jewel-Firemouth-Salvini purchase was my objective at building a biotope aquarium. The severum was a save from poor care that I thought belonged with my fish. Later did I find that they grow from 7-12". But I digress, the single Dempsey I kept is my main priority. I would like a biotope enviroment for it unless it is unlikey to be sucessful. I could in the next year make a home for the severum ($$$$$) But as for the dempsey (1) Firemouth (1) Jewel (1) and Salvini (1) is this possible. I like the diversity and personality of my tank, but am I causing more future stress than is necessary? Currently all are juvenile 3" and less; and get along just fine. I realize what to watch for, behavior, health, eating habit, and aggression. Part of the challenge of fish keeping is following guidelines and noticing anomaly I like that.
Pam Chin
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Re: trying to help pt. 3

Post by Pam Chin »

cjhp,

Good job! You know what your priority is and now you can start to make decisions about your tank.

You are correct, it is really smart to keep an eye out for things that just don't look right. And when you get to know your fish, you can also figure out what is going on in your tank. That helps alot if something is going south on you.

Cichlids in general are very territorial, and JD's will take as much territory as they can get away with. They really don't want to kill the fish, they just want it to leave. In our aquariums there is no place for them go, so they continue to physically and mentally harass the fish to death. They can't figure it out, because their instincts tell them this fish should have left long ago.

You don't have to make a decision today, you have some time once the JD is sexually mature and he figures out he can push the other fish around, then you will see more aggression. One thing you do have going for you is that juvenile fish that grow up together do learn to tolerate each other some.

Personally I really like the idea of one big fish in a tank by themselves. These central american cichlids have so much personality to share, they become a dog in a tank. The fish love it because they have a tank all to themselves, and all the food is for them. So as your fish grow, or if you have issue with then trade it in or find a home for it, and go from there.

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Pam
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