GSP Tank Mates

[bertie 83]

Nemo is a hand biter, pure evil! Lol

[RTR]

Cartoons are entertainment, not reality. Just ask anyone who has kept multiple species of clownfish. Or multiple species of puffers for that matter. Piranhas are wimps if not in substantial schools. A big male Fahaka was the only fish I have kept for years of which I was physically afraid - I would not ever put my hand in his tank without a double barrier securely in place. I was relieved when he went out through the glass top.

FWIW

[hadla]

Piranhas are wimps if not in substantial schools.

Lol I had thought of getting a clown before reading all the experiences people on here have had with them... They are now on my never list along with goldfish, angelfish, discus, SAPs, wrasses, any puff bigger than a porky, and anything brackish

Would love to have a dory though with a tank big enough... Which might be confusing cause my tiel is named dory

[Stratters]

So Dory, at least, isn't a mass murderer?

[hadla]

So Dory, at least, isn't a mass murderer?

I hope not

[bertie 83]

She will still stick you with her spine if you shock her. Hadla there are some fish in that list which are fine to keep so long as you are commuted to them, for example saps, goldies and wrasses

[hadla]

Lol, nah I'm good! Goldfish to me are boring and I wouldn't want to have to trim sap beaks!

[RTR]

If you feed right, SAPs' incisors do not overgrow. Once I learned how to feed them (95% snails), I never needed to trim again.

Plus, not keeping Clown-fish is depriving you of the easiest experiences in SW breeding. It is not novice level, as you have have to culture the right algae to feed the right plankton to feed the fry, and those are best reared in round containers/drums, but it is still hobby do-able.

Even if you are not rearing fry, many clown-fish make fascinating species tanks. The alpha fish is the female, the sexually mature male her partner, a host anemone their home, and immature males may be allowed around the edges. Such tanks are fairly easy to operate for well over a decade or two if you set it right originally. With FOWLR and good lighting, it is a bit $$$ to set, but really easy to operate. They do tend to spawn on lunar cycles, which is cool in and of itself. Endlessly fascinating IMHO.

In fact, your list of "never" fish pretty much aligns with much of my list of favorite fish except for wrasses, which I only very rarely have kept, and the T. mbu puffer, which I no longer consider suitable for the hobby simply due to it's size. I think it sad for any hobbyist to write of some of the best and most interesting fish in the hobby.

I even have a pet feeder goldfish of venerable age.

[hadla]

what can I say? I'm a puffer person now! Not really interested in breeding anything except my ramshorns (which are out of control lol but that's another story) and considering most puffs wont allow tank mates and I'm trying to keep my tank numbers under 5 atm... *shrug*

[RTR]

I am pretty much a species tank person myself, have been for years and am unlikely to change. But if you are not learning, you are dead. A mind is a terrible thing to close, or lose.

[purplecandle]

I am pretty much a species tank person myself, have been for years and am unlikely to change. But if you are not learning, you are dead. A mind is a terrible thing to close, or lose.

You turned me into a species only tank person! After years of reading your replies....I now think if a tank looks as busy as a bus station it's hideous! I have to hold my tongue when I see a "community" tank with mismatched inhabitants.

[Stratters]

A mind is a terrible thing to close, or lose.

I like that, may I steal it for my sig, please?

[adamsmx34]

I only put aggressive fish with aggressive fish. I think I may be leaning towards a Proky puffer in the near future with the name puff daddy

The tank I saw that really got me intrigued into fish keeping was a 400gallon tank at my dad's pawn shop that had huge hermit crabs (ones the porky couldn't eat) 2 sharks, angelfish, and triggerfish along with a lionfish. It was a beautiful tank. Once the shark outgrew the tank they would return it and get another.

[RTR]

Stratters: Feel free - my posts are not copyrighted.

I have a strong suspicion that my fish live as long as the commonly do because the are not stressed by tankmates in too small water volumes. I have never recovered from radically changing my concepts on keeping and housing fish long, long ago, after I read Konrad Lorenz' "King Solomon's Ring" while I was still young and impressionable. Learning that I could control breeding Cichlid's behavior with con-specifics in separate tanks just by allowing them sight of each other without hormone/pheromone/any direct physical contact or transmission other than sight, my world of fish-keeping changed radically.

It was only a small step from there to testing sight with adjacent breeding pairs plus water mixing between such tank sets (i.e., adding pheromones/hormones to the the segregated pairs from other con-specific pairs - those also show effects). I was hooked on multitank systems and have never recovered. It has been an interesting ride, and still is.

FWIW, YMMV...

[Stratters]

Interesting.

I have a question re sighting. I'm having a new extension built, and will be putting the new kitchen in it. I am considering getting a specific tank area built, and am debating whether it would be a good idea to put Pig's tank and my daughter's community tank next to each other. Would being adjacent to a community tank keep Pig entertained, or do you think it would stress him? If you think he'd be stressed by it, I'll go for putting a background between the two tanks, so he can't see in.

On the other hand, would it freak Liv's fish out having Pig glowering at them through the glass?