Chocolate kuhli loach (pacing?)

[greenspottedlover]

I got a chocolate kuhli loach today and it won't stop pacing across his tank. Is this related to weather like with a weather loach?

[Flutter]

It may be uncomfortable. Loaches are schooling fish and should never be kept in groups less than three and really there should be more of them.

[puffermichigan]

+1 to Flutter's comment. They'll be a lot more comfortable in groups (every source I've come across says that a single lone kuhli will be "unhappy" and not live as long a life). I found this to be a helpful description of kuhli loaches needs when I was first starting with them:

http://www.aboutfishonline.com/articles/kuhliloach.html

When I added 2 new ones to my band of 4 that I had in my tank, I did notice that they paced the glass for several days. As they became more comfortable, the pacing stopped. Do you have a lot of hiding spots for them? This will help them acclimate a lot.

I also found that when I changed part of my substrate from small gravel to sand that my kuhlis also seemed to exhibit much more natural behavior. They dig around in the sand a lot, and they also come out in the open more often. Here's a pic of my setup (of course I can't find any of the kuhlis in the picture, guess they're camera shy--maybe I see some stripes on the far right? They love hiding in the plants and also under the rock on the far right. The bottom of the log is hollow too, and they hang out there too.)

[puffermichigan]

Oh! I was going to add one other thing (because it sounds like you're new to kuhlis)--whatever you do, make sure you have a sponge or other covering tightly fixed to the intake on your filter! One day a rubber band on my sponge broke and I didn't notice it for a few hours and I lost one of the curious little guys because must have explored the opening and was sucked up the pipe and trapped. It was the most horrible thing I've ever experienced as a fishkeeper (I'm as attached to my kuhlis as I am to my puffers), so double-check that your intake pipe is always carefully and tightly covered.

[greenspottedlover]

Well after a few hours he isn't pacing anymore. I will still get a couple more loaches and add some sand to the substrate though.

[puffermichigan]

That's good, I'm sure he's settling in . But yeah, if you have the space in your tank, definitely add a few more. They're a hoot, you'll love your kuhlis!

[greenspottedlover]

That's good, I'm sure he's settling in . But yeah, if you have the space in your tank, definitely add a few more. They're a hoot, you'll love your kuhlis!

Yeah, been watching him and besides maybe my GSP he has the most personality of any fish I've kept.