What size for 2 dwarfs?

[kENNY]

I haven't been here in so long! haha Well, things have changed for me. The last few years I acquired and kept up my 40 bettas at a time. While I loved each and every one, as they died off, I tore down tanks. That left me with my 55gal FW planted & 15gal Nano-Reef. I added in my 5gHex as a replacement for the 5gFBH I gave to my mom for her HMPK betta & ended up changing fish around where my 2 CT bettas[final 2 bettas] got a new 5.5gal[my old one was blah] & my 5gHex randomly got 2 dwarf puffers.

I say two because there were 2 in the tank and they both seemed fine[granted, this was a HUGE tank in comparison to the hex but eh]. So far, the chasing is kept to a minimum and they seem to be eating regularly and acting like epic little puffers should.

But, should I be worried? I've always read these guys need 5gals alone but when I saw their size, I decided an established tank with lots of cover[still need a certain type of plant] was more important then a bigger tank. I'll keep up with my WCs, but do you see this being harmful for them?



Oh yeah, they live with my final RCS colony ... the puffer guys have been epic so far and have only eaten snails!

[RTR]

I would only keep a singleton DP in a tank that small myself. I would not keep them with a shrimp colony either. A ten would be a far better home for 2 DPs, and the small tank can be the home for the shrimp colony only.

[PufferDek]

I would only keep a singleton DP in a tank that small myself. I would not keep them with a shrimp colony either. A ten would be a far better home for 2 DPs, and the small tank can be the home for the shrimp colony only.

I was thinking of putting two DPs in my ten gallon. Would there be room for much more? Maybe a couple of Otos? A clam?

[bertie 83]

5g for each dp is best, you could add more but that is ill advised. 2 dps alone will burst a 10g wide open with personality

[purplecandle]

I think the size of dps throws people off. They are just an inch big, surely a few can fit into a small tank!

Maybe you can fit fish of a similar size in a ten gallon, you might be able to get away with a few tetras.

But tetras are not highly territorial like dps are. Puffers are all about real estate, greedy for every last square inch AND every last square inch must be nicely decorated ....only the best of the best!

They are the Donald Trumps of the fish world.

[PufferDek]

One Otto or one clam?

[kENNY]

Back on topic ... personality wise, they're a bit odd. They never seemed to meet each other in the 20gal tank in the petstore[the were with tetras, white clouds, otos & panda garras] and now, they're always beside each other[not just because it's a small tank. they sleep side by side/wrapped around each other]. Granted, they will have their occasional hissy fits[IE, Terror will chase Horror when he wants the food he's got but it's not a full blown death chase deal], but I know they couldn't be apart.

I guess my true question is, tho ... 2 being ill advised, is it just because of personality issues or is it because of bioload or a combination? I guess I just feel weird about 2 1" fish getting this HUGE space when they "seem" perfectly content in smaller tanks. Someone I knew had 3 in a 6gal tank but it also had a few more then mine and they lived for ... about 4 years? It's like how some bettas live in 1gals longer then in 10gals[Ok, my 2 CTs in a divided 5gal have done a BILLION percent better then bettas I've had in 10gals, alone].

At this point, I've had fish for 8 years[not saying that's a huge accomplishment, but eh] so I'm a bit more comfortable with pushing limits, but of course, any fish in distress is quickly rehomed or rehoused[I do have 3 20gals, 2 10s & a few tiny tanks available for whatever they're needed for].

[purplecandle]

It is a combination of both bioload and territory.

I know it sucks.

Do you have male or female dps?

[Pufferpunk]

Clam??? Puffer says, "nom, nom, nom!"

[kENNY]

Clam??? Puffer says, "nom, nom, nom!"

OMG! Like x1,000,000! xD

Anyways, PC, I have no idea ... considering that they don't spend every moment of the day trying to kill each other, I'd doubt they're both males ... so either 1 M & 1 FM or 2 FMs. I'll have to do a bit of reading about that. I know they have different patterns & color intensities ... but so do my gold barbs ...

[purplecandle]

Different patterns? Probably M&F. Need pics to know for sure.

Here is how to sex dps
library/puffers-in-focus/sexing-carinot ... rf-puffer/

[kENNY]

Very interesting! I need to take the time to look at them closely and see ... but I took this crappy pic the first day I got them:


I wish it was better, but since I'm jobless ATM, my $15 prepaid phone obviously isn't gonna have a great camera. xD I broke my galaxy s3 and my backup androids. Eh.

[purplecandle]

Congratulations!

You have 2 boys

[kENNY]

heh, nice! xD Oh well, I love them regardless and I'll figure something out the second it turns nasty[if it ever does]. TBH, I totally figured Terror was a boy[the one with a lot more of a pattern], but Horror surprises me.

[RTR]

Otocinclus cats should only go into mature, well-established planted tanks. Otherwise their survival rate plummets.