Fahaka puffer tankmate?

[Khoatran_3688]

Is it okay to put 6 jack dempsey with one fahaka puffer?

[RTR]

No. Fahakas are best as singletons, they should not have any tankmates.

[Pufferpunk]

4" fahakas have been known to bite an 8" pleco in half! Here's what mine (whose quite mild-mannered) did to an electric blue JD:

[Pufferpunk]

Someone fix those images please.

[Raphael]

[Pufferpunk]

Thanks! I don't know why I have so much trouble w/that.

[Fella]

Thanks! I don't know why I have so much trouble w/that.

Have you ticked the "disable bbcode" box?


I'm consdering a fahaka and I too have been looking at the possibility of tankmates. The truth is, there are occasions where it works. But, it's not worth the effort IMO. Look at the pictures above, I would never want that to happen to my fish.

[poolguyjason]

You can definitely keep the Fahaka with tankmates, depending on the temperment. I might have just gotten lucky, but I have the following in my 120 Extra Long:

1x Fahaka (4/5 inches)
3x Clown Loach (5/6 inches)
5x Synodontis Catfish (6/7 inches)
2x Albino Pleco, 1x Common (3/4 inches)
1x Shovelnose Catfish (9/10 inches)
1x SA Cichlid (no one can tell me what it is, 7/8 inches long, 4/5 inches high)
1x Sailfin Pleco (13/14 Inches, stays in the back)
1x Eartheater (4/5 Inches)
1x Red Tailed Catfish (7/8 Inches)

I have had these fish in the tank for upwards of 6 months without a SINGLE fatality, and the only time I saw aggression is when I went away for the weekend, and my sister forgot to get feeders for him. All that happened was a few nipped tailfins (on the red tail and cichlid)

Other than that, my puffer has been entirely friendly with every fish in the tank. Maybe it is because he was the last fish introduced, and was the smallest at the time (excluding the 3 plecs)

[kass]

Unfortunately your fahaka is still quite small and from what I've read and learned from this site, he will most likely become more aggressive as he matures. A 125 gallon tank is recommended for a single fahaka, with no tankmates, so hopefully you are prepared for a major tank upgrade (sooner than later) with all the tankmates, if they are able to survive for long. Also some of the fish you have in there get quite big, especially the red tailed catfish, which can grow to over 3 feet.
I am glad that everything is working out fine for now though. Just some thoughts to prepare you for the future.
And welcome to TPF, its a great site!
Also, puffers should not be fed feeders, they are very unhealthy. Theres a great article in then library on suggested puffer foods.

[poolguyjason]

He is generally on a snail diet, and ocassionally when I can get Crayfish I do. The only reason my sister would feed feeders is because she wouldn't touch snails (I breed snails in a 40 G tank, probably have upwards of 3/400 now, and going up!

As for the Redtail, I actually don't plan on keeping him for long, sadly. He is an absolutely BEAUTIFUL fish, but the only reason I have him is because I basically rescued it. The LFS had it for someone with a 40 Gal tank on hold, but he didn't pay the holding fee, so I bought it from under him because I know what he needs, which is upwards of 2/3000 gallons to be truly happy. I am just going to keep him for a while, make sure he is in good health, then plan to donate him to some form of zoo or aquatics facility for better keeping of the fish. Cost me 60 bucks (I'm 18, so for me, that is like a full days work ) But honestly, it was worth it if the fish gets a good home.

[Phaedrus]

Recommending that fahakas can be kept with tankmates is bad advice. Plain and simple. It basically amounts to saying that you don't care if your other fish get bitten in half someday. And who wants to hear advice from someone who doesn't care about their fish?

Sure it's worked for you for the past brief period of time. Will it continue to work when the fish reaches full size and for the rest of its 20 year life span?? 6 months is NOTHING. It's like looking at the flatness of a mile of road and concluding the world is flat. you simply don't have enough experience in the situation to make any valid conclusions.

Temperaments change. Aggression levels change. Territory needs change. You can't honestly tell me you think it's a good idea.

Fahakas are large, aggressive fish and need to be respected and treated as such. All the wishful thinking in the world won't change facts. Think about that for a while and see if you still feel the same way about keeping fahakas with tankmates.

I hope I don't sound to harsh. I'm not trying to be mean. I just would appreciate it if people could get a better grasp of the situation they're talking about before dolling out advice.

[Tihsho]

You can definitely keep the Fahaka with tankmates, depending on the temperment. I might have just gotten lucky, but I have the following in my 120 Extra Long:

1x Fahaka (4/5 inches)
3x Clown Loach (5/6 inches)
5x Synodontis Catfish (6/7 inches)
2x Albino Pleco, 1x Common (3/4 inches)
1x Shovelnose Catfish (9/10 inches)
1x SA Cichlid (no one can tell me what it is, 7/8 inches long, 4/5 inches high)
1x Sailfin Pleco (13/14 Inches, stays in the back)
1x Eartheater (4/5 Inches)
1x Red Tailed Catfish (7/8 Inches)

Um, your tank kinda sounds over stocked ATM... Also you do know that some of those catfish you have will out grow your tank in no time. Shovelnose cats depending on the species can get 2.5' or up to 6'. Guessing the species you have is a lima or a tiger. The red tail aswell is a 5-6' cat. The albino pleco is more or less a gibberceps which tops out at 3.5' or so as well as a sail fin going close to 2'.