Need help with my Bristlenose pleco

[ricktavious]

Hey guys, around 3 months ago I got a bristlenose pleco. He was in a tank with mostly brown algae, and ate that stuff up pretty well. Unfortunately, I had to move him from this tank because a tank mate was starting to pick on him a bit. So, my pleco was moved into another tank. At first, he was eating the green algae in there and was doing fine. Unfortunately, in the last week, he seems to have stopped eating the algae for the most part. He looks like he cleans off a piece of mopani wood pretty often, but that is about it. I haven't seen him on the sides of the walk in at least a week.

He stopped eating the algae at the same time the bristles on his nose were coming in. The bristles are still growing, so maybe he's getting enough to eat anyways, but it seems odd that the algae is building up much more than before.

My pleco is in a 10 gallon, cycled tank with a betta as a tank mate. They get along fine....no signs of the betta picking on him or anything (unlike the previous betta did after a couple of months). The pleco has the same appearance except for the growing bristles. His shape and color appear to the same. If anything, he has grown a bit longer. He has some nice hiding places he enjoys to hang out in, an air stone, clean water, etc.....but I can't help but be worried about him.

Is there any way to "coax" him into eating the algae again? Could there be something wrong with him? If anyone has advice or input, it would be most appreciated.

[pureplecs]

Having kept a lot of bristle noses, I find it highly doubtful that your 10g tank would produce enough algae to keep a healthy bn fed. They don't eat all types of algae (I am wondering what type of algae you have in your 10g), and I wondering if you should be supplementing the little guys diet with some blanched zuchini and/or algae/veggie tablets to ensure he is getting enough to eat.....

[ricktavious]

Having kept a lot of bristle noses, I find it highly doubtful that your 10g tank would produce enough algae to keep a healthy bn fed. They don't eat all types of algae (I am wondering what type of algae you have in your 10g), and I wondering if you should be supplementing the little guys diet with some blanched zuchini and/or algae/veggie tablets to ensure he is getting enough to eat.....

Yes, I give him cucumber and algae tablets (which I will soon be replacing with veggie tablets). He especially enjoys the cucumbers. I have no idea what type of algae it is, other than it is green and wipes off easily with a paper towel or whatever. Yeah......fish novice here......

But he was eating this algae up to last week, and he is still eating his other foods I give him. He seems to be active as I do see him swim around quite a bit.

[MatsP]

Is it green "long" algae, or green "short" algae. Long algae, in my experience, isn't something these fish will eat. Also bear in mind that as they grow, they will eat a bit less because it grows slower. Also, they do get lazy if they are fed lots of other food.

How big is the fish, how often do you change water, and what else is in that tank.

--
Mats

[ricktavious]

Is it green "long" algae, or green "short" algae. Long algae, in my experience, isn't something these fish will eat. Also bear in mind that as they grow, they will eat a bit less because it grows slower. Also, they do get lazy if they are fed lots of other food.

How big is the fish, how often do you change water, and what else is in that tank.

--
Mats

Hey Mats, it is shorter algae. He does nibble on it some, but not as much as he was.....but he also just hit a pretty decent growth spurt, so maybe he isn't eating as much because of that. Had not really thought about that as a possibility. I try not to let him get lazy.....I give him supplemental food once every 2-4 days.

He's probably 3.5-4 inches long. I do a 10% water change twice a week. In the tank, his only tank mate is a male betta. There are two java ferns + one other plant, a mopani wood chunk, and three caves/bridges for hiding and whatnot. There is also an air stone.

Anyways, on a different note, this little fella is my first pleco. His name is Jeeves and he has been quite a pleasure to watch. Hopefully I'm giving him a good home that he's happy with.

[MatsP]

I'd try upping the water changes by some amount - no fish has ever been harmed by changing large water changes with good clean water, as long as the water is same as what the fish is in at the moment, that is. When I was actively trying to produce lots of mine, I was doing 40% water changes 3 times a week, and I've been known to replace 50% in one go in my tanks. Yes, higher frequency is better than bigger volume, but it's a compromise between dragging all the hoses and stuff out twice, or doing twice as big a change...

If it's the standard

Ancistrus sp(3)

then they are pretty easy to care for.

--
Mats

[ricktavious]

Thanks for the advice

I believe the guy I have is the type that you linked me to, and is possibly a "piebald" variety, though I should be the last person here trying to identify a particular kind

Also, if you have any suggestions on how to improve the tank he is in, I would certainly like to hear. The only thing I can't do is get a new tank, considering I have 3 fish tanks in the room I'm renting there is zero chance of me figuring out where to put another one (though I would if I could!!!).

[pLaurent1251]

I also have a small ancistrus in a 10 gallon tank. I do at least a 25% - 30% WC each week, plus some supplementary vacuuming due to the mess he makes, leftover wafers, etc. This schedule keeps the water parameters perfect and my pleco is very active, healthy and has good appetite.

He does love his driftwood, and the many live plants in there.

[andywoolloo]

my little BN is in a 20 long with lots of driftwood and rocks and live plants.

I do 50% water change once a week, and every day i am gravel vac' ng out poop. Major poop machine.

He loves mangos and red bell peppers the best. if that helps.

[ricktavious]

Mangos, I had heard they like. Red bell peppers is a new one to me though! Might have to buy one once he's gone through the cucumber I bought for him. The little booger is gnawing away on it now.....he likes the middle part the best

[andywoolloo]

yeah, make sure its the bell pepper tho. You know they come in green and red and yellow and orange, The sweet bell peppers. And cut a slice about an inch wide. Make sure he doesn't get any seeds.

My otos love that also.

[ricktavious]

yeah, make sure its the bell pepper tho. You know they come in green and red and yellow and orange, The sweet bell peppers. And cut a slice about an inch wide. Make sure he doesn't get any seeds.

My otos love that also.

Very cool, thanks for the advice! And, I've got to ask....why no seeds?

Also, what other widely available fruits/veggies do plecos generally like? And, are there any that I must avoid due to possible health concerns?

[andywoolloo]

check this out!

http://www.planetcatfish.com/shanesworl ... cle_id=294

It's the greatest!! And down the bottom re making algae on rocks in tank water out in the sun! Awesome idea! My oto cats and pl*co mow it down!!

I guess I said no seeds cause I think maybe they might be hot or not easy to digest in the bell pepper. It's not hard to make sure they do not get one cause the bell pepper is like hollow inside and the seeds are towards the middle and you're just cutting a strip.

[andywoolloo]

oh and this one is great too!

http://www.planetcatfish.com/shanesworl ... cle_id=171

herbivore is mr BN. Well, mostly. Tech I think they are omnivore but need 90% veg and 10 % protein. or maybe 80 20 Which is hard cause even the algae wafers have a protein content on the package.

I am new at them also.

[pLaurent1251]

I"m sorry - I don't mean to hijack this thread. One quick question: Do you need to blanch or nuke the peppers to soften them up?

[ricktavious]

So, are you supposed to do something to soften up food before feeding? When I put in a cucumber slice, I just put it right in . How soft does food need to be?

[andywoolloo]

i do not blanch anything. And I leave them in 24 hrs sometimes.

It depends. Like a mango gets pretty squishy after 12 hours so I take that out.

I do nuke the frozen peas for like 30 secs then i remove the shells then put those in with a pinch to break them up.

But I put everything in raw. So far my BN and oto cats eat cucumber, zuchinni, mango, red and yellow and orange bell pepper, potato, romaine lettuce, butternut squash, and i can't wait till halloween to try pumpkin! oh and they like french cut green beans raw from the can. Just rinse them under water and them split them down the middle. And I remove the seeds from that.

Oh and the algae rocks. Big hit.

On the red bell pepper I just cut a long silce, like an inch wide. I put that and something else, like a zuchinni or cucumber on the "screwcumber" and drop it in.

but remember I am brand new at the BN and oto cats. Just learned everything here. So maybe someone will tell you to blanch them.

[MatsP]

With the mango, don't put too much in at one go, because as Andy says, it goes mushy pretty quickly, and will make the water all cloudy if you put too much in at once. But they do like it.

I only "cook" (quick nuke in water until it's slightly softer) vegetables for the tiny babies - because just like human babies, they need a bit less chewing resistance. But if you consider that equal size

Panaque maccus

will chew wood, then chewing a bit of cucumber or courgette (zucchini) is "trivial", right?

--
Mats

[ricktavious]

Thanks for the advice everyone.....once the cucumber is gone I'll try some new foods with Jeeves.

One last question (for now)....which is preferred for plecos, algae wafers or veggie tabs? I have heard veggie tabs and will probably pick those up for him. If I buy veggie tabs, should I still give some algae wafers?

[andywoolloo]

honestly I am confused with that also because you have to watch the protein with them.

But my algae wafers from Hikari and my veggie tabs from Omega One both have protein content so I am confused.

It's kind of nerve racking being careful of all the protein.

Does anyone know of a total amount of protein they are allowed a week? I do not want to give him or her too much or too little.

I feel safe with the fresh fruit and veg and I put in an algae wafer and a veggie tab once a week. And some HBH soft spirilina pellets that says its full of veggies but it also has some protein content.

If I am reading things correctly BN need some protein once a week? Like bloodworms and shrimp, Hikari defrosted? Mine also like some sinking shrimp pellets.

Confusing with how much to give of that tho.

[MatsP]

I use Hikari algae wafers, but as Andy says, there's quite a lot of protein in them (from memory about 35%). So real vegetables (not tablets, wafers etc) for food is a very good addition.

--
Mats

[ricktavious]

The first non-cucumber veggie I tried feeding him was the other day, went with a sweet potato slice. The first couple days, not much interest but he's shown more interest tonight. After this, also have a yellow bell pepper to slice up for him