Feeding rubber lip pleco?

[Anthonyck]

I hope this is appropriate here...

My spotted bulldog pleco is scooting around the glass well enough, but rarely seen eating otherwise. If I drop a wafer in, even at 2am, the goldfish seem to devour it. Should I be going with cucumber or zucchini?

Also, I am seeing very small white spots recently on ONLY this fish. Should I be concerned, and if so, what can I do for this?

Thanks,

Anthony

[Silurus]

Did you check to see if the belly of the fish is full? Your fish may be eating out of your view. Otherwise, experiment with the cucumber or zucchini.

The small white spots are more worrying. Chaetostoma are quite prone to ich, and your fish may be coming down with that.

[joefish72b]

I have one in my tank and to date I've never seen it eat. The small white spots are an issue for sure, I would assume ich and at this point you might as well treat the whole tank. Ich can drop into the gravel and reinfect your fish so better safe than sorry.

[Anthonyck]

Thanks guys. Between posting and revisiting, I picked up a treatment that hopefully won't also wipe out my shrimp. Treating tonight. I expect treating immediately following a water change is appropriate?

...and about the belly - I am really not sure what "full" looks like on these guys, as I have never have this species in the past and she's quite small yet. I would say about 2 inches overall.

Thanks,

Anthony

[plecomanpat]

Hi Anthony,basically make sure that the belly isn't concave or sucked in, also your fish is relatively new to your tank and most likely hasn't gotten into a "routine" yet,most likely feeding at night. As for competing with the goldfish for food, he(she) will definelatly lose,try giving it a place of refuge to where only it can fit and use a turkey baster to blast food down to him and even some into its hideout,also the chaestoma's do like a current.Best wishes

[joefish72b]

Thanks guys. Between posting and revisiting, I picked up a treatment that hopefully won't also wipe out my shrimp. Treating tonight. I expect treating immediately following a water change is appropriate?
Thanks,

Anthony

Good luck with the shrimp they can be delicate when it comes to ich meds. Treating after a water change is good, and after that just follow the directions for the meds and you should see a difference in about 3 days. Just an FYI sometimes it could take as long as 2 weeks if your water is cooler like 75 degrees.

[apistomaster]

I wouldn't try using any of the Ich remedies in a tank containing fish. They are very sensitive to most Ich meds. I would remove as many as I could to a different tank. Once the Ich problem is over and you have made some large water changes the shrimp can go back in with their former tank mates.

I think Chaetostoma eat more animal than plant matter so I would use my two stand by staple foods which are earth worm sticks and Spirulina Sticks as both contain plenty of animal and plant matter so they are good omnivore foods. I think Chaetostoma rely on their sucker mouth to better get around in the fast water they prefer and mainly eat small aquatic insect larvae and their eggs and the algae they eat is mostly incidental to their scouring the rocks for meatier foods.

[grokefish]

Anyone thought that maybe it is one of the chaetostoma that has white spots and is settling down?

Picture would be good.

Also if you are feeding your fish goldfish flakes I garantee your Zippy fish is eating it.

[Anthonyck]

Well, once I saw that my "canary in the mine shaft" (silver molly) had spots like the plec, it seemed for sure to be ich. The meds in question are a natural, supposedly mild remedy that should be safe for the shrimp. However, the Molly today seems to have a tattered tail and I fear will not pull through. The chaetostoma malesi still looks the same, luckily with no better or worse symptoms. Only one of the goldfish is nippy, so I can't say if the Molly suffered that fate. That particular fish actually nips at the tail of the plec, and may find itself in a different tank very soon.

Currently I feed goldfish flakes and sinking pellets, in addition to kelp-spirulina flakes, dried bloodworms, and the occasional algae wafer. I have some flat discs that are for the goldfish also, but that is the least popular fare. I have some hornwort growing and just added bacopa stems as well. I still have not seen the rubber lip eat a single thing, nor has it been anything but submissive with other fish. It scoots away as needed, and is pretty active during the day. I have some good cover with large stones and a decorative cave, both of which she has visited, but she prefers to be nose-down in the bubbles or nose-up below the filter return most of the time.

[Anthonyck]

Unfortunate update: I was gone for 10 days and someone providing the ich treatment and feeding them daily, but during that time the rubbernose died. Interestingly, also during that time, the Molly seems near completely healed, tail and all, and is almost free of white spots. Still no goldfish is affected, but my Cory cats have other concerns, which I listed in a separate post.

What should or can I do differently before adding another chaetostoma malesi? I love this species, and still feel it to be the best fit for my tank size and needs.

[MatsP]

Chaetostoma prefer really fast flowing water, so not really good for a goldfish tank. Goldfish are also, as you noticed, pretty greedy when feeding.

I would also expect Chaetostoma to suffer badly from water that is high in nitrate, as that would not match their natural habitat at all, as they live in mountain streams with low numbers of fish.

--
Mats

[plecomanpat]

also note,in my experiences if the pleco has ich and you can see it on the body it has already had it in the gills for a bit longer,hence the pleco staying in the bubble stream, they have trouble breathing and its easier in the bubbles. I have always,the only times I medicated, I half dosed, in a quarentine tank and especially not with inverts in the tank

[Anthonyck]

Mats - I have done nothing to design the tank for the needs of goldfish, so the current is likely heavier than ideal for them. The more I develop my plans, the more I realize that at least three of the six will have to go, and if the remaining three get beat up by the group of syn. petricola that I am getting soon (working with the LFS to parse out true Pet's vs Luci's), then they will either have to go or get their own tank. I need to determine some confidence in the health of the tank before I do that, of course.

Plecomanpat - very interesting. Making me wonder if, in fact, she was sick when I got her. Also, the ich treatment was an all-natural immune system booster rather than aggressive meds. No shrimp lost, but wondering if I could have saved the plec? Mind you, it would have come at the expense of leaving for Florida for 10 days, so not an option ayhow. Just curious.

[joefish72b]

I can tell you from experience goldfish are like roaches, pretty hard to kill. They can survive a wide range of water temps and conditions. Also they are like a bull in a china shop, beating just about everything to the food source. Unless you have a lot of room in your tank your other fish will get pushed around by the goldfish.

As for the rubberlip I have one in my display tank and it lived at the intake for the filter for maybe a month or two before finding a nice rock it liked. Mine is in exactly the same spot every day and I hardly ever see it move more than a few inches along the bottom. Mostly it scours the glass but that's after lights out.

My food sources in my tank are spread out so there is plenty to go around and I give flake every day.I don't really look at every fish every day but here is a pic of my rubberlip it always has the little potbelly so I assume it is eating pretty well.

[Anthonyck]

Joefish,

Oddly, mine was quite active, especially during the day. One of the reasons I decided to pair this species with the GF is that a friend noted how assertive they were and unlikely to miss a meal or get stressed by the oafish carp in the tank. I also felt the size was appropriate for a 29gal. Mine always backed down if a goldfish nipped at her, but otherwise stayed put in their presence. As I said, never once did I see her eat, and I didn't get a chance to try veggies before she was gone. I really would like one of these in my tank, but now, even if I remove up to 3 goldfish, the petricola/Lucipinnus additions will add even more competition. I am not interested in starving anybody.

[firefish11]

I'm New to Planetcatfish but have been caring for several different catfish species for several years now. The Chaetostoma milesi that I have lives in his own tank, as he really seems to like a much cooler faster flow then other plecs that I've had(have).

When I first got this one he (I'm assuming it’s a he anyway due to the large pelvic fins but this is the first milesi I've ever owned) was putting away an algae wafer a night all by himself, then once his stomach seemed to fill out (probably a month) he stopped eating the wafers period, wouldn't touch one if his life depended on it now. You could still see him moving along the glass and rocks though.

I added a power filter to the mix as well around this time, and he hangs out at the outlet almost exclusively. I've noticed since then that he has dug out his own depression in the substrate, so tried feeding him an omnivore feed that I normally use for my corys, and I've never actually caught him eating it but it's gone every morning, and the only other inhabitant that the tank currently has is a solitary ghost shrimp. So I'd have to agree that they do seem to like their food more on the meaty side as mine completely ignores any vegetable that I've tried to date (not that this should discourage you from trying anyway though I think...lol).

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[grokefish]

check your nitrates/nitrite/ammonia.

[Anthonyck]

My nitrites checked out fine, which should mean the ammonia has stabilized, no?
I have not tested for nitrates, but I have a bunch of live plants, and my hornwort grew six inches in 10 days once the nitrite cycle ended. The LFS only tests pH and nitrites. I haven't purchased the home test kits for anything but pH.

[plecomanpat]

I always get the master kit that way you can test for many different things. I'm sure your lfs should have or can get one, if not there are alot of online spots to get them and at a resonable price. With the goldfish your parameters are going to be unstable, up and down on a consistant basis. Personally, I don't test often because my tanks are well established and I'm a firm beleiver in consistant water changes to keep stability, watching the fish and changes in habits,(re)actions and behavior is the best preventative in my book.

[Anthonyck]

Since it has been about a month since I lost the last one, I am trying again. I got another, similar sized chaetostoma malesi in the 29gal. I can't be certain, but I think this one is a male this time. I am trying the dried egg & algae spackle on a piece of vertical slate in the back of the tank. No obvious signs of consumption after 24 hours, but he has taken to hiding behind the slate. I'm not gonna disturb anything for a bit to see how he settles in. I will drop in a wafer this evening, but everythig in the tank jumps all over those things and they don't last long.

[Anthonyck]

So the rubbernose is still alive, though went a matter of weeks without being seen at all until I moved some things around in the tank a second time. I have arranged some things in a more "pleco friendly" manner, meaning it may be a few more weeks now.

He came out a bit when I added a pair of very young albino bushynose this weekend. I think the group (including a new trio of Otos that manage to get fat & happy daily) have been working on the algae cement on the slate per the plan.

I hope he will be even more comfortable in time, but for now, all is well.