PlanetCatfish.com

ok, I just picked one up 3 days ago. He is easily 5+ inches, prolly over 6.

I have some general quistions.
He is in a 29 gallon tank, black gravel.
Tankmates include, 6 cory cats, 4 angels from 1/2 to 1 inch in length, and 2 african buttefly fish, and thousands of snails, all types.

Do I need to worry about the cories or the angels?
Will he mess with my enourmous snail population? there are MTSs which I know cause problems in some snail eating type fish.

I have shrimp pellets for main staple, also have algae wafers I place in the tank once in a while, and the angels get fed mostly flake. I also plan on feeding a worm every once in a while, I heard they like those,
Is that ok for feeding?

Will he be ok with a moderate pH I keep it on the higher side of the recomended area for angels so that the snails have the calcium needed for their shells.

His coloration is not as clear as I have seen in pics, his stripes are a bit duller and browner, and his eyes are foggy. Do I need to treat him? He was quarantined before I got him, had been in quarantine for a little over 2 weeks.

He has ben extrmely sluggish, I kow he moves, he moved from one sunken ship to the other today :/ the ships are rmeoved now and were replaced with a log so that I can more eaily keep an eye on him for the first few days....that and the opening in the ship are very small, I fear him getting stuck...I plan on buying a larger ship for him to hang out in.

I am getting bigger tank this summer, and if all goes well with him, want him in it, would he be ok with predatory type fish that can get up to 14 inches or so? Is his armor enough to keep him safe?

It is possible we may get another one for the S.A. tank we are setting up this summer, with angels, discus, a pleco, cories, and some tetras, can he be trusted in there?

And lastly...for now...are they better off with two in a tank? Does it have to be another striped or can it be a spotted, does the size of the second one matter? I would prlly have to get a smaller one, 1-2 inches at most, seeing as how older fish dont stop in at the LFS that often, except for the tank busters (pacu, iridescants, RTCs, etc)

oh yeah, is a 29 gallon big enough for him? Is a 29 gallon big enough for two of them provided they have adequate hiding spots? (base dimensions are 30x12)

on edit, I am slowly raising tank temp to 80*F, this an ok temp? The angels have some damage to their fins due to tankmates in tehir last home. (a mating pair of german blue rams) And the higher temps should help them heal better, that and hte higher temp will induce breeding quicker in teh pond snails I use to feed my puffer and my rams.

So many questions. I think you could have found a lot of answers yourself if you had checked the Cat-eLog first.
It sits in Doradidae, Platydoras costatus.
I'm sorry if this sounds a bit harsh, but some things you can easily find out yourself. I'll be happy to help you out with any remaining questions, as long as I can answer them of course.
Btw: pls don't buy ships for your fish. Logs are great.

why no ships?

BTW, I didnt see anything about tnak size, or did I miss it in the linked article?

JarredDarque wrote:why no ships??

Because it's unnatural. But it's your tank and if you like ships, go ahead. I prefer airplanes myself

JarredDarque wrote:BTW, I didnt see anything about tnak size, or did I miss it in the linked article?

It'll be alright for the time being, don't worry. Jools is working on tank sizes, see topic "a small suggestion" in Site suggestions & bugs.

If these ships or castles or any other squared and unnatural hiding spots are used, they can also cause spinal deformaties in your fish resulting in rather ugly hunchback creations that you probably will not find appealing. So if not for your fish then for your viewing pleasure!

just buy some pipe, or a bit of bogwood with a way that you can arrange to create a cave

well. right now he is in a log so I can keep na eye on him, I am headed ot hte LFS this weekend....it is far enough away that an actualy trip must be planned