# new pleco owner Qs on feeding



## squeekee35 (Feb 9, 2010)

My goldfish tank is loaded with algae so i bought a pleco. i didn't know you weren't supposed to put them with goldfish....so in hopes that my pleco won't suck on my fish i am thinking about supplimenting his diet with some veggies and stuff. so i am wondering what sort of foods do you all feed your plecos? i know zuccini is a big one but have you tried other stuff...like fruit maybe apples? Please let me know what you feed your pleco and what your pleco's favorite foods are.

--Angel


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## lohachata (Jan 27, 2006)

plecos don't belong with goldfish because goldfish are cold water fish and plecos are warm water fish.....and do you realize that common plecos can reach more than 3 feet in length ?
i feed my plecos according the that particular species dietary needs...with almost 600 known species of plecos it is important to know which one you have...
i don't feed any of my plecos squash or cucumbers because they really lack proper nutrition....mostly i feed a variety of prepared foods such as Plecocaine , algae wafers , earthworm sticks , brine shrimp bits , spirulina sticks , and about 5 or 6 other foods...
plecos also need to have some driftwood in the tank for them to eat..the eating of the wood will aid in digestion..


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## squeekee35 (Feb 9, 2010)

well i know goldfish are supposed to be kept in cooler water but i have a red cap oranda and they like it a bit warmer and i have read that goldfish can thrive at various temps. so i keep my tank at 75 degrees. and my fish seem okay. i have two fantails that are about 3 inches and my oranda is about 3 inches and my new pleco is about 5 inches and i keep them in a 50 gallon tank. i can always go bigger if neccessary anyway. i wanted snails to eat the algae but the pet store doesn't have any and i would need apple snails really for that big of a tank and you can't get those any more around here anyway...they are a pest species. i guess people let them go in the wild....not that i would know why you would release your snails to the wild but i can't get any apple snails....

--Angel


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## lohachata (Jan 27, 2006)

hwell , i just gave an opinion...your fish..you're the expert on them...


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## Charlie1 (Dec 31, 2011)

I feed my plecos algae wafers, zuchinni, seedless cucumbers (although should not be the main diet as cucumbers are composed mostly of water,) peas and some other stuff. You should also have driftwood as it aids in digestion. I would also keep an eye on the pleco and goldfish. Plecos have been known to suck on the goldfish's slime coat, potentially making the goldfish prone to various diseases and/or cause sores on the goldfish. So keep an eye on them!


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## squeekee35 (Feb 9, 2010)

well i have a long weekend coming up so i am going to search around for some drift wood. but now i am wondering....if they eat the drift wood to aid in digestion is that for the fiber? and if so then if you substitute fruits and veggies high in fiber if you can get away without having drift wood? just a question i am getting drift wood for sure though.

--Angel


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## squeekee35 (Feb 9, 2010)

oh also i think he is just a common pleco. he doesn't have any bristles or anything like that and he is just gray with black spots. so i am not sure what species exactly.

--Angel


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## squeekee35 (Feb 9, 2010)

oh he is not a sultan gray pleco...his spots are more crowded giving him an overall dark appearance and he doesn't have any white tips on his fins.

--Angel


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## lohachata (Jan 27, 2006)

fiber from fruits and vegetables are not the same..there are no cucumbers or squash or peas or apples falling into the rivers where plecos come from...but there are plenty of trees....and over the tens of thousands of years nature has taken it's course....they use the wood......wood is critical if we are to keep these amazing creatures happy.


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## squeekee35 (Feb 9, 2010)

well i have been hunting for pics on what my fish looks like but i can't really find any. most of the ones i find are gray fish with black swirls and mine doesn't have swirls. the closest pic i could find was of a hypostomus punctatus...but when i looked that one up most of those were brown looking fish with dark spots and not gray. i suppose i could look forever at pics and not find one that looks like mine....

--Angel


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## lohachata (Jan 27, 2006)

i would agree that most likely you have a common pleco...they are omnivores , but lean more towards vegetable matter...feed it accordingly...algae wafers , veggie sticks , earthworm sticks , and other meaty foods....but just more of the veggie and algae stuff.


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## Charlie1 (Dec 31, 2011)

squeekee35 said:


> well i have been hunting for pics on what my fish looks like but i can't really find any. most of the ones i find are gray fish with black swirls and mine doesn't have swirls. the closest pic i could find was of a hypostomus punctatus...but when i looked that one up most of those were brown looking fish with dark spots and not gray. i suppose i could look forever at pics and not find one that looks like mine....
> 
> --Angel


There are A LOT of species of plecos, many not even identified yet, so yes you could be searching for a picture for some time. I would agree that it is a common pleco (which there are several different species affiliated with the common name; "common pleco.") Although many species fall under that name, they all require similar dietary needs. 

As for why they need wood, drift wood contains lignin, which is essential for digestion in plecos.


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## squeekee35 (Feb 9, 2010)

well i guess it was inevetable....the pleco got my goldfish. he only got two out of the three but they are knocking on deaths door as i speak...their fins are tore up and they are missing scales. i took the pleco out last nite and the store said they would take him back so i am taking him back after work today....but i don't think my fish are going to make it....one is upside down and neither one of them swim around or eat.....i put some stuff in there with vitamens and enzymes to help promote slime coat and stuff...but i don't know if it is going to help.... : (


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## lohachata (Jan 27, 2006)

like i said...plecos don't belong with goldfish..
hard to tell if the goldfish will recover but they are pretty tough fish...
good luck and i hope you don't lose anybody.


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## squeekee35 (Feb 9, 2010)

I know if your fish have ick or something salt water dips help....do you think salt water dips will help in this case?


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## squeekee35 (Feb 9, 2010)

well all my fish died....i got some new one to match the old onse and no pleco this time. though i don't know what i am going to do with algae.......bummer plus one

--Angel


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## squeekee35 (Feb 9, 2010)

well two of my fish died with in several days of each other. the third one was barely hanging on so i put him down. he went peacefully. i bought new goldfish friday and so far they are doing well. they are just a lot smaller than my last two and not quite as fat boddied so i think i might have gotten males this time.

--Angel


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