# Wet pet



## Gourami Swami (Jul 4, 2006)

Well some of my favorite fish are american cichlids. Big, smart, and full of attitude. I would love to put some of my favorites (GTs, severums, dempseys, oscars) in a huge tank. Unfortunately All i have to work with is a 20 gallon tank, so they are all out of the picture. I want a smart, mid-sized fish to keep alone and have as a "wet pet" so to speak. I have had recommendations for salvinis, convicts, firemouths, and jewel cichlids. right now my favorite seems to be the convicts, but since you here are the experts, I would like your recommendation to the coolest fish with the most attitude that would be happy in my 20 gallon tank.


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## Cichlid Man (Jan 19, 2005)

Gourami Swami said:


> Well some of my favorite fish are american cichlids. Big, smart, and full of attitude. I would love to put some of my favorites (GTs, severums, dempseys, oscars) in a huge tank. Unfortunately All i have to work with is a 20 gallon tank, so they are all out of the picture. I want a smart, mid-sized fish to keep alone and have as a "wet pet" so to speak. I have had recommendations for salvinis, convicts, firemouths, and jewel cichlids. right now my favorite seems to be the convicts, but since you here are the experts, I would like your recommendation to the coolest fish with the most attitude that would be happy in my 20 gallon tank.


Get a few pairs of shell dwellers. They'll be fine in a 20g tank, and will keep themselves busy.


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## Gourami Swami (Jul 4, 2006)

well ya see, thats kind of missing my point. I was hoping for a single, mid sized (6") fish that would be happy in a 20 long.


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## emc7 (Jul 23, 2005)

If you get jewels, get dwarfs, cristatus or lifalili. But if you have 2, you'll have hundrends, same for convicts. How about an angel. Don't laugh, they are smart and if not wrapped up in each other, will reconize you, follow the finger, eat from hands, the whole bit.


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## Gump (Aug 2, 2006)

Single central american in order of my preference.
Salvini
convict
jewel

I wouldnt really count firemouths since i havent seen them show the type of intrest in there owners that your looking for.


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## joe kool (Jan 24, 2005)

male convicts can get 7-8" and about that in height and sometimes almost 3 to 4" in girth ... (fat little [email protected]@rds LOL) something that will be about the same "volume" of fish will be a green terror usually in the 6-7" range some can get 8+ and about 3-4" in height some 5 or so but you get what I mean. and the green terror will be a ton more personable and responsive than the convict jewel or salvini.

a full size adult will need more than a 20L down the road but that would be an excellent grow-up tank with the large ammount of surface area and length for him to chase some little guppies or rosies around.


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## Gourami Swami (Jul 4, 2006)

im thinking about turning it into an eartheater tank now. any suggestions?


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## Gump (Aug 2, 2006)

joe kool do you have any pics of a 7-8" convict?

GS i have a lot of suggestions for eartheater set ups but in a 20 i wouldnt do any of them. they like to be in a group and I dont think you would get the proper colors from them if you keep them alone. If its still something you want to do any way i can give you numeorus species that look good.


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## Gourami Swami (Jul 4, 2006)

I looked at cookie cutters at cichlid-forum.com and they suggested a pair of gymnogeophagus rhabdotus, which stay 6" and I like very much, along with some large tetras like serpea's. I could also do raimbow eartheaters, and there are some geos that looked good for my sized tank.


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## Gump (Aug 2, 2006)

there are a lot of geos and gymos that only get around 6" but like i said geos are more of a schooling fish and gymos require a cool down period to really thrive. you dont have to do it but its suppost to make there colors a lot better.


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## emc7 (Jul 23, 2005)

How bout a (dwarf) pike cichlid?


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## Gump (Aug 2, 2006)

a bunch of shell dwellers would be cool to but not really what your looking for, but its an idea if you havent thought about it.


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## Gourami Swami (Jul 4, 2006)

i have. there are soooo many options! Im even considering saltwater!


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## joe kool (Jan 24, 2005)

Gump said:


> joe kool do you have any pics of a 7-8" convict?


always has to be one ... doesn't there. 

Convicts (males) routinely reach 6" in a few years ... females generally much smaller normally topping out in the 4 to 5" range. The Omaha zoo (riverbanks I believe, it’s been a few ... 10 years ) Used to have a HUGE display tank before they built the "new" aquarium house and they had many SA cichlids that were way larger that you'd normally see in an aquarium palm to tip of middle finger on my hand is over 7 1/2" and there were 2 males (opposite ends of this monstrous tank) that were bigger than my hand.

given room, super clean water conditions, and optimum feedings, most fish will exceed (suggested retail) growth ratings LOL


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## joe kool (Jan 24, 2005)

Gourami Swami said:



> Im even considering saltwater!


please PLEASE talk in detail to some of the saltwater guru's on here befoer you even consider a 20L saltwater tank

I finally talked a buddie of mine into upgrading from a +/- 35gal hex to a 100 gal 5' tank and was talking to him yesterday (set up in March if memory serves) and he just can't believe how much easier it is to maintain the larger tank. "everything is so much easier, for the most part it takes care of it's self. I'm always having to do something with the little tanks, filter, extra water change every now and again, this, that. I just do my normal water changes and the tank goes" was his words. 

I've heard these sentiments echoed by many many aquarists once they get upto or above the 48" tank range. surface area and ground space are adequate and even better in the 5' and 6' tanks wider than 18" - 24" you get great gas exchange and plenty of areas for aerobic and anaerbic bacteria to grow and do what they do in nature ... purify water


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## Cichlid Man (Jan 19, 2005)

We here at fishforums don't really agree with nano-reefs as they are inpractacle, and some see it as a wasted effort. I suggest if you're serious about having a saltwater tank and are living on a student budget, you'd better start saving.


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## Gourami Swami (Jul 4, 2006)

I have the money, but I wouldnt do a reef, id do a FOWLR and only a few fish.

Oh and joe kool, Seeing as I dont have the conditions you stated, then why would mine grow larger than they ever do in aquariums? And also, Green terrors can exceed 12", and they need a 55 gallon minimum.


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## Lupin (Aug 1, 2006)

Mate, I'd get shellies or apistos if I were you. With only 20 gallons tank, only shellies or apistos would fit. Convicts can be a trouble. Once they breed, you're heading for troubles. They are hard to get rid of via selling them as they are quite common.
Forget the angelfish. They need a minimum height of 18 inches. It would be impossible for 20 gallons tanks to reach that height.


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## joe kool (Jan 24, 2005)

Gourami Swami said:


> Oh and joe kool, Seeing as I dont have the conditions you stated, then why would mine grow larger than they ever do in aquariums? And also, Green terrors can exceed 12", and they need a 55 gallon minimum.


As a single fish a green terror would enjoy a 20L for a year ... give or take 

you asked for an interactive fish if memory serves and I was giving you an option out side of some of the others that were being given. I really don't see a convict as interactive .. more aggressive. Green terrors too are agressive but seem more interavctive with owners as well. Also I believe I suggested it be a starter tank and stated that an adult would need larger than a 20L. A 1.5" green terror wouldn't "need" a 55 ... infact he'd be quite "safe" feeling and happy in a 20L up to about 6" or so then he'd start to strain the bio load and need the larger tank. 

With 13 tanks I have to ability to move my fish as they grow and find they seem happier when they have a more limited area when young and they move to a bigger tank as they grow.


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## joe kool (Jan 24, 2005)

and as Blue suggest I'd look into the dwarf cichlids as a permant tennant for a 20L. Some of them can get quite used to you being around and not be near as skiddish as they are when you first get them ... either african shellies or SA dwarfs woul be great in a 20L


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## Gourami Swami (Jul 4, 2006)

Im going to make the 20 saltwater now and im buying a 90 gallon for big cichlids in 4 months.


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## emc7 (Jul 23, 2005)

Good luck.


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## Gourami Swami (Jul 4, 2006)

Thanks. Im sure Ill soon be posting advice threads for those tanks but neither are in the immediate future. Ill hold out a couple of months, and give me some time to think about what I want.


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## Gump (Aug 2, 2006)

good luck bro, pulling a nice salt tank at 13 is going to be quite a task. Its quite expensive to be done correctly.


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## Gourami Swami (Jul 4, 2006)

Yeah, thats why im waiting for x-mas


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