# Please tell me what you think of my stocklist



## iampumpkinman (May 8, 2007)

60 gallon tank.

Mix of fake and real plant, plenty of hiding places.
Two filters, with great filtration.
Excellent water levels.

Fish:
1 Full grown angel
2 baby Bala sharks
1 Iridescent shark
1 common Pleco
3 Clown Loaches
1 Dojo Loach
2 Guppys
1 8cent goldfish
1 Albino Catfish
1 X-ray fish

Please tell me if you think it is too much, or if i could add more, what i could add.

Any info is greatly appreciated.

Thank you!


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## Fishboy93 (Jun 11, 2005)

Take out the sharks and goldfish. Increase the Albino cories to 6.


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## Zoe (Feb 26, 2006)

Instead of the sharks, why not a few more angelfish? Your sharks can grow as long as 4 feet in the wild, at a good 2 feet in captivity, and really should be kept in nothing smaller than 125 gallons.

Instead of commong pleco, I'd suggest a bristle-nose or a rubber-lip. They are much smaller, growing to 6-8 inches instead of 18-24 inches, which is too big for a 60 gallon tank.

As for the loaches, I'd go with just dojo loaches. You could go with clown loaches, but clowns get pretty big. Loaches like to school, so whatever you go with, get at least 3 of them, 5 is better if you get a smaller species like dojo, kuhli or yoyo.

Skip the goldfish... goldfish are coldwater fish so they won't mix with the rest. Plus, those 8 cent goldfish can grow surprisingly large and really don't belong in anything but the biggest tanks, and ponds.

Cory catfish (your albino cat) are schoolers, so get at least 3, 5 is better.

Same goes with the xray fish. Get at least 5.


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## Danh (Feb 19, 2007)

I agree to drop the bala sharks and gold fish.. if you really like the sharks you can just grow them out and then trade them in.. 

I prefer clown loaches over any other loach by far. They grow VERY slowly.. I have a 6 year old that is 8". If you hold them for long enough for them to outgrow your tank they are worth some money and could be easily sold. I would keep the three of them and drop the dojo.

The iridescent shark will get big too.. and probably eat the smaller fish like the guppies.

What kind of albino catfish are you going to get?


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## Fishfirst (Jan 24, 2005)

The sharks really don't belong in a tank that size, nor does the common pleco, and neither do the clown loaches long term. Dojo loaches get around 8 inches as well, if I was doing this tank I wouldn't get the dojo's either. Kuhli and/or Yoyo's are much more practical. IF you want a shark I'd go with a rainbow shark. If you want a pleco I'd go with a dwarf species such as Rubberlip, Clown, or Bristlenose.

Get more cories and x-ray tetras, possibly another angelfish if you can find one that is compatible with your current one.
Goldfish do not belong in a tropical tank (they can get diseases they normally wouldn't in a cold water tank) they can eat small fish as well as be a huge load on your filtration.


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## bscman (Mar 23, 2007)

I, too, agree that you need to drop the goldfish and the sharks from the list. 
I have SEVERAL of those little feeder goldfish that now, after less than a year, are 6-7" in length and very messy. Plus they are a coldwater fish. I've seen them reach over a foot in length.

The sharks will get too big/long for a tank that size...sure they're fine for now--but what are you going to do with them when they start getting too big?
Larger fish can be difficult to get rid of because the common enthusiast generally won't have a tank large enough...and I know my local shops won't take fish from customers.



Fishfirst said:


> IF you want a shark I'd go with a rainbow shark. If you want a pleco I'd go with a dwarf species such as Rubberlip, Clown, or Bristlenose.
> 
> Get more cories and x-ray tetras, possibly another angelfish if you can find one that is compatible with your current one.


I'd agree about getting a rainbow shark...in my experiences a red-tailed shark is actually a little less aggressive and practically the same fish. Either will stay relatively small comared to the sharks you have listed.

However, my experiences tell me they don't get along very well with cories...too territorial. If you end up with more than one red-tailed/rainbow shark, make sure it's densely planted or has a lot of hiding places--they'll pick on each other non-stop if they see each other.


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## Danh (Feb 19, 2007)

ALL of my local shops take fish from customers.. They make more money off of them than others... A healthy 8" clown loach would go for $75-$100 EASILY. Clown loaches are ok for your tank man. Unless you live in the middle of NOWHERE and don't plan on moving for 10 years, then you'll be fine. I have had some 3" clown loaches for over a year.. I power feed them at least twice a day and do 80% wc a week.. I dont know how I could get them to grow any faster and they have put on 1".


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## iampumpkinman (May 8, 2007)

Sweet, thanks for the tips guys. I am planning on moving out within the next 8 months, and after i move, im going to be getting a 210 or larger tank. Do you think that my bala's will be okay for that long of a time, or just drop them now? And as for the 8 cent goldfish, he's just from a tank i had a while back, i didnt actually expect him, or the guppys, to not get eaten.


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## Zoe (Feb 26, 2006)

Your balas would be fine for that time in a 75 gallon, to be then moved to a 210 gallon. However, get only balas, and get at least 4, because they're schoolers.
However, I'd like to dissuade you from getting the balas now with the idea that you'll get a bigger tank later, because anything can happen in 8 months and you may not be able to get a larger tank for them fast enough. There will still be bala sharks in 8 months.


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## Damon (Jan 18, 2005)

Agreed. It is still a wonder pet stores even sell them. Should be order only. Not suitable for most aquariums.


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## Zoe (Feb 26, 2006)

Damon, I know exactly what you mean. I can't believe the fish for sale at hte local Petcetera... pacus, balas, feeder goldfish sold as regular tank fish...


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## iampumpkinman (May 8, 2007)

okay, so minus the balas, clowns, and dojo, i should be alright?


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## Guest (May 9, 2007)

don't forget the goldfish, shark, and pleco. 

also don't forget to add more cories and tetras.


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## Zoe (Feb 26, 2006)

iampumpkinman said:


> okay, so minus the balas, clowns, and dojo, i should be alright?


And minus the goldfish, irridescent shark, and common pleco (swap for a bristle nose, rubber lip).

I don't think you need to complete rule out clowns or dojos; while I prefer to dissuade from getting fish that will outgrow your tank because you will "eventually upgrade" or because "you can sell them for a lot of money" when they're big, it's true that clown loaches and very slow growers. In your position, I'd go with burmese, zebra or yoyo loaches, because I wouldn't be comfortable with my tank knowing that someday I'd have to go in there and catch some monster clowns - but you can definitely get away with if for a few years.


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## Danh (Feb 19, 2007)

I have an 8" clown loach. I had him in a sparsely populed 180g (at the time). He wasn't getting picked on or anything, but he wasn't looking good. Moved him to a densely populated 55g and now he's doing great. Much more active, better color and eating better. I do 50% water changes twice a week. The only reason he's not in a school is because I can't find any more big ones that don't have to be shipped to me.... because they take so long to grow to that size.. Anyway.. I'm just saying that if you keep them in good conditions, as long as they can turn around and have decent swimming room you should be ok.


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## Zoe (Feb 26, 2006)

Danh said:


> I'm just saying that if you keep them in good conditions, as long as they can turn around and have decent swimming room you should be ok.


I don't know that that is a good rule of thumb to be spreading. YOU might be okay keeping your fisn with only enough room to turn around and maybe swim a few bodylengths, but your fish may not be. Fish are very resilient, and they can live and even thrive in poor conditions - but not forever, and not all fish are that tough. On the whole, it's generally best to give as much room as possible, to school when possible, and always err on the side of caution.
I don't mean to say that it can't work, but it's best not to advise a newcomer that a clown loach will thrive by himself, in a crowded 55 gallon tank, better than he would in a 180 gallon tank.


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## Fishfirst (Jan 24, 2005)

I would have to agree with zoa. The reason your clown loach is doing better in the 55 gallon PLANTED is because he feels more secure NOT because he has enough room nor because he has more fish around. If I remember correctly from your pictures your 180 was pretty barren, so its no wonder that a fish that hides most of the time would feel out of place. Its fish keeping 101 here, the more places a fish has to hide, the more secure it feels.

Also on a side note... fish stores don't always like to take adult fish, infact I've worked at 4 and all 4 did not take adult fish unless YOU PAID THEM! Sad but true.

pumpkinman - take it from me... wait til you are buying the setup before you go out and buy more balas. Crazy things can happen such as the loss of a family member, fire, car accident, disease, car needs fixing, house needs fixing, ect. and fish get pushed aside on the priority list. Its happened to me once or twice, and its a good thing that I dont' have fish that I have thought about undertaking because I didn't have the room at the time.


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## girth vader (Apr 24, 2006)

In summary; ditch the balas, Clowns, ID shark, Com Pleco, Goldies. Up your angels to a pair or a trio, add cories to get 6-8 and add a smaller species of pleco. Personally I like Veil tail BN, or if you want to spend some $$ get a L046 http://www.kwas.ca/forum/showthread.php?t=3200  and finish the school of Xrays.


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## Danh (Feb 19, 2007)

My 180g and 55g don't have a lot of hiding places.. He hid behind the wood in the 180. I would prefer him to school, and as soon as I find some more big ones I will get them. I know what I have seen. It's not DENSLEY populated, but compared to what the 180g was it is. He is doing much better there.. with no more places to hide. The 55 is not planted. I don't think he is doing better because he has less space, or because there are more fish around. I really don't know why he is doing better. All I know is that as soon as I took him out of the 180 he started looking better. He seems happy where he is now with good water parameters and the ability to swim 4'.


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## tromeokid (Mar 8, 2006)

I too have had a horrible time finding a home for my 2 bala sharks. no fish store would take them as they had grown too big. i found a home for both, i didnt even want to seperate them. they are schooling fish and had grown very attached to each other. lots of personallity in those two. never again will i buy a fish before doing as much research as possible. i have a 75g and they had grown around 10 inches a piece. they start getting very sketchy the bigger they get.


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