# Uh oh- Think LFS didn't know what they were talking about...



## LucyGoosey (Dec 11, 2011)

Went to my LFS today, Big Al's, and stocked my tank. I was cycling a 40+ gallon (have to measure, not sure precise gallons atm) and left the tank alone this past weekend. Well I had turned the heat in the house off and didn't realize my fiance had turned the tank heater off. I lost all my fish (neon tetras, a betta and a guppy) and only had one guppy left that I brought back to life. (I feel horribly guilty!)

Anyways I came home today with 4 golden panchax, 2 honey gourami, 2 gold gourami, 9 neons and 2 fancy guppies (to go with my one survivor). I also got a cory.

I am now worried that the panchaxes are aggressive. I asked two different employees to look at the list of fish and make sure they all got along and would be good together. But after a quick google search I see it is not advisable to do more than 1 in a tank??? 

What do I do? The store is not accepting returns for the next week as it is their boxing day blow out.

Stupid me, shouldn't have bought the panchaxes without doing research. Fiance really liked them and I wanted to make him happy.


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## LucyGoosey (Dec 11, 2011)

Just wanted to share, the guy who was getting us our fish was obviously new and he actually dropped a whole bag of neon tetras while we weren't looking and was trying to repackage the fish. We showed up and the other associate was telling him that the fish had been on the floor way too long and not to give them to us. I think he may still have gave us some of the floor tetras but I don't mind if the alternative was the poor things being tossed out.


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## LucyGoosey (Dec 11, 2011)

Are the panchaxes ever NEAT fish. This one has been staring at me for an hour. It keeps freaking me out because it has its body all contorted but I think it is fine. The dang thing is LOOKING AT ME. lmao!

Anywys I have been reading and apparently you should have ONE panchax or 4 or more. I might see how they do but so far they have been bothering the neons. I could put the neons in a separate aquarium and return them next week but the spare doesnt have a filter. Hmm.


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## cossie (Dec 19, 2010)

buy a very cheap filter tomorrow and put them in the second tank until you can return them.


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## LucyGoosey (Dec 11, 2011)

Could I keep neons going for any length of time without a filter? I need to move them ASAP that is for sure. They are definitely being chased. I'm pissed they didn't tell me the neons would get killed, I would have got a bigger tetra instead. We live 35 mins from the store too.

I am going to call first thing in the morning and demand they take the fish back. I'll be very very nice and maybe they will tell me a good time to come in when they aren't so busy. or if that doesn't work I will get mad. lol


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## LucyGoosey (Dec 11, 2011)

Just saw a small panchax with a rather large neon in its mouth! They are going in the other aquarium ASAP and going back tomorrow...!! NOT PLEASED


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## LucyGoosey (Dec 11, 2011)

wow they had killed 2 neons while I wasnt looking. So 3 dead in total. I got all the neons out. I am going to return the panchax as one was going after a guppy. There is one large one that is so far not aggressive, I am debating keeping it but probably won't.

GRRRRR.


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## LucyGoosey (Dec 11, 2011)

So the panchaxes are a no, what about the gouramis? Were the clerks wrong about them too? I have two honeys and two golds. The honeys are very small. Are they going to be okay in pairs or were they lying about that as well?


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## Fishpunk (Apr 18, 2011)

This is how we become experts in fishkeeping.


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## snyderguy (Feb 9, 2010)

Gouramis will probably attack the neons eventually too


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## LucyGoosey (Dec 11, 2011)

Fishpunk said:


> This is how we become experts in fishkeeping.


haha yes that is one way of looking at it!



snyderguy said:


> Gouramis will probably attack the neons eventually too




okay so neons gone, panshanx gone.Too bad I really love the look of the neons. oh well I may get blackskirt tetras instead. I wanted some rummynose tetras instead of the neons but their rummynose tank had Ich.


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## emc7 (Jul 23, 2005)

Panchax are neat, aggressive, territorial, intelligent, predatory, and escape artists.


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## blugourami1 (Oct 16, 2011)

Do you know if the gouramis are males or females? Males seem to be territorial and may become aggressive towards other male and female gouramis..


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## Sorafish (Sep 15, 2011)

If I were you, I'd make it a tank of guppies, tetra and cory.
The guppies are fine together in a large tank, so long as you have a 1 male to 2-3 female ratio if you have females.
The cory need schools of 3+ to be comfortable. Six is a good number with them.
The tetra, and this is very important, MUST be kept in groups of 6 or more, or they become either stressed, or aggressive.

From what I've seen, Gourami become aggressive once settled in new tanks. A lot of people say the Honey ones are even tempered, but if a fish picks at it (tetra are likely to) it will knock their socks off.
Gourami are very case-by-case fish. Some say they're fine in pairs, some say they will kill other fish. So the store wasn't totally wrong with that.


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## Sorafish (Sep 15, 2011)

Also, may want to add fewer fish at a time. Adding too many at a time makes ammonia spike.
If you hadn't already, do a water change, as the death of fish can make water toxic.


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## mousey (Jan 18, 2005)

have tried umpteen gouramis over the years and have been sorry every time! I have one pearl just now that is quite mild tempered and so she stays until she gets nasty. 
Friend has small honey gouramis but only one to a 30 gallon and they are fine with the other fish. get yourself a small floating breeding tank- it can be a godsend when you have nasty fish in a tank and they have to be removed. They are then still in a heated , filtered tank but away from other fish. If the fish is a jumper make sure that you have a top on it. The tops that come with the breeder kit are usually too heavy and will sink the mini tank so I get a strawberry plastic basket and cut off the bottom and use that as a top. You can also use a large peanut butter jar and burn holes on the side of it and a hole at the top. Insert a piece of plastic coated wire in the top hole and insert container into tank- this can also be used for 2-3 inch aggressive fish until you can rehome them. I currently have my emperor tetra in a jar like this- he does not have any real swimming room but at least he is not biting holes in the other fish.
You can be creative at home using many things you find around the house to provide temperary housing for your fish. A small rubbermaid tote makes an ideal quaranteen tank or temperary housing for aggressive fish too.


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## Fishpunk (Apr 18, 2011)

Tetras and livebearers such as guppies don't really belong together. While they can be made to coexist, it will be a compromise for both kinds of fish. Tetras generally want soft acidic water and livebearers hard alkaline (if not brackish) water.


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