# Sticky  Our view on stocking levels and the stunting of fish.



## Cichlid Man

One of the most common questions asked concern how to stock a fish tank. This is particularly true in the more general forums that are frequented by newcomers to the hobby. These questions often take the form of, “How big of a tank do I need to keep such-and-such fish?”

We at Fishforums.com stand by our recommendation that doing what is best for the aquarium inhabitant is of more importance than any other concerns or desires you may have.

The Old One-Inch-Per-Gallon ‘Rule’ is basically a myth as it only applies to the small tetras or similar fish.

The needs of the fish or animals should be taken into consideration. These needs may include;
* Proper room for the Activity Level and Swimming space - Swimming levels/niches, the animal’s usual style or level of activity such as ‘laps’ around the aquarium, schooling, and skittish behavior common in schooling fish.
* Territorial requirements – the floor space or empty room between individuals.
* Vertical space - most taller-bodied fish require room above and below their fins.
* Compatibility issues- many aquarium inhabitants will not be able to live together properly to the end of their natural life spans.

Aquarium manufacturers now offer customers a wide range of different shapes and sizes of tanks. It is fairly standard for companies to offer multiple tank configurations for a given standard size. For example, 20-gallon tanks often come in a “high” configuration (24” long x 12” wide x 16” tall) or “long” configuration (30” long x 12” wide x 12” tall).

Any animal whose destination is to be kept in captivity as a pet has the right to live in an environment that will not severely stunt its growth and will not severely shorten its natural lifespan. Discussing what are the appropriate conditions to meet these criteria is fine, but arguing that it's OK to stunt a fish and decrease its life expectancy is not. Those that disagree with this community's philosophy on these issues should feel free to search for another board that is more compatible with their point of view.

CREATED BY MODERATERS FROM NUMEROUS FORUM SITES.


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## malawi4me2

Well said!


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## Damon

Wow. I couldn't have said it any better myself! lol


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## Osiris

very well said, it is a consipiracy! Down with the "Inch Rule" !


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## ImagineAquatics

*Understood*

I will take this into consideration when I re-rate the capacity of our aquarium. I dropped a bombshell when I stated the amount of fish it could 'keep alive' on another board. It was excessive and absolutely maximal. My company makes a small tank (usually holds around 6 gallons of water after gravel and such), and our ratings are based on filter's ability to eliminate ammonia and nitrite, and to keep fish alive, not to keep them happy, or to give them their max life span. Our tests ran for 6 months to 1 year for the most part. 
Our prototypes have been running longer, but conditions are optimal. I realize the error in my way here, and will reevaluate our 'inches' rating. But that begs the question, how exactly does one rate the any aquarium system?

Is there a good way to express the effectiveness of an aquarium system without using an 'inches per gallon' or some similar system? How should a manufacturer present the realistic stocking requirements per aquarium if the area is so complicated, and the species are so diverse? Most consumers don't understand everything that goes into making an aquarium work correctly. They need 'something' that gives them an idea how well their equipment will work. Any ideas?

It's like with computers. How does a computer company represent the speed of a processor. Mhz used to be the standard, though it never truly represented the actual processing power of the computer. It was more of a marketing tool. intel has pretty much dropped the Ghz rating system in favor of a model number system (which is terribly confusing to consumers).

I've done a lot of thinking about this that last day or so, and I believe what you and many others on these forums are expressing is true. Ethically one needs to explain exactly which fish can be kept not only alive, but happy and healthy. Truthfully, I had never even thought about it when I rated the capacity of our aquariums. I was looking at it from a manufacturers perspective, and not a hobbyist's perspective. I wish that someone would think of an alternative. I was thinking about providing 'cook book' formulas for proper live stocking. Are there any good ones? Our tank has 20"x5"x18" of space and a filter that you can assume will do the job very very well. What will thrive? I would like to find some combinations that are aesthetic, fairly easy to find and purchase, that will live in the aquarium for their full lifespan, get along with each other, etc... Any suggestions are appreciated! 

For the record, when I service and stock tanks for customers, I never put anywhere near the maximum rating in them. I may have made a few mistakes using fish that eventually outgrow the tanks, but those will be corrected. Most customers find that a tank of this size and shape appears very full with far fewer fish.

Thanks for the reeducation! You've done some good for all of the fish that will be guests in our aquariums.


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## Fishfirst

well with your bread and butter fish like guppies platys mollys tetras corys and rasboras a good rule of thumb is 1" per gallon. But in your company's case I'd consider your filtration unit more than optimal. You could probably get by with 1.5" per gallon of these fish to up to 2" per gallon. BUT remind your customers that the more fish you've got the more things can go wrong and the more you need to clean. An understocked tank would be the best for minimal maintenance, moderate maintenance go with 1" per gallon and high maintenance 2" per gallon. It also depends on the activity level of the individual fish species. Some tetras would like a little more room as well as danios.


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## Thunderkiss

My only addendum i'd make is to bannish the myth that fish stunt due to confined spaces.
Fish don't stunt, they deform, yet continue to grow. 'Sides that, VERY well said


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## Cichlid Man

Quote from Dr axlerod in his book of fish health:


Cichlid Man said:


> If regular water changes are not made regulary then a fishes growth will be serverly stunted if the tank dimentions are too small for the fishes potential size.


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## garfieldnfish

The 1 inch per gallon was never more then a guideline. The poop factor of a fish also needs to be considered and like stated the activity level, swimming room needed and compatability between fish, planted or not, decorartions etc all need to be taken into account. But that is why people ask these questions. Fish have individual personalities as well and what works in one set up may not work in another identical one. Everyone should research the fish they would like to add to their aquarium, find out who is the best for cycling and how to add them one by one so the less aggressive one can establish a territory first. That of course only happens in the perfect world, hence we have Walgreens, lol. 
Most people buy an aquarium, listen to the LFS clerk and throw a bunch of fish into the tank. After loosing many, the remaining fish may get lucky if their owner tries to find out what went wrong by reading and asking questions in a forum like this one and may thus save the lucky ones. 
I know I started out this way 2 years ago. Now 11 tanks later, I am breeding fish and like to think all my critters are happy. But it took a lot of research and we should not tell people to go to a different site just because they use the inch per gallon guideline. If they do that, it's at least a step in the right direction, the rest of this complex hobby needs to be explained but everyone needs to start somewhere.


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## honmol

I have a 6 gallon tank for one of my bettas and she's very active. She uses the entire swimming space and when I got a couple otos to be with her the tank seemed overtocked to me and I moved them to a different tank. As long as you have active fish you don't need alot of them for a tank. As for the inch per gallon rule, I go by it for small, thin bodied tropical fish usually but even then there are exceptions.


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## leveldrummer

no one really thinks about the stunting of a fish, if you put a new born baby into a plexiglass box when it is born, and feed it and change but always have it in the box, the baby will be stunted and terribly deformed. usually malnurishment comes into play as well, most people think thats the most terrible thing to think about, a baby in a box like that, but those same people have an oscar at home in a 20 gal tank.


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## ron v

Level, I agree with you. And to make matters worse, these small tanks tend to be chosen by newbys who are not familiar with tank maintainance so not only are the fish confined, but are in bad water also.
ImagineAquatics, I appreciate that you are on here asking questions. You care and that is to be admired. If I were you, I would market your 6 gal. tank to advanced hobbyists like betta keepers. There is a place in our hobby for tanks of that size but in my opinion a beginner should start with a larger tank.


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## micstarz

That is very well said CM! imagineAquatics, I suggest a betta with a snail and a ghost shrimp.


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## Puffer Pita

Hate to dredge up an old topic but what would you say to someone who told someone else that was having a problem with a crab eating his other fish that he should cut off one of the crab's thumbs to prevent it from snatching the other fish (don't worry, it'll grow back eventually) and that he could then stunt the crab so it wouldn't outgrow the tank. Would you say his answer was out of line or would it merely be valid and informational?


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## Cichlid Man

I would say this would be completly the wrong thing to do. For a start intentionaly stunting an animal knowingly would be pointless and stressful for the animal. Any animal should be given enough resources to thrive and grow to it's full potential. A stunted animal is not healthy, or wasn't for a long period in its life, and why buy a crab that eats fish for an aquarium which contains small fish anyway?


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## Puffer Pita

Ok, thank you, that's all I needed to know.


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## bernte

yes thanks! 


greetz bernte


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## foehammer306

That is very well said, whoever made the one-inch rule is a liar.


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## Spiderpig

hm, well, i read a lot of books on aquariums and such and most all of them said that for tropical tanks, find the total surface area of the water then divided by 12 and the number you get is how much inches of fish you should have in that tank(exclude the tail)

Anyone else ever here of this stocking level rule?


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## Mitten

Spider Pig, with that formula, for a 10 gallon, you get 15 inches of fish.

That seems like a lot of fish


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## Apotheosis

You don't really need any formula.

Research any fish you're interested in and don't buy any that you don't have space for. Generally, take a fish's max size in inches (look on fishbase) and multiply it by 1.5. If that number is greater than the width of your tank, don't get the fish (there are some exceptions with eels or eel-like fish). Also, try to stay away from alot of messy fish like some cichlids and catfish if you have a small tank. Some are okay, but don't load up the tank with them. Otherwise, you'll be doing alot of water changes.


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## BloomiNGodsName

Spiderpig: I read that 1 someplace too...and even did the math for the 10gallon tank...which is 15 fish to me that'd seem fine if tis like Guppies or soemthing little...but I wouldn;t really put that 1 into play with anything bigger...


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## barry stamper

My theory is less is more... 55 gallon 4 angel fish 4 corey cats. it's quality not quanity!


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## Sock Yee

Usually I leave as much space as possible for the fish to thrive. This will ensure proper growth and water quality is easier to maintain. Overstocking is one of the most common mistakes made by aquarium owners.


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## mts

1 fish per gallon rule is really stupid. I wouldn't put a clown loach in a 1 gallon tank.


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## TTTT

malawi4me2 said:


> Well said!


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## Mew_chan

Actually that formula works when working in litres... ie for a 25 litre (5gal) tank (Metric is made for math people.. get with the times  ) x 12 the formula recomends 2.08 fish... that seems somewhat accurate depending on the size and type of fish obviously... and when you are a newbie a simple formula like this can be a helpful guideline.... 

I think the 1 gallon per inch of fish was only ment to be considered as a guideline... obviously you wouldnt keep a 1" fish in a 1 gallon tank but when considered as a guide when looking at a larger tank it can be helpful (give or take a couple gallons depending on fish/behaviour)... at least with smaller schooling fish... but like with anything all things should be considered with the necisary reserch and understanding of the fish you want in the tank... 

as a newbie I find it really hard to work out what I should do with my tanks so any help no matter if it is out dated or not is useful when weighed up against the appropriate research and reasoning...


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## katfemme89

I need someone's opinion on my tanks.

See, I just began keeping aquariums a few months ago, and I wish I had read this before I began. I was a newbie and I knew that fish in the tanks at the pet store looked horribly overcrowded, so I figured if my tank didn't look as crowded then I was in good shape.

So I now have a 5 gallon with 4 comets (each are about 1.5 in long and growing) a black mystery snail and two rosy reds. The goldfish keep growing so I am now planning to make them a pond in my yard in the spring. I also have a 10 gal with 5 platies (And about 20 two week old fry) 3 mollies, a pleco, an albino cory, a gold mystery snail, and a ghost shrimp. I do 35% water changes in my tanks about every 4-5 days (part of the fun of keeping fish IMHO is the maintenance), and all of my fish seem happy. Do they sound overcrowded? What I'm worried about is when the fry grow to be bigger, then it's definitely going to be like downtown chicago in there!!! What should I do with them? They were all born on Christmas night and are very special to me, so giving them away is out of the question, and buying a bigger tank doesn't fit into my budget. Maybe a few smaller tanks???


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## emc7

Keeping all your livebearer fry ever is going to get out of hand eventually. Its like a getting a cat and keeping her kittens and her kitten's kittens and soon you have 100 cats and they are coming to take you away. 

If you are just keeping the first batch, you are still talking 30 fish in a 10 gallon tank. Doing lots of water changes will help. Consider a second or third filter, also. If you already have an air-pump, sponge filters are a cheap addition. 

If you are a hoarder by nature and will never part with fish born to you, you will need to control the population's increase. The only viable birth control for livebearing fish is gender segregation. Before your young females get old enough to have babies of their own, they should go to a virgin tank. Or the boys should get their own tank. 

By now, you've figured out that pet-store tanks aren't good models. Fish live there only a few weeks, not long enough to grow much. The pond is an excellent idea for the goldies, they are pond fish, after all. 

If you find that you can part with your fry (you should still give them a tank to grow in), you could likely trade them to the store for credit which you can accumulate toward more/bigger tanks. There is talk of fish shortages this winter because of cold temperature in Florida killing the fish at the farm ponds. If your fish are healthy, you will be able to find new homes. You could post to craigslist if you don't trust the store. 

Also check craigslist, goodwill and garage sales for cheap, used tanks. There is a lot of silliness to wade through (like $50 oscars), but there are good deals to be had if you are patient and persistent.


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## katfemme89

Thanks emc!!! I appreciate the advice. I am only keeping that first batch that was born (they are my christmas babies!). I bought them a 10 gal tank last nite. I mite try to give a few away, but I don't know. I'll figure out something. The next batches of fry will just have to fend for themselves (god that sounds barbaric to me). As much as I want them, I can't afford to keep buying tanks (and I'm running out of space!). But once I get the pond built I might be able to put a few of the platies in the five gallon.


I hate to be the devil's advocate, but I feel the need to speak up about the rest of the posts:

While I totally understand where you guys are coming from, and I am an advocate for animals and their happiness also, I feel that some of the comments here might be a little over the edge. Of course I think putting a huge fish in a small tank is bad, but if the fish starts out small and doesn't grow as large as it COULD doesn't necessarily mean it's being abused. As long as good water quality is maintained, and the fish have room to move, I don't think it's a problem. I think the baby in a box analogy is a bit extreme. if there were, say, 15 one inch fish in a 10 gal, they would still have room to move and swim around. The baby in a box wouldn't be able to move. It's the difference between being in a closet, and one room. Of course none of us would want to live in one room for the rest of our lives, but that's because we would already know there's more out there. These fish that we buy in a store have been in captivity since birth, so they don't know what it's like to be in the ocean or lake, etc. So they don't know any different. I think it would be bad to bring a wild fish into captivity like that, but not fish that have always been in captivity.

It's the same thing as having cats declawed, dogs tails docked, pets spayed and neutered, etc. Viewed as barbaric but in reality doesn't really cause any trauma to the animal in the long run.

Hope I don't anger anyone with my comments (wasn't intended).


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## emc7

Its all a matter of degree. Some of the analogies are bit extreme in the hopes of making a point and changing the mind of someone who has been sold 10 pond fish and a 1 gallon bowl. But if you have the ability to offer your pet a 3 bedroom home, why would you keep him in a dorm room? If you have a 10 gallon tank and buy a fish that maxes out at 1" he has a room 20 times his length to swim in. If you buy a fish that grows to 20", even if he only grows to 12" because he's stunted, he won't be as happy as the 1" fish. and is likely to miserable because he can't turn around when he passes the 10" width of the tank. If you just provide the bare minimum for life you won't see your fish at its best, doing interest behaviors or breeding. There are hundreds of fish in the hobby now, there really isn't any good excuse for keeping a fish unsuitable to the environment you can provide. It is like how dog people will tell you not to keep working dogs in an apartment with no exercise. The more you know about an animal, the more you understand what they need to truly thrive. Every time I move fish to bigger tanks, I see things from a fish (behavior, color, size) I never saw in the small tank.


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## ptl161

yes thanks!


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## Ponera

Fact: I already exceed the 1 inch rule and my nitrates are so low that my anacharis won't even grow! It depends on how much they eat, as well, since the newts eat twice per week they don't input much waste!

Meanwhile, goldfish seem to foul all the water they even look at.


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## Trout

It *IS* a matter of perspective. Like with the thing about de-clawing cats. It is only even remotely acceptable to declaw your cats if they are never going to leave the house. Their claws are their defense, and if they ever get into a fight with a wild cat, they could be killed. And so it is with fish. They are completely at your mercy, and it's important that you do your very best to ensure that they not only survive, but thrive.


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