DanTheMan Posted August 23, 2013 Report Share Posted August 23, 2013 How many people on the forum love Clown Loaches? How many, what size tank, tankmates, type of filter, any sort of particular troubles, etc??? Not a lot of people in Manitoba have large Clown Loaches, but was told they are very popular in Alberta. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
geleen Posted August 23, 2013 Report Share Posted August 23, 2013 I lover them and have 7 4-5 inch in a 160 gal with rainbow fish they need to be in a group of at least 3 to be happy. Easy on plants and leave other fish alone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nancyr Posted August 23, 2013 Report Share Posted August 23, 2013 I too have about 15, ranging in size from 4 in. to about 7 in, distributed amongst two 90 g and a 35g, i love them and they live a long long time, i have had some of my bigger guys for going on 8 years. they are with my cichlids, and in the small tank rainbows. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishclubgirl Posted August 23, 2013 Report Share Posted August 23, 2013 Depends on whether or not they're buying.... Ooopsy.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DivineHammer Posted September 16, 2013 Report Share Posted September 16, 2013 I have 2 in my 90 gallon comunity tank, they are only 3". Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
darryl180 Posted September 19, 2013 Report Share Posted September 19, 2013 I have 25 in a 500 gallon tank. They are one of my favorite fish. They range anywhere from 5 inch to 10 plus inches. My oldest one is about 16 years old. They are in a community with a fire eel, some geophagus altifrons, blackberry silver dollars and a few L330 Watermelon plecos. The more you have the happier they appear. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DanTheMan Posted September 19, 2013 Author Report Share Posted September 19, 2013 I have 25 in a 500 gallon tank. They are one of my favorite fish. They range anywhere from 5 inch to 10 plus inches. My oldest one is about 16 years old. They are in a community with a fire eel, some geophagus altifrons, blackberry silver dollars and a few L330 Watermelon plecos. The more you have the happier they appear. Nice mix of fish. I agree that the more their are the happier they appear. What I found extremely interesting is when I added some 2 inch clowns to the tank they just swam right up to the group rubbed their way through the alley and then after a few barbel feels by the others they seemed to be accepted, and not only that, when the very large 7 inch yellow tail acei seemed intent on chasing the newbies just after their introduction the large loaches swam inbetween the Acei and the small loaches stopping the chase game instantly. No fighting, almost like ...if you mess with them buddy we got a problem. The loaches are generally very peaceful and playful and the only issues that come up are when one of the loaches tries to gain group dominance because they have just finished what I call a growth spurt these are few and far between and last just seconds and it is not extremely aggressive, just some minor lip locking and the attempt is over. Gracie wins again. What are you feeding your loaches and how often? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RDFISHGUY Posted October 6, 2013 Report Share Posted October 6, 2013 I have 12 in a 240 gallon, with a ray , arowana, sunshine plecos and green phantom plecos. Oldest one I've had since 2003 he was 2" then and is 8" now. They are definitely better in groups. I tried plants but mine chewed them. Not voraciously but they did put holes in my anubias which eventually got uprooted by my arowana. I feed mine nls pellets but they will come up and grab the floating hikari sticks from the arowana once in a while. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DanTheMan Posted October 9, 2013 Author Report Share Posted October 9, 2013 So Cool! I would be afraid to put them with an Arowana. The loaches obviously don't find it intimidating. Plants are a definite no in my tank as well. It's bad enough that they move the artificial plants attached to large rocks to their liking, pull off heaters, eat air stones and sponge filters, try to remove filters and the stream pump. They seem to be enjoying watching me cringe when they move, pull, and destroy things in the tank. As long as they don't actually break the glass I enjoy watching their antics. They tip sideways and wave with one fin when they are hungry, or heaven forbid I am late at supper time. It appears loaches here are not that popular, stock that comes in is usually sick or becomes sick in the LFS not just the small ones but the bigger 3"-4". I have picked up and added to my collection from other forum members that realize keeping one or two is not what is best for the fish., or realizing they can't give them the space they need to be healthy and happy. I am however encouraged that people are doing their research and understanding their needs. I always quarantine my loaches for an extended amount of time minimum 8 weeks. I would hate to lose the beautiful and large loaches I have. I will try to post some pics soon. Thanks for the reply Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toirtis Posted October 18, 2013 Report Share Posted October 18, 2013 Our planted community tank usually houses about 5-9....we buy them at about 3cm and grow them out to around 12-15 cm (when they start disrupting plants and chasing smaller fish), then sell or trade them in and replace them with another batch of small ones. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Infusion Posted November 6, 2013 Report Share Posted November 6, 2013 ive been looking for some if anyone has in calgary thats bigger then 3"! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
uwish Posted November 7, 2013 Report Share Posted November 7, 2013 (edited) They are the prize posession in my 100Gal planted tank. I have 12 of them ranging in size from 3 inches up to 13 inches and ages from 2 years up to 12 years. My loaches don't touch any of my live plants, nor any of the equipment and I have been keeping loaches for well...12 years. Edited November 7, 2013 by uwish Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
claspers Posted December 3, 2013 Report Share Posted December 3, 2013 Hey, I love them I have a group of fourty I have been raising for two years. So much personality. Also have a group of nine but they are almost red anyone know why? Thanks. J. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DanTheMan Posted December 4, 2013 Author Report Share Posted December 4, 2013 From what I have read the clown loach coloring can differ for several different reasons. They may be from a different area, or the substrate and or lighting in the tank may bring out a stronger or weaker coloring. Also as the loaches get bigger the color seems to lessen and white lines form within the black stripes. The last part is super cool, I have one very large loach and it almost looks like a white lightning bolt going through the black stripe. When these white lines form it is also a lot easier to tell the loaches apart when they are very similar. I had adopted 5 new loaches quite red about 2 months ago and after quarantine I placed them in the 300 gallon with the other loaches in a white sand substrate with lots of artificial plants, rock caves, and artificial driftwood and only natural light and after 2 weeks their red coloring is fading. They are still receiving the same food their previous owner fed them, but the previous owner had them in a tank with a darker gravel substrate and real plants with bright lighting. They are swimming with the group actively and eating extremely well, no ill effects, in fact in a short amount of time there has been noticeable growth. As long as the loaches are not flashing (indicates irritation) and are active and eating well all is good. Enjoy these beautiful fish, they can be a real riot and quite mischievous, Never a dull moment around here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigbadboss101 Posted March 22, 2014 Report Share Posted March 22, 2014 They sure are cute but mine are a little shy right now. I have 3 of them, 2.5" long and have a small hiding place. I am looking into getting some sort of cave/lava rock/driftwood for them to hide. Night time they come and and scoot around. Some suggested I sell them because they get long and need more numbers to be happy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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