GN's are they possible problem children?

Mr Pleco

Piranha
MFK Member
Mar 18, 2006
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Gold nuggets are they really that hard to keep? i purchased one about a wek ago from a chain LFS, they never carried them before , GN's where small maybe an 1.5". Anyway 3 days later I find it belly up on the bottom of my tank, belly was not sunk, coloring good. tank tests are all within normal limits, in fact it was munching a cuk..Their refund was that they gave me another one, bang same thing, :swear: this time I went back brought a sample of water..all normal according to their strip tests, since then I went back and took a $$ refund.

let's hear from GN owners did I miss something? I'm not a novice , but again I don't consider myself an expert. Should I just steer clear of GN's and just move on?
 

WyldFya

Baryancistrus demantoides
MFK Member
Dec 23, 2005
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Moscow, ID
Nothing comes to mind that could really go wrong that fast. My thought is that the store just got a bad shipment. Is this store known for good quality fish? Also, I would check their water params.
 

davo

Aimara
MFK Member
Jan 9, 2006
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i think ive had all 3 of the different spotted GNs, and currently have a L018 'medium' spot, and ive never had a problem with any of them. they always seem to be shipped in very small, and all small plecos are hard to have, but i broke my personal rule and got my latest at 1.5", no problems. i hit mine with cucumber, have plenty of bogwood, and fed it lots of bloodworms for protein straight away.
 

Mr Pleco

Piranha
MFK Member
Mar 18, 2006
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I never thought about checking the stores tanks, since we use the same municipal water supply. But that's an idea I'm going to do the next time I'm in the store, btw it was a Petsmart.

upside down Gold.jpg
 

WyldFya

Baryancistrus demantoides
MFK Member
Dec 23, 2005
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Moscow, ID
I don't know about where yours, but the one in Olympia, WA has horrible water quality. The one time I looked at fish there they had a pH of 8.3.
 

davo

Aimara
MFK Member
Jan 9, 2006
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you acclimated it ok? thats not the fattest GNs. i power feed mine on carnivore pellets and bloodworms wen i get them. its important to get these type of plecs a lot of protein they may have lost, not just cucumber (which they do need for a varied diet). They are grazers, but not in the sense that they eat only vegetation. They actually sift and chew at the film of organic matter on hard surfaces in search of higher protein foods such as larvae or eggs or small crustaceans etc
 

katycichlid

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Jun 3, 2006
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houston, texas
I spoke with a LFS owner in Houston. He is very well respected with 25 years in the business. He said the GN's are very difficult to keep going.....at least with the water conditions in Houston.
 

WyldFya

Baryancistrus demantoides
MFK Member
Dec 23, 2005
20,791
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Moscow, ID
GN's don't require to much more than most other plecos. nothing even close to the requirements for a royal. They are not as hardy as a common, but not many plecos are.
 

davo

Aimara
MFK Member
Jan 9, 2006
17,529
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England
GNs are as easy to keep as any other Baryancistrus sp. you have to remember at the max. age of them at about 2" is only around 6 months, so they are going to be very young, and therefore fragile.
 
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