royal pleco

sje106

Candiru
MFK Member
Jul 11, 2005
387
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Hertford, Herts, UK
The Royal Panaque and many other pleco's including other Panaque's, Ancistrus and Hypostomus species like the Golden Nugget Pleco and small pleco's too will graze on the wood and receive different nutrient (Acids and vitamins) from the wood that they may not receive from man made foods. also its is very remeniscent of there natural enviroment, bit like a "Home Sweet Home" sign lol:grinyes:
 

davo

Aimara
MFK Member
Jan 9, 2006
17,529
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England
definately. its got something to do with helping the stomach to digest other foods, as it contains lignin and lignin is required in their diet as an aid to helping their food to do so. (without going into the details of biology/chem). it is a must for royals. its a good decoration, and holey pieces give them shelter and somewhere to hide too. many royals come into shops, malnurished, and when they are tried to fed, if they cannot digest the food with lack of bogwood (or internal parasites) they dont live too long.

if its looking on the skinnyside, put it in a quarentine tank, bare, with a piece of bogwood for a retreat and for food, and use internal parasite med. but if you do you must dilute it heavily, as meds become very concentrated in the algae they graze on, and many royals are killed by this poisoning. provide with plenty of roughage ie vegetables like cucumber etc, it is highly beneficial. hope you raise a monster!
 

davo

Aimara
MFK Member
Jan 9, 2006
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you'll find that the bogwood will go down in size, and you'll have to keep replenishing it. when they are smaller, its hard to notice on a large scale, but big panaques, you can really tell how much they go through, and its more than you might think
 

chucky

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Sep 29, 2005
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46
The big bay area
Thanks for the info I have 3 small royals in a 300 gallon with no wood in the tank.I dont have any bogwood but I have alot of small pieces of driftwood.will that work???
 

sje106

Candiru
MFK Member
Jul 11, 2005
387
3
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Hertford, Herts, UK
would of thought so yeah, what the guys said above i have had my royal just under 3 years he is 5 inches and he has almost split one of my small pieces of wood into because he has eaten through it :WHOA:
 

davo

Aimara
MFK Member
Jan 9, 2006
17,529
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England
just got me a new piece of driftwood, i'll post a pic in a bit, have been trying to sort out a new pleco tank
 
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