55 gallon fish tank now what????
- Thread starter cichlidsguy
- Start date
I think understocking is just as much an issue with these types of cichlids though.
I am going through the same problem you are with my couple of jag fry. I am growing them out and one is clearly dominant and the other hides behind the heater all day. I guess they aren't fry any longer and i should probably move one to my 75 soon, but these cichlids need an aggression balance. It might not hurt it to add more fish to the tank, in fact, if you added a con, a firemouth, and a jewel then the smaller jack dempsey would probably come out more because the aggression will be dispersed. (this is what happened when I added some juvie convicts to the juvie jag tank)
If you are truly dedicated and will get a larger tank, then you can add a few cichlids now, I really don't see anything wrong with that as long as your jack dempsey isn't like 6 inches or more.
Also these guys aren't going to grow overnight (technically yes they are growing, but they are growing an inch a month). Believe me I wish they did. I mean yeah they (jack dempseys) will grow to 8-10 inches, but thats in a matter of a year or so. Plan to seperate them when they get around 6 or so inches or get a bigger tank and put some of the more aggressive ones in there and keep the less aggressive ones in the 55.
truly jack dempseys aren't THAT aggressive (compared to some other tank busting cichlids like red devils, trimacs, texas). I keep/have kept my 6 inch jack dempsey with severums, green terror, convicts, oscar, salvini, nicaraguense, texas, pictus catfish, and plecos (not all at once but over the course of a year probably a mix of at most 5 of these in a 75 gallon at once). Never had any problems of aggression with the jack dempsey ever. But he is also not full grow yet.
If you add fish, rearrange the stuff in the tank (duh) or take the dominant JD out for a little while because he will know he is the king and push the noobs around (you probably know this already, sorry for reitterating)
good luck
I am going through the same problem you are with my couple of jag fry. I am growing them out and one is clearly dominant and the other hides behind the heater all day. I guess they aren't fry any longer and i should probably move one to my 75 soon, but these cichlids need an aggression balance. It might not hurt it to add more fish to the tank, in fact, if you added a con, a firemouth, and a jewel then the smaller jack dempsey would probably come out more because the aggression will be dispersed. (this is what happened when I added some juvie convicts to the juvie jag tank)
If you are truly dedicated and will get a larger tank, then you can add a few cichlids now, I really don't see anything wrong with that as long as your jack dempsey isn't like 6 inches or more.
Also these guys aren't going to grow overnight (technically yes they are growing, but they are growing an inch a month). Believe me I wish they did. I mean yeah they (jack dempseys) will grow to 8-10 inches, but thats in a matter of a year or so. Plan to seperate them when they get around 6 or so inches or get a bigger tank and put some of the more aggressive ones in there and keep the less aggressive ones in the 55.
truly jack dempseys aren't THAT aggressive (compared to some other tank busting cichlids like red devils, trimacs, texas). I keep/have kept my 6 inch jack dempsey with severums, green terror, convicts, oscar, salvini, nicaraguense, texas, pictus catfish, and plecos (not all at once but over the course of a year probably a mix of at most 5 of these in a 75 gallon at once). Never had any problems of aggression with the jack dempsey ever. But he is also not full grow yet.
If you add fish, rearrange the stuff in the tank (duh) or take the dominant JD out for a little while because he will know he is the king and push the noobs around (you probably know this already, sorry for reitterating)
good luck
very intellectual(cant spell)BTW one of my jds is 5.5 inches the other is 4 in.Also they are both females,i was thinking of getting another jd(male this time)but i also want different looking cichlids....Also i added silica sand to my fish tank and boy did it bring out more blue 2 both of my jds...also i added my FM(2inch)for awhile but the big one(5.5in) was looking at it like was food...there was a net inside used as a divider..P.S.FM bak in 20g long.no fish was hurt.
That's all well and good, and I agree that overstocking may help with some aggreson problems BUT we need to focus on the importance of water quality. Lets say he overstocks his tank and aggresion is no longer an issue, well he will be hard pressed to keep up with tank cleanings. Water quality is the most important aspect of fishkeeping. Now yes, the fish are small and technically can fit but in time a larger tank will be required. I have grown fish out in small tanks and bought larger tanks as needed but I don't like to suggest it because there is always the matter of "What if" and this is a bigger factor with younger fishkeepers. What if he cannot get that larger aquarium? Then he is stuck with a lot of large fish in a small tank.PoopSmart;1145792; said:
CG; if you want more fish I highly suggest getting the larger aquarium first, there is no need to rush things. If you take your time and do it right the hobby is a lot less stressful and a lot more rewarding. I notice you mention your two Jacks are females? Are you confident of this? If so then go ahead and get that male, watch for a pair to form and return the remaining Jack. If a breeding pair is what you aim for however DO NOT add anything else with them. A breeding pair of Jacks will max out that tank, then you have to add any fry they produce. When spawning they will be aggresive towards any tankmate. And remember, water quality is the most important aspect of fishkeeping. Take care of the water and it will take care of your fish.
I notice you mention your two Jacks are females? Are you confident of this? If so then go ahead and get that male, watch for a pair to form and return the remaining Jack. If a breeding pair is what you aim for however DO NOT add anything else with them. A breeding pair of Jacks will max out that tank, then you have to add any fry they produce. When spawning they will be aggresive towards any tankmate. And remember, water quality is the most important aspect of fishkeeping. Take care of the water and it will take care of your fish.[/quote]
YEs i am very confident go check my pitures in my other thread!!!!
YEs i am very confident go check my pitures in my other thread!!!!
