Red tail catfish male or female?

[Wesley M]

This is my new red tail catfish. It's around 7 inches long but I don't know if it is male or female. Also why is the tail brownish instead of the red I usually see in pictures and videos? Is there a particular diet that will enhance color? It is also very shy, how can I make it less shy (i want to eventually pet it and hand feed it, but it wants nothing to do with me).

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[Chub_by]

No way to sex them before adult size. Even then it's tricky.
Any food that's red will bring out its red, too. So Shrimp, Crayfish etc. They do start getting the red at the 10" mark though.
I hope you are prepared for the beastly adult size!

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[Wesley M]

It's in a 6 foot long tank so I'm going to keep it as long as I can! I'm really excited to see it grow. It's really shy though and its a little annoying/depressing. I want it to be more out going but I cant figure out what to do.

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[muskieboy]

Get it a cave to hide in. As it gets older it will become less shy.

 

[thebiggerthebetter]

This is my new red tail catfish. It's around 7 inches long but I don't know if it is male or female. Also why is the tail brownish instead of the red I usually see in pictures and videos? Is there a particular diet that will enhance color? It is also very shy, how can I make it less shy (i want to eventually pet it and hand feed it, but it wants nothing to do with me).

Cannot be sexed by laymen and reliably without a surgery.

For bringing in the red, please see this thread: http://www.monsterfishkeepers.com/forums/showthread.php?525323-When-Do-RTC-get-RED-RTC-update! and my post and links in there.

Handfeeding takes practice and patience. Many do but I would not suggest petting your fish.

 

[Derontmas]

This is my new red tail catfish. It's around 7 inches long but I don't know if it is male or female. Also why is the tail brownish instead of the red I usually see in pictures and videos? Is there a particular diet that will enhance color? It is also very shy, how can I make it less shy (i want to eventually pet it and hand feed it, but it wants nothing to do with me).

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If you want it to be less shy consider putting the fish tank in an area where there is a lot of activity in the house also you can simply spend time interacting with the fish (NOT TRYING TO PET IT) The More it sees you and you don't make any threatening gestures toward it, the fish is gonna get accustomed to you and it will get more active.

Second thing about the fishes activity, make sure the water quality is good, they wont show many visible signs of ammonia discomfort because of their tough skin but they tend to laze around when the water isn't good enough for them.