F1 Parachromis dovii, Nicaragua variety.
First off, forgive the clutter in the water. I've gone from a heavily planted tank and sand to no plants and gravel. I just removed about forty plants and over two hundred pounds of sand and there was LOTS of decaying plant matter under the sand. Even a 75% 300 gallon water change couldn't get it all out. My mechanical filtration and another big water change will take care of it. The gravel is not in yet, I'm waiting to add that til the bottom is clean.
I have had this dovii for four years in a large Parachromis community, now he's all by himself. I have been feeding the same types of food the entire time, although I have not been power feeding until recently. His color is a little off from the stress of the tank rearranging, it should return to normal once he is used to his new surroundings. He's got a little scrape on his nose from hitting some wood during the tank rearranging.
Here's my recipe for growing a large dovii...
Temperature at 79 degrees for increased metabolism and increased activity.
Feeding four to six times per day consisting of high quality staple pellets and a variety of live and prepared foods.
No tankmates for no stress from controlling territory.
Large tank, 360 US Gallons, 96"x36" footprint for lots of room to swim.
Frequent, large water changes, 75% weekly.
Excellent, overkill filtration including large wet/dry sump (plants inside) w/1600gph pump, a couple of Emperor 400's (I always keep these running in case I need to set up a quarantine tank), and a couple of powerheads for water movement.
Large UV sterilizer for killing any disease causing micro organisms in order to insure excellent health.
Lots of wood and a big strawberry pot since dovii seem to need their privacy from time to time.
In short, I try to provide the optimum environment for a happy fish. And then feed him a bunch.
This is what has worked for me in the past, except there's always been lots of tankmates. I'd love to hear what works for you to get big fishes.
First off, forgive the clutter in the water. I've gone from a heavily planted tank and sand to no plants and gravel. I just removed about forty plants and over two hundred pounds of sand and there was LOTS of decaying plant matter under the sand. Even a 75% 300 gallon water change couldn't get it all out. My mechanical filtration and another big water change will take care of it. The gravel is not in yet, I'm waiting to add that til the bottom is clean.
I have had this dovii for four years in a large Parachromis community, now he's all by himself. I have been feeding the same types of food the entire time, although I have not been power feeding until recently. His color is a little off from the stress of the tank rearranging, it should return to normal once he is used to his new surroundings. He's got a little scrape on his nose from hitting some wood during the tank rearranging.
Here's my recipe for growing a large dovii...
Temperature at 79 degrees for increased metabolism and increased activity.
Feeding four to six times per day consisting of high quality staple pellets and a variety of live and prepared foods.
No tankmates for no stress from controlling territory.
Large tank, 360 US Gallons, 96"x36" footprint for lots of room to swim.
Frequent, large water changes, 75% weekly.
Excellent, overkill filtration including large wet/dry sump (plants inside) w/1600gph pump, a couple of Emperor 400's (I always keep these running in case I need to set up a quarantine tank), and a couple of powerheads for water movement.
Large UV sterilizer for killing any disease causing micro organisms in order to insure excellent health.
Lots of wood and a big strawberry pot since dovii seem to need their privacy from time to time.
In short, I try to provide the optimum environment for a happy fish. And then feed him a bunch.
This is what has worked for me in the past, except there's always been lots of tankmates. I'd love to hear what works for you to get big fishes.
