Picking the right tank size for a solo fish

[Deadlink]

H.Deppi looks the best out of the pair but I feel like 4"-5" would seem too small in my 65gal. Compared to 6" - 8" of a male Slavini I mean.
Do you think the H.Deppi would be more interactive compared to a Salvini? Backfromthedead

 

[Backfromthedead]

H.Deppi looks the best out of the pair but I feel like 4"-5" would seem too small in my 65gal. Compared to 6" - 8" of a male Slavini I mean.
Do you think the H.Deppi would be more interactive compared to a Salvini? Backfromthedead

This comparison would most likely cone down to individual fish personalities. Ive seen some very personable salvini and herichthys, and ive seen some not so personable of each as well. Ive never seen a deppi in person myself so cant comment extensively.

Salvini is a good fish for that tank though.

 

[Gourami Swami]

H.Deppi looks the best out of the pair but I feel like 4"-5" would seem too small in my 65gal. Compared to 6" - 8" of a male Slavini I mean.
Do you think the H.Deppi would be more interactive compared to a Salvini? Backfromthedead

Deppi will reach around the same size as a salvini, may seem a bit bigger even, because it's a taller-bodied fish. There may be some monster 8" salvini out there but 6" is more common for an adult.
I think it's possible to form some kind of bond (as much as you can with a fish) with just about any cichlid species. Most will come to beg for food once they know you, but most won't like being touched, though it is possible.
As far as not being shy and hiding, a lot of that depends on the fish's housing and tankmates. A more dimly-lit tank with lots of décor especially in the upper reaches of the tank will make the fish feel much more secure in my experience than a bright tank with less hiding spots. The fish will probably feel more comfortable with some dither-fish swimming around as well; swordtails make good dithers usually for CA cichlids.
On getting a male, you should probably buy 5 young 1-2" fish and grow them up together until about 4-5". This way you can pick the alpha male out, and the fish will be less timid when young in a group of it's peers.

 

[Joshuakahan]

Thanks Gourami Swami these fish are some really nice options I hadn't seen around. I was thinking of doing an Oranda or convict if the forums steered me away from larger fish. So the Archocentrus centrarchus, Hericthys deppi and panamensis give me a lot to look into. That being said I'm actually keen on a solo male salvini. They look amazing and are readily available at a few lfs near me.

Have you had any experience with solo Salvini's? I'm kind of hopeing that being the only fish in the tank I can get some interaction around the same level of a flowerhorn/Oscar. Most people seem to keep Salvini's in pairs, not sure what the personailty of a solo fish would be.

Beautiful pic btw

A cool convict type would be a sajica

 

[Ruturaj]

I'm not a huge fan of short body fish but I was trying to justify the 44" diagonal as an excuse to get a normal flowerhorn. Upgrading in a few years is a strong possibility but it's probably not the most responsible decision if my situation changes.

What are your thoughts on a Salvini or Super green texas as solo wet pets? The texas fish that are available in Aus are all H.carpintis so a max of 8/9inch. The salvini rarely gets past 6 inch, assuming I get a quality male. If either of these fish are the personable/interactive type then I think keeping a fish I won't need to upgrade for would be the safe option.

Different people define short body differently. Most red dragon flowerhorns I see now days I count them as short body. Extreme short body flowerhorns that are called as bonsai are what I try to avoid as well. One of the members by name Jspilo has a beautiful short body flowerhorn.

Sorry I don't have experience with other species you mentioned.

 

[Joshuakahan]

Hey everyone!
I'm putting together a new aquarium set up and I am keen on solo "wet pet" since my past tanks have been tropical/small schooling fish. I'm trying to balance the dimensions/tank weight against what environment is best for the fish.

I have 4 possible tank options and I have ranked them in order of best to worst (but still doable) for my home.
My question to you is, what solo fish do you feel could live happily in each tank? Any ideas are welcome LxWxH

1) 50 gal (36x18x18)
2) 65 gal (36x24x18)
3) 65 gal (48x18x18)
4) 85 gal (36x24x24)

I'm fairly keen on the more intelligent/interactive fish like flowerhorns, oscars, texas cichlids etc. I'm just a little unsure of how they would do in odd tank sizes like 3ft extra wides hence why I'm asking the same old tank size question. If it makes a difference I currently have 660gph in the form of 2 canister filters and I'd be open to 1 to 2 water changes per week. My perfect set up would be a Flowerhorn in either tank 1 or 2 with a weekly water change but I'm open to other options if that would be cruel for the fish.
Thanks in advance!!

Have you thought about a puffer? Those make cool wet pets

 

[Joshuakahan]

Different people define short body differently. Most red dragon flowerhorns I see now days I count them as short body. Extreme short body flowerhorns that are called as bonsai are what I try to avoid as well. One of the members by name Jspilo has a beautiful short body flowerhorn.

Sorry I don't have experience with other species you mentioned.

I would imagine bonsais have health problems due to the insides being so cramped. I’m not a fan of short or balloon bodies either

 

[Ruturaj]

I would imagine bonsais have health problems due to the insides being so cramped. I’m not a fan of short or balloon bodies either

Yep, something like this, from flowerhorn info sheet on this forum

 

[Joshuakahan]

Yep, something like this, from flowerhorn info sheet on this forum

View attachment 1418034

I like Flowerhorn but that just looks too deformed to me and I imagine they have all kinds of problems

 

[Magnus_Bane]

I like Flowerhorn but that just looks too deformed to me and I imagine they have all kinds of problems

Generally any short bodied fish will have health problems or just a lower life expectancy. Personally I'm not a fan of short bodied fish, they just look too unnatural to me. Granted ya do get some that look very nice like the one Ruturaj posted here. Ik Jspilo and some others have some nice looking short bodied FH's but still not my cup of tea. Ik personally I have a slightly deformed FH but she was just born a runt so she just won't get as big as she should have been. Otherwise nothing wrong with her other then being a bit small for her age.

I honestly love FH's and wish they would become more popular in the hobby. They make get solo pets and can "sometimes" be kept in a community type setup. Lol I still miss my big male I had (Jr.) and all the aggression he had. Pretty much always came out with my hand bleeding everytime I had to do something in the tank. But he was the only fish I could pet as well.