Green Terror tank setup

[Gigafishh]

Hello everyone!

I am thinking of getting a green terror pair (gold saum) though i am not sure that how many should i buy (my friend said to just get 1 male and 1 female and they will form a pair) i can buy 4 of them as the other 2 can go in my pond with parrots and red jewels, i will be getting them from an online store, there size will be 4 inches.

I also have some more questions -

1. Will a 75 gallon tank be enough for a pair?

2. Is buying 4 of them enough to get a pair?

3. Once they pair off is there a chance that one day i will find that the male killed the female or vice-versa and how can this type of situation be avoided.

4. Is having a pair better or just having 1 male with dithers (barb or danios) better?

5. What should be the color of the background and substrate?

6. How much should i water change as i will not have anyway of testing the water as Api test kit isn't available in my area nor amazon delivers it here.

7. What should i feed them to get the best growth and color? (the most premium brand available here are hikari and tetra).

8. Once i get them should i just temperature acclimate them or drip acclimate them (they will be in the bag for 2 days due to transportation).

9. Will they start killing each other as soon as they acclimate to the tank?

10. Which medications should i have in handy?

Apologies for bad english.

 

[Ogertron3000]

Hi, here’s some basic answers. No doubt others will be along with their opinions soon enough

1. Possibly for a while, probably too small for a full grown pair. Most members here will probably say it’s too small.
2. Six would be better
3.Yes, especially in a smaller sized tank. Lots of places for them to hide will help.
4. Probably yes in a 75G, it’ depends if you want to breed them or just have a display.
5. It’s up to you but darker would be better in my opinion.
6. Minimum of 50% weekly, more would be better. Maybe you can get a different brand test kit, it doesn’t have to be API
7. Any good quality pellet will do the job.
8. Definatley drip
9. No but they will probably battle for dominance until they sort out their heirachy
10. There’s so many different types, some white spot cure and parasite treatment are always handy.

good luck with it.

 

[duanes]

A 75 will probably be even too small for one pair long term.
As an example, I keep Andinoacara coerleopunctatus, a very close cousin to GT but grows slightly smaller.

I put a shoal of 12 wild caught 2-3" Andinoacara in a 180 gal tank.
Within the first year, the alpha male killed all other males, and a few females reducing the population toonly the male and 3 females, and has remained stable with those 4 for about 2 years..
The 180 gal seems to be the territorial space "he" deemed appropriate for 4

 

[aussieman57]

8. Once i get them should i just temperature acclimate them or drip acclimate them (they will be in the bag for 2 days due to transportation).
I no longer drip acclimate fish that have been sitting in a bag from transport as I believe it does more harm than good. Most fish from reputable vendors DO NOT recommend drip acclimation... see below... From a well known vendor...

Below is my only recommended method for acclimating the fish I have personally packed and sent to you from my facility with my method of packing. This is also how I successfully acclimate the several thousand fish that I bring into the facility throughout the year. I do not recommend any other procedure that may be used to acclimate fish from your lfs or any other ecommerce vendor. Failure to follow my procedure will make any consideration for reimbursement null and void. The use of the 'drip method' automatically voids any consideration for reimbursement.

Floating the unopened bag as it is delivered in an unlit tank for 15-20 minutes will ensure that the water temperature inside the bag is exactly equal to that in your tank. Laying the bag down horizontally will ensure that maximum surface area of water is exposed to the remaining pure oxygen in the bag during this time.
3. Opening the bag:
Open the bag by either untying the (latex free) rubber bands or by just carefully cutting the tied part of the bag off. Once you have opened the bag the fish is at great risk of poisoning from the newly created toxic environment. It will be critical to remove the fish from the bagged water and into the new aquarium environment immediately.

The fish are shipped in new, fresh, clean, temperature-controlled water, a few ml of a clear 4-part additive is added to the bagged water, and the bag is pumped with 100% pure oxygen . However, like all living creatures they use oxygen to breathe and they will produce waste. Waste production will occur during transit even from fish that have been allowed time to ‘purge’ before being bagged. The living animal in the bag will use the oxygen in the bag to breathe and that will be replaced by C02. The waste in the water will produce toxic ammonia. Because of this closed environment the C02 is absorbed into the water and will somewhat help for a short time by lowering the pH in the water. Lower pH in this closed environment helps keep the ammonia level slightly less toxic. However, once you have opened the bag the C02 will be immediately released and will cause a significant spike with the pH of the bagged water which rapidly increases the toxicity of the ammonia that has built up during transit. Each of those factors can cause permanent damage or death to the fish within minutes. Both simultaneously, can cause near instant death. Do not add tank water to the bagged water. This can poison and /or permanently damage the fish even at the cellular level. It is always best to remove the fish from the unfavorable environment to a stable environment as soon as possible.

This is from a well known vendor who many purchase from here. You will see similar info from other vendors.

 

[Gigafishh]

Thank you for replying! ?

I want to keep them for display and not for breeding and selling babies. So for display is just having a Male with some dithers better? (recommended dithers please) Or should i get a bigger tank for a pair? My main goal is to have a very good looking male green terror.

 

[Rocksor]

Thank you for replying! ?

I want to keep them for display and not for breeding and selling babies. So for display is just having a Male with some dithers better? (recommended dithers please) Or should i get a bigger tank for a pair? My main goal is to have a very good looking male green terror.

Adding a female will not make the male look better since conflict and chasing can damage the trailing fins on the male. Buying a group and picking the best male looking male (or buying a confirmed male) is the best choice. I would use Buenos Aires Tetras as dithers, a group of more than 10, the larger the better). You can also use black skirt tetras, sailfin mollies or columbian tetras (just thinking of really easy dithers to get).

 

[Gigafishh]

8. Once i get them should i just temperature acclimate them or drip acclimate them (they will be in the bag for 2 days due to transportation).
I no longer drip acclimate fish that have been sitting in a bag from transport as I believe it does more harm than good. Most fish from reputable vendors DO NOT recommend drip acclimation... see below... From a well known vendor...

Below is my only recommended method for acclimating the fish I have personally packed and sent to you from my facility with my method of packing. This is also how I successfully acclimate the several thousand fish that I bring into the facility throughout the year. I do not recommend any other procedure that may be used to acclimate fish from your lfs or any other ecommerce vendor. Failure to follow my procedure will make any consideration for reimbursement null and void. The use of the 'drip method' automatically voids any consideration for reimbursement.

Floating the unopened bag as it is delivered in an unlit tank for 15-20 minutes will ensure that the water temperature inside the bag is exactly equal to that in your tank. Laying the bag down horizontally will ensure that maximum surface area of water is exposed to the remaining pure oxygen in the bag during this time.
3. Opening the bag:
Open the bag by either untying the (latex free) rubber bands or by just carefully cutting the tied part of the bag off. Once you have opened the bag the fish is at great risk of poisoning from the newly created toxic environment. It will be critical to remove the fish from the bagged water and into the new aquarium environment immediately.

The fish are shipped in new, fresh, clean, temperature-controlled water, a few ml of a clear 4-part additive is added to the bagged water, and the bag is pumped with 100% pure oxygen . However, like all living creatures they use oxygen to breathe and they will produce waste. Waste production will occur during transit even from fish that have been allowed time to ‘purge’ before being bagged. The living animal in the bag will use the oxygen in the bag to breathe and that will be replaced by C02. The waste in the water will produce toxic ammonia. Because of this closed environment the C02 is absorbed into the water and will somewhat help for a short time by lowering the pH in the water. Lower pH in this closed environment helps keep the ammonia level slightly less toxic. However, once you have opened the bag the C02 will be immediately released and will cause a significant spike with the pH of the bagged water which rapidly increases the toxicity of the ammonia that has built up during transit. Each of those factors can cause permanent damage or death to the fish within minutes. Both simultaneously, can cause near instant death. Do not add tank water to the bagged water. This can poison and /or permanently damage the fish even at the cellular level. It is always best to remove the fish from the unfavorable environment to a stable environment as soon as possible.

This is from a well known vendor who many purchase from here. You will see similar info from other vendors.

Thanks a lot for this useful information! will surely do it this way ?.

 

[Gigafishh]

Adding a female will not make the male look better since conflict and chasing can damage the trailing fins on the male. Buying a group and picking the best male looking male (or buying a confirmed male) is the best choice. I would use Buenos Aires Tetras as dithers, a group of more than 10, the larger the better). You can also use black skirt tetras, sailfin mollies or columbian tetras (just thinking of really easy dithers to get).

So i can keep 1 male green terror with 10+ dither group in a 75 gallon tank?
Between hikari cichlid gold and hikari cichlid excel which one would be better for the green terror? Except pellets what else should i feed it and are mealworms good for them?

 

[Rocksor]

If hikari is what is readily available to you, I would pick Hikari bio-gold. Do not feed hikari excel. If you want a veggie pellet, I guess Omega One and Fluval Bug Bites has better choices (I'm not a fan of the corn in Hikari).

The GT's poop tends to be longer than more carnivorous fish, so more "veggie pellet" diet would be the way to go. My choice of staple pellet would be New Life Spectrum Algaemax as the staple (best all around veggie pellet, I think) and New Life Spectrum Insectum as an occasional during the week. Northfin is right up there with providing good quality pellets.

Are you getting the pellets primarily from Petco or Petsmart? Or are you ordering online?

What size GT do you plan to get?

 

[Gigafishh]

If hikari is what is readily available to you, I would pick Hikari bio-gold. Do not feed hikari excel. If you want a veggie pellet, I guess Omega One and Fluval Bug Bites has better choices (I'm not a fan of the corn in Hikari).

The GT's poop tends to be longer than more carnivorous fish, so more "veggie pellet" diet would be the way to go. My choice of staple pellet would be New Life Spectrum Algaemax as the staple (best all around veggie pellet, I think) and New Life Spectrum Insectum as an occasional during the week. Northfin is right up there with providing good quality pellets.

Are you getting the pellets primarily from Petco or Petsmart? Or are you ordering online?

What size GT do you plan to get?

Thanks for replying!

I would have bought nls or bug bites but unfortunately none of these fish food brands are available here, i live in India so there are no petco or petsmart. Only fish food brands available via Amazon are hikari, azoo, tetra, taiyo and optimum.

I will be buying the 4 inch ones as soon as they are available (they said it will take around 2 weeks) as they are A grade ones.