13" Lapradei not growing!

[scottv]

I dunno what's wrong...I bought my Lap almost 2 years ago at 12" and since then it's only grown about 1". Currently 13"

Do they grow this slow or what? It lives in a 90 gallon with plenty of room for itself since there is only a Flowerhorn that doesn't bother it. Water changes are weekly and I think the tank has sufficient filtration. (AC110+Rena Xp3). Temps are 84 degrees farenheit.

It eats sinking pellets and sometimes shrimp every once in a while. I don't like going to the store to buy feeders and I don't want the Flowerhorn to eat em either lol.

 

[StripeGirl]

how much food does he get with a flowerhorn tank mate?

 

[scottv]

how much food does he get with a flowerhorn tank mate?

The flowerhorn is busy eating the pellets at the top of the tank. The Bichir food sinks to the bottom and it comes out right away to eat. I feed them both only once a day at the same time.

 

[StripeGirl]

Mine eat worms,cut shrimp,fish fillets,massavire and small frogs.I have noticed they are growing fast.

 

[Infblue]

don't worry too much. most lapradei are kinda shy, finicky eater and slow grower. And they also seem to like to go through phases when they would feed a lot, and then 'fast' for long periods of time. This is not just a personal observation. I've read this from many hobbyists on different forums, including those in Asia where they have a wider selection of food, dead or live.

granted genes play a part, and there are certain types of food that may help boost their growth, or entice them to eat more, e.g. dojo loaches, bullfrogs. But overall, the above is true.

you can try feeding other types of meaty foods.

 

[scottv]

I see...well I hope it hasn't stopped growing that's all..

I just came back from the Petstore a couple hours ago....they had a HUGE lapradei...about 20"....looked like a legless alligator in the water....so inspiring..hope mine gets that big one day.

Can anyone recommend a sinking food? I need a cheap staple for the bichir...currently I have these HBH Super Cichlid sinking cichlid pellets which it eats but I just don't like em since they are so small. Need something chunkier so I don't have to throw so much in the tank. I just want the bichir to swallow it up and have a nice big meal instead of scavenging for small pellets. Once my Flowerhorn cleans up the surface, he comes down looking for the sinking ones lol.

 

[Infblue]

wow 20", thats a rare sight for a lapradei.

 

[scottv]

wow 20", thats a rare sight for a lapradei.

It was frickin huge! Next time I'm going there with a camera to show you all. $80 for the thing. IMO an awesome deal considering I bought mine at 12" for almost $50.

 

[vanimate]

Have you tried massivore?

 

[tezr]

Massivore is great but if you are looking to go even cheaper try Hikari cichlid bio gold sinking medium pellets... Massivore would probably be best if you are trying to get it to grow.