anyone kept tinfoil barbs before?

[Neervana]

i decided to get some dither fish for my 150gal - it houses a pair of 10" juvenile oscars, a 10" L330.

so today i went to my LFS and bought a pair of tinfoil barbs - i think they're about 5" - when i netted them and was putting them into the tank they both jumped!!! out of the net!!! i then chased them around my house cos they wouldnt stop jumping. anyway now they're safely in my tank. but they keep on...well it looks like they're fighting??? they swim together but they keep on headbutting each other. is this going to stop? i wanted them to encourage my panaque to come out more during the day - they are displaying anything but a calming effect!! never kept these tiresome fish before but i'm guessing sooner or later they'll get settled??

 

[poly-nomial]

Tinfoils are very skittish fish, they will spaz out every time you turn on or off the light, you approach the tank in a startling manner, do a water change etc. They may never calm down. Giant danios are about the same but smaller and easier to care for.

 

[Neervana]

Tinfoils are very skittish fish, they will spaz out every time you turn on or off the light, you approach the tank in a startling manner, do a water change etc. They may never calm down. Giant danios are about the same but smaller and easier to care for.

the funny thing is they carry on swimming in a crazy manner until one of my oscars swim up silently then they freak out and break apart makes my oscar look like a bouncer from a nightclub!

ugh i didnt know - i knew they were skittish but when i researched them in google most websites seemed to talk about them being used as dither fish that will encourage other shy fish to come out and feel safe. the pair i got are completely nuts

 

[phillydog1958]

Your tinfoils will settle in but they every so often will display the swimming-in-a-circle and head-butting behavior. It's what they do, but it's harmless. Their violence does not go beyond that. Keep in mind that tinfoils are high-strung school fish who constantly move. They're very greedy, too but I like them for their constant motion and color that they bring to a tank.

 

[Neervana]

Your tinfoils will settle in but they every so often will display the swimming-in-a-circle and head-butting behavior. It's what they do, but it's harmless. Their violence does not go beyond that. Keep in mind that tinfoils are high-strung school fish who constantly move. They're very greedy, too but I like them for their constant motion and color that they bring to a tank.

yeah, i love their colouring! they are definitely nice to look at - and who doesn't enjoy watching fish eat?!!!

i've only got a pair but i think i need to buy two more maybe?

 

[Satan's Goldfish]

Had them before, infact still got some now! They work better in a school i've found, the first lot i had i only had 3 and they were quite jumpy, currently have 10 different barbs schooling together and the 3 tinfoils (different 3!) are quite calm.

Maybe get a few more? 6 fish always seems to be the suggested minimum for schooling fish.

 

[Neervana]

Had them before, infact still got some now! They work better in a school i've found, the first lot i had i only had 3 and they were quite jumpy, currently have 10 different barbs schooling together and the 3 tinfoils (different 3!) are quite calm.

Maybe get a few more? 6 fish always seems to be the suggested minimum for schooling fish.

yeah i was just thinking of that, matt! my lfs only had a pair for sale so i took them but i rang them up and they said they can get me a couple more in two weeks so i was thinking of adding a few more just to see if it calms them down

 

[phillydog1958]

yeah, i love their colouring! they are definitely nice to look at - and who doesn't enjoy watching fish eat?!!!

i've only got a pair but i think i need to buy two more maybe?

They do seem to be more comfortable in groups of at least 4. I have 3 albinos and 3 silvers. They remind me of great white sharks. All they do is swim and eat. I have a blue lobster and a small catfish in with them and I have to always take extra precautions to ensure that my bottom feeders manage to get some of the sinking food, because my tinfoils swim so fast and rarely allow any food to hit the bottom of the tank. They're true eating machines.

 

[Satan's Goldfish]

yeah i was just thinking of that, matt! my lfs only had a pair for sale so i took them but i rang them up and they said they can get me a couple more in two weeks so i was thinking of adding a few more just to see if it calms them down

Go for six or more in total if you can, a big school of fish does look good and they do all stick together and move around the tank together.

The school of 10 different barbs i have in with a gt now looks amazing a definately adds something extra to what would otherwise be just a tank with a cichlid a two barbs in!

 

[Neervana]

hmm yes i think i'll get a few more barbs - i like the look of lemon barbs too, they look very nice. what should i feed them? usually all of my fish get chopped up prawns, different white fish and pellets but these seem to be sooo dainty!!

shall i feed them flake and bloodworm?!