Avoiding a deformed jack dempsey

[Dreamsofpeace54]

After reading a thread here, i've decided to look deeper into what i feel is a severe problem. We've all seen them, the high back, old-ass jack dempseys.



i have what i feel is a good looking jack dempsey, hes on white sand and doesnt show great color but his body shape is nice as well as having nice fins. What can i do besides the basic clean water/good diet to keep him looking his best. He is currently residing in a 75 gallon tank by himself and a bn pleco. soon to get some silver dollar tankmates. He eats mainly hikari massivore and hikari FD krill, with 20 rosies once a month. he refused to eat NLS and anything that floats besides the krill. i assume him to be somewhere between 1.5-2 years old.


Any ideas on what i can do to keep him looking his best?

 

[japes]

I'd ditch the live feeders and keep him strictly on a well maintained diet; try and get him eating NLS. Older, large cichlids will eventually get back arch, but keeping them fit (not overfed) will hopefully avoid it for as long as possible.

Speaking of back arch and other age related problems, saw this Festae in a display tank at a local LFS. First large one I've ever seen; he's over 8 years old and has a bit of arching occuring but he's still a stunner.

Sorry for the slight hijack.

 

[Dreamsofpeace54]

no biggie, i understand like us, things go south as they get older. just looking for ways to postpone it. i can trt nls again but even like hikari floating and sinking golds he wont take.

 

[dirtyblacksocks]

Even my old convict had a curve in his back, I think it's just a natural occurence in older fish...

 

[Cichlaholics Anonymous]

agree with japes, you might also be risking giving the fish some camallanus

 

[Dreamsofpeace54]

anyone know the average lifespan on most jacks in the aquairum?

 

[dirtyblacksocks]

Totally varies dependant on the skill of the hobbyist, how heavily they were medicated by the breeders and LFS prior to purchase, ect. ect.

 

[Dreamsofpeace54]

so are we talking like 5-6 years or do i have a jumbo on my hands like mojo?

edit: finally found some numbers i was looking for besides "long lived"
looks like they can live average 7-10 years with some sources saying 15+

im going for the record

 

[pcfriedrich]

I bet you could keep a JD for over 15 years, under proper care. I have a pink con that is almost 11 years old. she's getting old, and displaying some signs of old age, but she's still pretty active.

 

[dirtyblacksocks]

I'd say 20 years would be a very long lived dempsey - under perfect conditions with good genetics it's probably possible.