hey everyone! I have what I believe is a black/brown bullhead, really beautiful and nearly 18" long. Unfortunately he is ~7 years old so probably towards the end of his lifespan, but I want to make whatever time he has left as comfortable as possible.
I moved him earlier this year to his new tank, not sure how many gallons but it's very large. It's more like a kiddie pool than a tank, honestly, just much taller on the sides. His old tank was much too small (not sure the exact dimensions, but it couldn't have been more than 75 gallons). So far, his new tank is bare-bottom with no decorations as I couldn't find any hides large enough. Bare-bottom makes it much easier to clean, and prevents substrate from being sucked into the filter intake, which is near the bottom. However, I was thinking about adding in some substrate to make it more like his natural environment (he was caught in the wild as a baby).
I found a large hide meant for koi I was thinking about getting for him, but I want to avoid driftwood because he is mostly blind and rubs up against everything. He has injured himself a few times before on sharp edges. If anyone's kept bullheads or other similar fish before, do you have any tips for keeping him happy? what would be the best sand to buy, and how would I keep it clean considering he freaks out if he bumps into something (like a siphon) in the water and the filter intake is near the bottom? right now, waste on the bottom is sucked up into the internal or external filters, which I can clean out without disturbing him. any help is appreciated, thanks!
I moved him earlier this year to his new tank, not sure how many gallons but it's very large. It's more like a kiddie pool than a tank, honestly, just much taller on the sides. His old tank was much too small (not sure the exact dimensions, but it couldn't have been more than 75 gallons). So far, his new tank is bare-bottom with no decorations as I couldn't find any hides large enough. Bare-bottom makes it much easier to clean, and prevents substrate from being sucked into the filter intake, which is near the bottom. However, I was thinking about adding in some substrate to make it more like his natural environment (he was caught in the wild as a baby).
I found a large hide meant for koi I was thinking about getting for him, but I want to avoid driftwood because he is mostly blind and rubs up against everything. He has injured himself a few times before on sharp edges. If anyone's kept bullheads or other similar fish before, do you have any tips for keeping him happy? what would be the best sand to buy, and how would I keep it clean considering he freaks out if he bumps into something (like a siphon) in the water and the filter intake is near the bottom? right now, waste on the bottom is sucked up into the internal or external filters, which I can clean out without disturbing him. any help is appreciated, thanks!
