Caveless Pleco?

[Rizzobitz]

I'm new to pleco keeping. I purchased my fist bristlenose pleco 2.5" a few months ago. I didn't have a cave so he hid next to the circulation jet and eventually he realized my koi wouldn't eat him and he got a bit friendly. He kept the tank spotless and I grew very fond of him. Then I moved him and the koi to their new bigger tank with slate caves and he never comes out. There's algae but he only eats his algae wafers. He's now 4" long and very healthy. I tried not feeding him for 3 days and he still won't come out.

Fast forward my old tank is now a discus/angel tank and the two 1.5" bristlenose plecos I got refused to come out of the cave/rocks I got them. One died becasue he refused to move 2" to where the food I gave him was.

I ordered 4 more bristlenose- one is an adult and the others are 1.5". They arrive tomorrow and next week. I got them to clean the tank and because I think they are cute. I didn't get them to hide and poop in corners. Should I remove their hiding spots and force them to socialize and clean the tank?

 

[PseudaSmart]

Plecos in general need places to hide when in a community tank. Bristlenose are easily intimidated until they get larger. If you remove hiding places then chances are the smaller ones will be stressed out. Once they are comfortable and hungry they will come out of hiding. Your 4" already has you figured out . If it was hungry it would be out looking for things to eat. You can easily go a week without feeding it. As long as the stomach is round it will be fine. They need a lot less food then most people think. We make it easy for them.

 

[smitty03281964]

Don't really know of a place that does not like hiding spots whether it is a cave or rocks. That place that would not move 2 inches for food became sick which is why he stopped eating. Good luck with the new ones.

 

[Rizzobitz]

Plecos in general need places to hide when in a community tank. Bristlenose are easily intimidated until they get larger. If you remove hiding places then chances are the smaller ones will be stressed out. Once they are comfortable and hungry they will come out of hiding. Your 4" already has you figured out . If it was hungry it would be out looking for things to eat. You can easily go a week without feeding it. As long as the stomach is round it will be fine. They need a lot less food then most people think. We make it easy for them.

Thank you Pseudasmart. I will let my 4" go a bit longer without feedsing. He usualy gets 3 Hikari algae wafers a day but I'd like to seee him clean the tank and mingle a bit if possible.

 

[Warborg]

I know it's frustrating when a pleco hides all the time. I've been keeping plecos since 1990 and have had well over 200 of them and it seems nearly everyone of them wanted to hide. As mentioned though, if you take away their hiding spot it will stress them out and they will be less likely to eat.

I hate it when I go to a fish store or someplace has a tank on display and they are out swimming around but I get home and all mine hide.

 

[Rizzobitz]

Don't really know of a place that does not like hiding spots whether it is a cave or rocks. That place that would not move 2 inches for food became sick which is why he stopped eating. Good luck with the new ones.

Thank you Smitty. I'm going to keep the caves in the tank.

The food was hidden with the pleco that died but I could see it. I put it 2" away because I didn't want him to dart away by trying to stick it under his nose. He just refused to move 2" and eat it. Maybe there was something else wrong with him.

 

[Rizzobitz]

I know it's frustrating when a pleco hides all the time. I've been keeping plecos since 1990 and have had well over 200 of them and it seems nearly everyone of them wanted to hide. As mentioned though, if you take away their hiding spot it will stress them out and they will be less likely to eat.

I hate it when I go to a fish store or someplace has a tank on display and they are out swimming around but I get home and all mine hide.

Yeah that is so true! You always see them all over the tank in the fish store. I think mine hide because the other fish in the tank are larger.

 

[PseudaSmart]

Three algae wafers is way too much. Imagine how much glass would be covered if you could spread the wafers like the algae you already have. It could probably go two weeks easy without being fed. The fish at the store are hungry. That is why they are out. Ask the owner to put some food in the tank and see what happens. It is smart business sense to feed as little as possible. Food costs money, food ends up as waste and needs to be cleaned. More food - bigger fish, more waste, more cleaning.....

Also if you fed a bit less then there would be less algae growth.

Jim

 

[convict360]

I've found with every pleco I've kept over the years, that they hide for the first few months; then suddenly out of the blue, they'll pop out into the front of the tank, as if they've got tired of being hungry or have worked up the courage lol.

After that they are regular characters at feeding time. Exceptions would be if they were scared of being attacked by bigger fish, which in this case could be why

 

[Rizzobitz]

Three algae wafers is way too much. Imagine how much glass would be covered if you could spread the wafers like the algae you already have. It could probably go two weeks easy without being fed. The fish at the store are hungry. That is why they are out. Ask the owner to put some food in the tank and see what happens. It is smart business sense to feed as little as possible. Food costs money, food ends up as waste and needs to be cleaned. More food - bigger fish, more waste, more cleaning.....

Also if you fed a bit less then there would be less algae growth.

Jim

Ok thank you. I will cut back on feeding him for a week or more and see if he comes out.