Common Unwanted Monsters?
- Thread starter Acro
- Start date
True statement. Pacu do grow to 10" . What is omitted is that they then grow to 15", 20", 30+". Fish police on forums everywhere are quick to shake their heads and write, "you should have researched before buying your pacu." There is so much misinformation about pacu, that any one doing their homework first will probably be misinformed/misled. The "experts" write, "pacu will need a large tank like 200 gallons" WHAT A JOKE.
People who get arapaima gigas know how big they get. Because of general misinformation, a lot of people get pacu and are clueless to the potential size of their fish. People have an idea about the size of oscars, but not pacu. Who would know that these cute baby pacu, who are so much smaller than the baby oscars in this tank, will become massive (with the label stating that they grow to 10")?
Pacu are more sensitive to nitrogen products than other fish. It is a really sad thing that these long lived fish with potential to live 30+ years are mostly doomed to very short lives in horrific conditions.
I found this picture online and put a label on it. I marched into the store and spoke to the manager in charge of ordering fish. He said they would stop selling pacu. He kept his word.
Pacu are the Number One problem fish for Ohio Fish Rescue. Because of their massive size, they are not easy to rehome.
I remember when petsmart sold pacu. I got three of them... in a 60. It was nice for a few months but I had to get rid of them eventually. I’ve always wanted to get them again... but they are so big.View attachment 1447969
True statement. Pacu do grow to 10" . What is omitted is that they then grow to 15", 20", 30+". Fish police on forums everywhere are quick to shake their heads and write, "you should have researched before buying your pacu." There is so much misinformation about pacu, that any one doing their homework first will probably be misinformed/misled. The "experts" write, "pacu will need a large tank like 200 gallons" WHAT A JOKE.
People who get arapaima gigas know how big they get. Because of general misinformation, a lot of people get pacu and are clueless to the potential size of their fish. People have an idea about the size of oscars, but not pacu. Who would know that these cute baby pacu, who are so much smaller than the baby oscars in this tank, will become massive (with the label stating that they grow to 10")?
View attachment 1447991
Pacu are more sensitive to nitrogen products than other fish. It is a really sad thing that these long lived fish with potential to live 30+ years are mostly doomed to very short lives in horrific conditions.
I found this picture online and put a label on it. I marched into the store and spoke to the manager in charge of ordering fish. He said they would stop selling pacu. He kept his word.
View attachment 1448012
I wish pacu cost $1000 each. Any one buying a pacu would then provide proper housing to protect their investment. In my mind there is a fish hierarchy, and fish are not all equal. There is not a person who thinks that a feeder goldfish is equal to a platinum barramundi. I am afraid a lot of people get pacu with the "all fish are disposable" attitude. Even on MFK, when albino pacu first came out, a number of members rushed out to buy one. Ugh.
