Ok, some of you may already know, but here is the low down on this fish. I have a beautiful (esp when protecting his gounds) male JD approx 4 inchs. I have had this fella for prob 8 months. I really like him alot, but has recently become a huge head ache for me. He started out in my 55 gallon with an EBJD, Firemouth, 8 rosey barbs, 3 yo-yo loachs, a catfish (unknown type), an a common pleco. 100% peaceful.
All the cichlids were almost the same size; however, the EBJD was the biggest. 4 weeks ago, this JD doubled in size, and now has become a holy terror. He took control of the 55 gallon 100%, and chased my EBJD until it was almost dead. I have had this EBJD since he was an inch or smaller; he is now approx 3 inchs, and is meh bebe.
I was already planning on buying a 75 gallon to house an Oscar, which somehow has become my favorite fish. This JD moved my purchase of the tank from planning stages to having it yesterday. The bad boy JD took a dip in the 75 with 4 rosey barbs. Peace! Now what to stock the 75 with? I chose to really neat fish! I got me an Oscar! I got me a Blue Acara, and a Nic cichlid (DOA), 3 clown loachs, and a pleco common type. I picked up an angelfish for the 55, super sweet looking, to take the JDs place in the 55!
So I drop the angel into the 55, success, peace an harmony...expected. I droped the Oscar in with the JD, he was smaller, and he was dead within 24 hours... my fault and I feel really bad about it. I put a pleco and my catfish in as well. I did one cichlid type fish only so i would not overload my cycle. I changed my game plan...buy a bigger more mature Oscar, and drop it in with several other fish. Then deal with any cycle problems as needed. Good plan right? Wrong!
I drop into the 75 gallon an Oscar, approx 5-6 inchs, a Blue Acara approx 7 inchs, 3 2 inch clown loachs. I then took 2 rosey barbs (females... lol j/k) out because they were nippin my cool albino pleco. 55 gallon still peaceful. 75 gallon went into the toilet. The 4 inch stingy JD claimed the entire 75 gallon tank, almost expected, but thought my stock would be ok since I dropped a cuban cichlid out of the equation.
Within 3 hours the 5-6 inch Oscar was ready to roll over and die. I saved this guy an dropped him into the 55 gallon. Still peaceful there! He is recovering nicly, eating rosey barb poop, swimming, and doing fish stuff. That left the 7 inch Blue Acara to play with the JD. Well guess what? Yeah, the JD had this fish in a corner with its fins tucked. Several more days of this and I would lose the BA, like I did the first Oscar, and almost my EBJD. So I figure, I would intervene. I saved the BA, put into my 55 gallon tank...still peaceful. Oh btw, the catfish has joined in on the picking on fish with the JD, so odd. Remove JD, catfish tame. This move left 2 Rosey Barbs, 1 pleco, 1 catfish, 1 JD.
My decor is not very user friendly when it comes to rearragement since its 3 larger items and 2 are identical. I have loads of plants as well. Plenty of hiding spots. I thought maybe this could be a solution give the aggressive JD some rearragment. So since my 75 gallon would not rearrange very well, I moved the JD into the 55 gallon with everything else
now his territory is GONE and theres a crap load of fish in there to spread his hate. Wrong, within seconds he is already at it with my EBJD 
fin slappin, liplockin, then the chase, EBJD is weaker, der, so he began to bring the terror onto him. I did this to see if decor would help, and planned on moving the 75 gallon stock list back into the 75 gallon once he forgot his territory. This did not work, he had claimed the 55 within mins. literally.
Well, no one messes with the EBJD, so my plan changed yet again. This is my temp solution for the aggressive JD. I moved EVERY cichlid I owned into the 75 gallon, including the Oscar (not sure if it is a cichlid or not), I left the yoyo's and 8 rosey barbs (since the JD likes em), a pleco, and the JD. So far Harmony... for now in both tanks.
Here is the problem, now I am going to have to make changes more than likely, just not soon. To fix over crowededness.
current 75 gallon stock list, prob overstocked once mature (not currently)
1 EBJD
1 Angelfish
1 Firemouth
1 Blue Acara
1 Oscar
1 Nic cichlid
3 clown loachs
1 pleco common
1 catfish unknown type
planned 75 gallon stock
1 aggressive JD :x
1 Blue Acara
1 Oscar
1 Nic Cichlid
3 clown loachs
1 pleco common
1 catfish unknown type
some kind of target fish for the JD to chase
The 55 gallon pretty much housed everything else an was a full stock once mature.
My plan is to let the Oscar mature, let the Blue Acara, and the Nic, get use to the 75 gallon...then once the JD forgets about the 75 gallon, and the others get there territories...drop the JD in as fish food :lol: j/k, but to hopefully be lower on the totem pole...prob wont happen though. My guess is it would be exactly the same as now.
So whats the thoughts or advice for my predicament. I don't want to give any fish back; I HATE doing that. I don't want Jack "The Ripper" Dempsey eating guts and eyeballs. I want harmony thats sometimes hard to achieve with cichlids. ALL thoughts or advice welcomed, even if it is against my wants, i.e. first part of paragraph. I need something that works. If the 75 is fine how it is permanantly stock wise, than problem solved except for a stock list for a 55 gallon tank an an agressive male JD.
Fire away! =D> I applaud anyone that read all of that... so thank you!
All the cichlids were almost the same size; however, the EBJD was the biggest. 4 weeks ago, this JD doubled in size, and now has become a holy terror. He took control of the 55 gallon 100%, and chased my EBJD until it was almost dead. I have had this EBJD since he was an inch or smaller; he is now approx 3 inchs, and is meh bebe.
I was already planning on buying a 75 gallon to house an Oscar, which somehow has become my favorite fish. This JD moved my purchase of the tank from planning stages to having it yesterday. The bad boy JD took a dip in the 75 with 4 rosey barbs. Peace! Now what to stock the 75 with? I chose to really neat fish! I got me an Oscar! I got me a Blue Acara, and a Nic cichlid (DOA), 3 clown loachs, and a pleco common type. I picked up an angelfish for the 55, super sweet looking, to take the JDs place in the 55!
So I drop the angel into the 55, success, peace an harmony...expected. I droped the Oscar in with the JD, he was smaller, and he was dead within 24 hours... my fault and I feel really bad about it. I put a pleco and my catfish in as well. I did one cichlid type fish only so i would not overload my cycle. I changed my game plan...buy a bigger more mature Oscar, and drop it in with several other fish. Then deal with any cycle problems as needed. Good plan right? Wrong!
I drop into the 75 gallon an Oscar, approx 5-6 inchs, a Blue Acara approx 7 inchs, 3 2 inch clown loachs. I then took 2 rosey barbs (females... lol j/k) out because they were nippin my cool albino pleco. 55 gallon still peaceful. 75 gallon went into the toilet. The 4 inch stingy JD claimed the entire 75 gallon tank, almost expected, but thought my stock would be ok since I dropped a cuban cichlid out of the equation.
Within 3 hours the 5-6 inch Oscar was ready to roll over and die. I saved this guy an dropped him into the 55 gallon. Still peaceful there! He is recovering nicly, eating rosey barb poop, swimming, and doing fish stuff. That left the 7 inch Blue Acara to play with the JD. Well guess what? Yeah, the JD had this fish in a corner with its fins tucked. Several more days of this and I would lose the BA, like I did the first Oscar, and almost my EBJD. So I figure, I would intervene. I saved the BA, put into my 55 gallon tank...still peaceful. Oh btw, the catfish has joined in on the picking on fish with the JD, so odd. Remove JD, catfish tame. This move left 2 Rosey Barbs, 1 pleco, 1 catfish, 1 JD.
My decor is not very user friendly when it comes to rearragement since its 3 larger items and 2 are identical. I have loads of plants as well. Plenty of hiding spots. I thought maybe this could be a solution give the aggressive JD some rearragment. So since my 75 gallon would not rearrange very well, I moved the JD into the 55 gallon with everything else
now his territory is GONE and theres a crap load of fish in there to spread his hate. Wrong, within seconds he is already at it with my EBJD fin slappin, liplockin, then the chase, EBJD is weaker, der, so he began to bring the terror onto him. I did this to see if decor would help, and planned on moving the 75 gallon stock list back into the 75 gallon once he forgot his territory. This did not work, he had claimed the 55 within mins. literally.Well, no one messes with the EBJD, so my plan changed yet again. This is my temp solution for the aggressive JD. I moved EVERY cichlid I owned into the 75 gallon, including the Oscar (not sure if it is a cichlid or not), I left the yoyo's and 8 rosey barbs (since the JD likes em), a pleco, and the JD. So far Harmony... for now in both tanks.
Here is the problem, now I am going to have to make changes more than likely, just not soon. To fix over crowededness.
current 75 gallon stock list, prob overstocked once mature (not currently)
1 EBJD
1 Angelfish
1 Firemouth
1 Blue Acara
1 Oscar
1 Nic cichlid
3 clown loachs
1 pleco common
1 catfish unknown type
planned 75 gallon stock
1 aggressive JD :x
1 Blue Acara
1 Oscar
1 Nic Cichlid
3 clown loachs
1 pleco common
1 catfish unknown type
some kind of target fish for the JD to chase
The 55 gallon pretty much housed everything else an was a full stock once mature.
My plan is to let the Oscar mature, let the Blue Acara, and the Nic, get use to the 75 gallon...then once the JD forgets about the 75 gallon, and the others get there territories...drop the JD in as fish food :lol: j/k, but to hopefully be lower on the totem pole...prob wont happen though. My guess is it would be exactly the same as now.
So whats the thoughts or advice for my predicament. I don't want to give any fish back; I HATE doing that. I don't want Jack "The Ripper" Dempsey eating guts and eyeballs. I want harmony thats sometimes hard to achieve with cichlids. ALL thoughts or advice welcomed, even if it is against my wants, i.e. first part of paragraph. I need something that works. If the 75 is fine how it is permanantly stock wise, than problem solved except for a stock list for a 55 gallon tank an an agressive male JD.
Fire away!
=D> I applaud anyone that read all of that... so thank you!
