Flathead catfish

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pearcepe

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Jul 28, 2009
7
0
1
Alabama
Has anyone ever heard of anyone keeping a flathead. First, yes, I do realize how big they get, and how voracious of a feeder they are. I have a large pond (as in a 45 acre farm pond) I can eventually put him in. I have a 4x4x2 tank to start though. I've recently been able to find some specimens in the 1-2 lb (12"-16") range and they look like they may be manageable in that size aquaria. Just wanted to see if anyone had any experience with one.
Thanks.

I have posted this in the native species forum as well...
 
I have a question. Do you really want to keep a fish that, once you release in the pond, you'll never see again? You can definitely keep one with your tank and pond, but it is something to consider.
 
I can always catch another! I just wanted to try something new, and I've never seen one captive. I've always been a big fan of this cat and have seen them diving in lakes but thought it would be cool to "own" one.
 
go ahead with it. Get a good filter and raise it up and when it gets big enough toss it in the pond.

Try and train it first such as tap the water or something everytime before you feed it. That way it is used to hearing something before getting food. When you release into the pond you could do the same thing and perhaps it will recognize the sound and come towards the food you give it so you can actually see it.

If you have that large of a pond, I would recommend Wels catfish, they can survive in your area.
 
Think I'm going to go for it, I'll do a little aquascaping and fish rearranging in the tanks this week then try and get the right size cat this weekend. I'll try and post some good pictures once I get him/her in there and settled. I'm really interested in seeing if they attack as fiercely in a tank as in the wild.
 
I had a young flathead several years ago. They are attractive fish with their cryptic coloration. They require clean water; grow rather slowly and are the closest thing we have in a north american native cat to the pseudopimeldous cats in SA
 
I would encourage you to keep them; you can enjoy them in progressively larger tanks and potentially train them to come up to the surface once resident in your pond.
 
I caught a little 5-6" one here a few years ago and threw it in a tank. Onion's right, the thing was ALWAYS hiding.. It was pretty aggressive towards the tankmates too. Had great colors to it, but just not something you can actually enjoy. Gave it to a buddy with a bigger tank/terrarium deal. Had no top and it leaped..
 
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