for those that have had success with fahaka tankmates

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syddakyd

Plecostomus
MFK Member
Nov 10, 2008
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i am getting a 125g an the fahaka will be the centerpiece (if not the only lol) fish.

i am wondering if their aggression is overhyped or simply misunderstood like many fish.

for example....if i keep it with a big cichlid such as a jag..."common sense" would tell me someone is not going to make it.

but what about fast fish like 6 tinfoil barbs. or more discrete plecos with alot of hiding places like wood and rocks..



or what about keeping it with assorted mbuna. im sure some will become lunch but the majority would be smart/fast enough to get away. my main concern would be the mbuna pestering the fish.


so please if anyone has had success let me know before i set things up, thanks
 
I have never owned a Fahaka, but I believe it comes down to the individual fish. Some may work in a community while some will not. From what I have read, most Fahakas will not work in a community. Even fast moving fish are not necessarily safe. Predators tend to sneak up on fast moving fish at night. I have never seen my Hairy Puffer move very fast, but last night she ate a Giant Danio.

Fahakas are so cool that a 125 with one as it's sole inhabitant would be sweet.
 
Constant pestering will probably occur. It all depends on the fahaka. If it's not a nice one, nothing will survive. And chances are that it's not a nice one ;)
 
99% of fahakas are killers. My friend had a 4" one who big an 8" pleco in half. Either they will allow tankmates or not. It doesn't matter what size they are, how fast they are or how aggressive they are. Even my fahaka who is of the 1% that allows many fish to live with him, has eventually eaten every neon & tiger barb that lived with him (even if it took him a few months to catch them all). Hed has also killed a large, Bosmani rainbow (after living with it for 2 years) & a large parrot cichlid (within 6 hours of placing it in his tank). With that in mind, he's about 7 years old & here are his present tank mates:

12" Goldspot pleco
6" sailfin pleco
10" Yellow-finned chalcius
2 7" Clown loaches
9" Lancer catfish
5" Rainbow shark
6" Redtail shark
5" Bosmani rainbow
7" Frontosa
8" & 9" Elephant noses (18 years old)

12” Black Ghost Knife

Occasionally there is a fin nipped but all in all, he's a wimp & the Goldspot & Frontosa are always kicking him out of his cave. After living with all these guys for years, my stepdaughter needed somewhere for her large parrot cichlid, since she was moving. I watch them for about an hour, went out that evening & within the 5 hours I was gone, it was dead--tail & eyes missing. Moral of this story: You can never really trust a fahaka!
 
Pufferpunk;2415201; said:
99% of fahakas are killers. My friend had a 4" one who big an 8" pleco in half. Either they will allow tankmates or not. It doesn't matter what size they are, how fast they are or how aggressive they are. Even my fahaka who is of the 1% that allows many fish to live with him, has eventually eaten every neon & tiger barb that lived with him (even if it took him a few months to catch them all). Hed has also killed a large, Bosmani rainbow (after living with it for 2 years) & a large parrot cichlid (within 6 hours of placing it in his tank). With that in mind, he's about 7 years old & here are his present tank mates:

12" Goldspot pleco
6" sailfin pleco
10" Yellow-finned chalcius
2 7" Clown loaches
9" Lancer catfish
5" Rainbow shark
6" Redtail shark
5" Bosmani rainbow
7" Frontosa
8" & 9" Elephant noses (18 years old)
12” Black Ghost Knife

Occasionally there is a fin nipped but all in all, he's a wimp & the Goldspot & Frontosa are always kicking him out of his cave. After living with all these guys for years, my stepdaughter needed somewhere for her large parrot cichlid, since she was moving. I watch them for about an hour, went out that evening & within the 5 hours I was gone, it was dead--tail & eyes missing. Moral of this story: You can never really trust a fahaka!
Excellent advice. Don't put them with anything you wouldn't be willing to lose. They can kill fish overnight or when you're not even looking.
 
use common sense when trying to pick your fish after having the puffer your should know what will work and what won't don't get other puffers try some fast moving medium sized schooling fish don't get anything that will be perceived as a threat to its environment ]
 
yea i guess it will be hit and miss. i will add a few "cheap fish" and see how it goes...after that I'll take it from there.

i love fahakas, lol.

pufferpunk i seen you on aquaria central i remember you gave me advice on my 29 regarding figure 8's vs green spotted but i went the cyprinid route
 
I tried 7 tiger barbs with my 6" fahaka in a 180 gallon tank but didn't like the outcome. While he did kill 2 of them, he seemed to get shy with the rest of them constantly swimming around and tended to hide more tham previously. I put him in the tank at 2" and he never hid and was always out and cruising around. When I put the barbs in he underwent a personality shift and became shy and hid under driftwood, plants and occasionally buried himself in the sand. Once I gave up and took the barbs out, he quit hiding and is back to his non-shy gregarious self. He uses every inch of the 72"x24"x24" tank, never hides, eats from my hand and is essentially a totally interactive and fun fish to have around.
 
Angler;2415158; said:
I have never owned a Fahaka, but I believe it comes down to the individual fish. Some may work in a community while some will not. From what I have read, most Fahakas will not work in a community. Even fast moving fish are not necessarily safe. Predators tend to sneak up on fast moving fish at night. I have never seen my Hairy Puffer move very fast, but last night she ate a Giant Danio.

Fahakas are so cool that a 125 with one as it's sole inhabitant would be sweet.

Agreed ^

BUT a 125 will be outgrown eventually. I once had a fish friendly Fahaka except it would only nip at may gars and nobody else! Kept it with lots of fish and even rays. Guess it liked to discriminate? lol
 
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