Is it true

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smokeythebair

smokeythebair

Plecostomus
MFK Member
Nov 17, 2010
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Im not doing this i just heard if you keep doing water changes even in a small tank a fish will reach full size. I thought it needed more room to get big but someone said they release a harmone in the water to tell them to stop growing and if you keep doing wc they will cont. to grow. Just curious
 
Yes they will continue to grow, but it's very unhealthy for a large fish to be kept in a small cramped space.
 
I don't know if this is true or not, but I have seen people that have large fish in small tanks with nasty water. Their fish did not stop growing because they did not do enough water changes.
 
I saw a deformed black convict at pets plus because he was in to small of a tank i felt bad he looked like frankenstein.
 
now u guys are freaking me out. i have a 6 inch red wolf fish in my 10 gal fish tank cuz my polys were always attacking him. I long will my fish release hormones to stop growing????? DARN!!! U Could of posted this earlier!!
 
They will keep growing to their "Natural adult size" as long as the water quality is good. So to answer your question.. Yes and No.. could say a silver arrowana in a 55 gallon tank grow to it's full 3' potential? theoretically yes if you did water changes enough to support the fish... but realistically the answer is No. Because even if you did 100% WC's 3x a day the bio-load from the fish would poison the water still, and the cramped conditions would cause other severe deformates from lack of muscle use and stimulation over-all. Not to mention the fish jumping out of or breaking the tank.

This can be applied to any species and any tank of small volume compared to the adult size of any said species.. I used the silver arrowana as reference as I often see peopel who want to stuff them perminently in 55's for life.

BTW intentionally stunting the size of any fish is cruel, The fish's skeletal structure will slow or stop but the internal organs will continue to grow. The fish leads a very short and painful life before it succumbs to the deformaties.
 
Good water is essential to a fish reaching there full potential. Keep in mind if a fish is in too small of a tank it will end up with a distorted body. It a situation you need not wasting your time to be curious about.
 
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