Juvenile Dovii Help

  • We are currently upgrading MFK. thanks! -neo
B

BIG_ONE

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Aug 23, 2008
2,341
5
0
California
I am planning to get me a dovii...and most likely it will be a juvenile anywhere between 1"-3".
What exactly do I feed such ferocious predator at this stage of life? Will it feel more comfortable if I keep multiple of them together...like 3-5? And I know that these fish will not tolerate any tank mates. My tank is approximately 180G. And I know 180G is way too small to house 3-5 species of them and even so, they will destroy each other over territorial space.
Will it do fine by itself if I just get 1? Or would it need to be schooled together at this stag of life to reduce stress?
Also heard they are a big time diggers...so sand is not recommended as sand particles will fly all over when they arrange their home so its best to use gravel, is there any truth to this?

Thanks in advance! :headbang2
 
Just feed pellets as normal with the odd treat . no need to keep more than than 1 and mine is not a big digger so sand works for me . To be honest its the same as normal cichlid up until they reach 10" plus then all hell breaks loose !! I am only at 6" stage myself
 
vary its diet, rotate between pellets, krill, blood worms, flakes. the more you vary it, the happier in my opinion, and thats worked for my Umbee mighty fine. im doing it to my half-inch Wolf cichlid, (well he's an inch now) and my escondido
 
id keep it on its own, i used to feed mine hikari gold, bloodworms, mealworms, chicken, krill, goldfish and little bits of meat scraps from my meals just keep on mixing it up so he/she doesnt get fussy
 
I have grown out a few of these beasts. and i also used a 180. and al from 1.5". You can get away with 4-7 of them in a 180 till they start reachin 5-6" then things might start getting hairy. A 180 would be fine to house a single speciman or a pair for a year or so then you should get a larger tank. I grewout 5 in mine with other tankmates till i got a pair then i had to pull other dovii and shortly after the rest of the tankmates. My male is now 9" and female 6.5". And i would recommend feeding mostly pellets and Hikari, and the occasional frozen or live treat. of course i didnt stick to that and now they barely hit anything other than krill,bloodworms,and live;).
But if you buy a few then at least you can choose one that you like. good luck and keep us posted.
 
Thanks for the help!
One more question...whether there is a truth to this or not, I heard and red that the more live feeding they are exposed to. The more aggressive their nature will become, I want to bring out the full potential monster of this monster. I want to see its real monster inside of him/her...what would be a good live feeding if I'm just going to be live feeding him most of the time.
I wonder if breeding guppies will help...any suggestion on live feeding schedule?
 
get like 5 and grow them out until you can tell which is the dominate male showing the most color. then just keep him. Try to vary his diet but have a good pellet (hikari, nils,etc.) as main food staple. dont feed live. be prepared for a real reclusive and skittish fish until he reaches about 12''. I know its not always the case but i have keep a couple in the past and all they did was hide up util they reached about a foot. then came the attitude!
 
I see, but aren't they all going to come out looking the same with same coloration and pattern?
Ex: all male/female will have the same coloration.
Or do they all come out with variety of look and colors from one fish to another? Now to me...I careless if its a male or a female, I want a true monster that would dominate the tank to itself. Although of course it would be nice to have a male because its more beautiful than females.
 
BIG_ONE;3490693; said:
I see, but aren't they all going to come out looking the same with same coloration and pattern?
Ex: all male/female will have the same coloration.
Or do they all come out with variety of look and colors from one fish to another? Now to me...I careless if its a male or a female, I want a true monster that would dominate the tank to itself. Although of course it would be nice to have a male because its more beautiful than females.
Click to expand...

to the untrained eye they look alike. but in fact they do look different. they will tend to have their lateral lines in both sexes but males will have spotting throughout entire body and fins and face will color up more than females as they grow. and in my expirience, my females were more aggressive till males hit 6"+. but i agree with getting a few and grow them out till you find one with the personality you like. and i dont recommend feeders since they carry parasites and arn't nutritious for them. but Dovii are natural predators and in the wild they mostly feed on other fish and crustations. if you really wanted to feed live then breed the feeders yourself and quarentine them. i prefer to use convicts as breeders;)
 
no live and no "scraps of meat from your meals"

pellets, fish, and pellets.......raise a healthy fish
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
MonsterFishKeepers.com
Top Bottom