New to Flowerhorn Fish

[yoshm0]

Hello MFK, I am new to the forum and also new to the world of Flowerhorns. Recently picked up a flowerhorn at a local fish store that pretty much has nothing but discus and flowerhorns. They didn't speak the greatest of English and couldn't gain too much insight from them regarding the flowerhorn they sold me other than they hand pick and import them themselves.

Was hoping I could gain some clarity on the type and quality of the flowerhorn I bought. Can someone tell me what type of flowerhorn I have? Also, what would you grade it? In terms of size, I would guess from kok to end of tail it's about 5.5”. Any guess as to his age?




Much thanks in advance and I love the forum!

 

[Circa4190]

Looks like a pretty decent quality ZZ. At 5.5" I would guess he's in the 6-10mo range in age. If you don't know already, the likelihood of keeping a FH with any other fish is slim unless the tank is MASSIVE. He will need at minimum 75g, and to live out his life comfortably I would give him a 125g or so. They're fun wet pets, very very prone to disease though from generations of inbreeding.

 

[yoshm0]

Circa, what's a pretty good quality (grade wise)? I'm just curious and would prefer the hard cold truth even if it isn't so good. I appreciate your candid assessment! In regards to it being a ZZ, from what I've read here on MFK, ZZ's have a couple popular strains: Red Dragon and Blue Dragon. How can tell if this fish is either? Oh btw, I paid $165 for him. Thanks for your insight!

 

[philipraposo1982]

I think if you like him and are happy with the price you paid then the rest is not important. I sure others will give you their opinions of grade and strain.

IMO, I like your fish a lot. Nice long trailers and love the blue in him.

 

[yoshm0]

philipraposo1982, thank you so much for responding! I love the lil guy. He's aggressive like a pit bull! Lots of personality and seems like he's going to be a good fun family member. I just wish I knew more about what type of ZZ he is. I've done a lot of online research and have read many-many threads from many-many different forums. Still, unless you have the experience / knowledge of the fish, you just don't know for sure. I guess I don't really care about the grade, but for the curiosity factor, I do wish I knew his grade. I also wish someone that has knowledge of the various strains could suggest to me what ZZ strain he is. Thank you again!

 

[Circa4190]

Circa, what's a pretty good quality (grade wise)? I'm just curious and would prefer the hard cold truth even if it isn't so good. I appreciate your candid assessment! In regards to it being a ZZ, from what I've read here on MFK, ZZ's have a couple popular strains: Red Dragon and Blue Dragon. How can tell if this fish is either? Oh btw, I paid $165 for him. Thanks for your insight!

I base my quality opinion off of flowerline (black horizontal band across body), KOK development, spangling/coloration and finnage. If I were to look into your little guy, I personally would put him at an 8/10 with potential to be a very high quality fish. I would think he's more towards the Red Dragon side of things, but that could change in coming months. The rest is up to you!