Over population

[Denon]

So I currently have roughly 100 convicts in my 75G. All appear to be healthy and doing ok, but space wise they do not seem like they are enjoying be crammed in there. Any ideas on what to do with the over population? I hate to cull them, but can't imagine they are having a great time being in such a tight space. Plus I am not happy at having to do water changes every couple of days to keep nitrates manageable.

 

[Deadeye]

So I currently have roughly 100 convicts in my 75G. All appear to be healthy and doing ok, but space wise they do not seem like they are enjoying be crammed in there. Any ideas on what to do with the over population? I hate to cull them, but can't imagine they are having a great time being in such a tight space. Plus I am not happy at having to do water changes every couple of days to keep nitrates manageable.


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Do you have an lfs you can take them to for store credit?
I’m surprised the parents/siblings haven’t decided there were too many and started removing some...that’s what my kribs did.

 

[duanes]

Many cities have local aquarium clubs that hold auctions, where you bring in a bag of juvies, and the club and you (the breeder get potion of the sale.
They also have BAPS (Breeders Award Programs) where you donate a group of juvies (usually at least 5) to the local regular meeting auctions, and get breeders award points for donating a bag or 2 of fry.
In this way other members get a chance at points for continuing to breed the line, or species.
Whenever I had a pair of cichlids (or any other fish) that would breed, I'd take a bag of 5 or 2 bags (10) to a meeting, and donate them.

 

[Denon]

Do you have an lfs you can take them to for store credit?
I’m surprised the parents/siblings haven’t decided there were too many and started removing some...that’s what my kribs did.

Unfortunately in my town we are down to one small lfs with maybe 20 smallish tanks.I already asked them and they said they do not take cons as they are too aggressive. Petco and Petsmart have run all the others out of town. Yeah I know many have been eaten young, but they are surprisingly resilient and I probably had too many hiding spots before I redid my tank layout. Suppose I could try Petco or Petsmart, but that might be worse for them, than me just culling them.

 

[Deadeye]

Unfortunately in my town we are down to one small lfs with maybe 20 smallish tanks.I already asked them and they said they do not take cons as they are too aggressive. Petco and Petsmart have run all the others out of town. Yeah I know many have been eaten young, but they are surprisingly resilient and I probably had too many hiding spots before I redid my tank layout. Suppose I could try Petco or Petsmart, but that might be worse for them, than me just culling them.

That sucks about the fish store.
Petsmart/petco is probably the best option, they would hopefully go somewhere good.
Unless you have some hungry predators...

 

[Denon]

Many cities have local aquarium clubs that hold auctions, where you bring in a bag of fry, and the club and you (the breeder get potion of the sale.
They also have BAPS (Breeders Award Programs) where you donate a group of fry (usually at least 5) to the local meeting auctions, and get breeders award points for donating a bag or 2 of fry.
In this way other members get a chance at points for continuing to breed the line the line.
Whenever I had a pair that would breed, I'd take a bag of 5 or 2 (10) to a meeting, and do this.

It would be awesome if I had this option. Unfortunately after a bit of searching it looks like the closest club I see is roughly a 2.5 hour drive away. ?

 

[Denon]

That sucks about the fish store.
Petsmart/petco is probably the best option, they would hopefully go somewhere good.
Unless you have some hungry predators...

Yeah I think I’ll at least give them a shot and see if they will take some. Predator wise I actually do have a bunch of umbees, but they are currently all smaller than the smallest con. Lol.

 

[Krismo962]

If you can't find anyone that'll take them ,you could euthanize some and store them in your freezer to feed your other fish.

 

[suckerfish]

Get a catfish in there. Problems solved!

 

[Deadeye]

Get a catfish in there. Problems solved!

You’d need a really big cat lol.
In all honesty, even as egg control, I think a con would keep a cat away. They are all too big for predation at this point too.