Can I keep a singular piranha in a 20 gallon tank? also what should I feed them. Can I feed them chicken? Shrimp from the grocery? Wild Minnows?
Piranha
- Thread starter LilBangarang
- Start date
what kind of piranha? the diet you suggest is fine but i would leave out the chicken. no fish is use to digesting chicken. the typical piranha owner will feed all types of piranhas fish and shrimp from the grocery store, pellets, worm, insects and an occasionally feeders such as convicts.
A single Piranha in a tank twice that size is not going to be happy. These are SCHOOLING fish. Without a SCHOOL they are extremely skittish, even to the point of hiding all the time and not eating at all. I know, I know, there are exceptions to everything....Piranha are a fish with specific needs, contrary to what some may say. I have had these fish. Beautiful species. I will not keep them again.
BTW, RBP are illegal to keep in most if not all states...
If you like the LOOK of the Piranha, consider the Silver Dollar (Mylossoma pluriventre), the Mytynnis hypsauchen, or even the Pacu (Colossoma bidens not Colossoma brachipomum).
These all have that heavy built look without the legalities or special diet. They have their own needs granted, (Pacu get huge) but they are easier to keep, trust me, I have the scars to prove it!
JMHO, GL
BTW, RBP are illegal to keep in most if not all states...
If you like the LOOK of the Piranha, consider the Silver Dollar (Mylossoma pluriventre), the Mytynnis hypsauchen, or even the Pacu (Colossoma bidens not Colossoma brachipomum).
These all have that heavy built look without the legalities or special diet. They have their own needs granted, (Pacu get huge) but they are easier to keep, trust me, I have the scars to prove it!
JMHO, GL
half if what youv'e said is inaccurate. Red bellies, cariba, ternz, pirayas and macs are shoaling piranhas. Rhoms, spilos, manueli, elongs etc etc are not.
piranhas are not illegal in most states. there's a legality map in the piranha section. they are legal in ohio, which is where the original poster lives.
you're recommending a pacu when his asking about a 20 gallon tank? red belly piranhas are easy to keep. you feed them every day until they get 6 inches. then scale down to twice a week. you rotate the food i suggested, you use a syphon for water changes, they're tough and can survive bad water conditions and battle wounds.
to answer this gentlemen's question, we really need to know which kind of piranhas he's considering and what type of filteration
The red bellies are the easiest to get. I know that they are shoaling fish... Do you know where I could get the non shoalers you mentioned. Not like a local guy obviously, but online. I didn't think that the chicken would be healthy, but I saw it somewhere so I just figured I'd ask. What substrate would you recommend. I think they would look pretty hot with some black sand. Thanks for the info man.
Let me get this straight ballin, as long as we have proper filtration, change the water using a siphon and after they reach the magic 6" in length, scale back the feeding and you should be good, all justified by saying these are tough fish that can survive bad water.
If these are such the tough fish, than we could apply this fish keeping regimen for other "tough" fish. Arowana, Oscars, Arapaima, RTCs, Giant Gourami...etc,etc. All tough fish, all could be kept alive in a 20g with proper filtration for a time.
You are right, this fish isnt illegal EVERYWHERE, several Piranha species arent considered shoaling and yes, I did mention Pacu on MFK...as a fish that looks similar to a Piranha.
What I was trying to say, however, is that, yes, we could keep said fish in a 20g, but should we? We could keep a Tiger in our livingroom if we feed it on schedule and keep its bed clean, but really? A Piranha in a twenty?
Go for it OP! You should be fine.
Just dont feed it chicken....
If these are such the tough fish, than we could apply this fish keeping regimen for other "tough" fish. Arowana, Oscars, Arapaima, RTCs, Giant Gourami...etc,etc. All tough fish, all could be kept alive in a 20g with proper filtration for a time.
You are right, this fish isnt illegal EVERYWHERE, several Piranha species arent considered shoaling and yes, I did mention Pacu on MFK...as a fish that looks similar to a Piranha.
What I was trying to say, however, is that, yes, we could keep said fish in a 20g, but should we? We could keep a Tiger in our livingroom if we feed it on schedule and keep its bed clean, but really? A Piranha in a twenty?
Go for it OP! You should be fine.
Just dont feed it chicken....
You could get some baby RBPs...but a 20g won't cut it for long...they will outgrow it pretty fast. You can probably find a 55g tank or bigger on craigslist for cheap...I suggest looking for a 75g or bigger though, but a 55g is better than a 20g
i did not say that you should scale down on feeding because they're magically six inches or because they can handle tough water conditions. i merely mention that because at that point they will stop eating everyday unless you're feeding them live (in which they'll attack to kill, not to eat). the only reason i bring up they're tough fish is because you act like they're as sensitive as trying to keep a datnoid stable.
imo, red belly piranhas are easy to keep as long as you keep them feed, have proper filtration and don't jam them in too small a tank.
As for the op questions, black sand is fine, really easy to clean as everything will stand out. substrate really comes down to your own personal preference but i've always loved the look of black sand.
where can you find different types of piranhas? aquascapeonline and i can't remember the other one but i'll ask a friend tomorrow and post it here for ya. a majority of the piranhas on this site come from those 2 websites/vendors so they can be trusted.