Poll: What's better-- Unstable but active dats OR Stable but hide all day dats?

[studd muffin]

I would check out the unstable One and see what potential he has in terms of markings and body shape. Obviously stable factor has been a big decider fr me over the years but the last 2 years I have often picked unstable ones,
E.g Few Months back, I picked 2 small IT (there were lots to pick and 3-4 stable ones but were still ugly). Anyway...One was stable And The other unstable, but it had split bar was petfectly symmetrical and full body/neck bands.
2 months later , guess which one is stable And fully hammering pellets????
The ugly Duckling is now a beauty.

I guess once u take that risk and pick the unstable one, which eventually turns stable Sooner or later in your tank, then you'll be more likely to pick
tigers not soley based on stable or not.

Back to the poll, I can't tick a box cause I rely on other factors when choosing. Also how they act in a small tank at lfs is totally different when put into monster tank with monster fish at home.

Nicely said. I do the same thing as you.

Didnt vote because I feel those choices weren't right for me.

 

[schwalbach2280]

Might be a dumb question. but what does it mean for a dat to be stable or unstable?

 

[krichardson]

Might be a dumb question. but what does it mean for a dat to be stable or unstable?

The stable dats are those that have very bold and dark bars which stand out against their light bodies and the unstables can be anywhere from pale,mottled,or even dark to the point where you can not see any bar pattern or even light areas.

 

[lingi]

Not sure what youre talking about to be honest, i just got my first datnoids yesterday, got 3 ATs @about 3cm each, after 10hours they got all their color just like the pics i see on the net + theyre very very very active therye running around like mad and chasing the guppy all the time, im keeping them in a brackish 60g tank along with an adult moray eel (g.tile) im scared the eel will try to eat them as theyre not afraid of him at all and are constantly challenging him, but so far so good....

 

[krichardson]

Well that's because you have American Tigers and they seem to be the most outgoing of the dats with the exception of the Widebar but sadly,they seem to be the least popular.It is usually the Indo Tigers that go through these bouts of being unstable along with the Thinbar dats....Most keepers do not keep their dats in brackish water,they do just fine without it so it might not be a bad idea to relocate your AT'S and get them away from that eel.

 

[johnnycoolxx]

Lingi, your dats are active now bc they are still young and curious. Baby dats put on a new tank are usually really active until they get to the 2" mark imo. When they get older, they will probably hide. It happens to most peoples dats.

 

[krichardson]

If they are just three centimeters now their days might be numbered in a tank with an adult Moray eel.

 

[lingi]

I know its dangerous but im trying my luck out by keeping them with Maurice(the moray), hes eaten fish before, but hes very timid and peaceful as long as his tummy is full, he eats about 3 raw shrimps(with the shell) every day from my hand. About keeping the ATs in brackish, i read they can live a full life in brackish water so i chose to keep them like that cos fish in brackish are less prone to disease + i can keep cool tank mates with them like scats,f8puffers,monos and the eel Anyways thanks for the advice guys

 

[Ade]

Just to make things more confusing..... Tigers will often act
And look different from initially being Inteoduced to new tank..... Compared to say 6 months later in the same Tank. What I mean is newly introduced tigers will often go on full alert mode; new environment and other existing / established fish or tigers challenging them. So they may be really
Active stable
And displaying loads for say a week or month. But after say 6 months,,, once the hierarchy is setand they r use to environment, those same active ones may go unstable
Or hide an not nearly be as active as when introduced.

A true tigers markings, behaviour and stability: often show itself
6 months after it's been in ones home tank. The 6 months is just an average from my exp. It can be 1 month, it can be a year.