Problems with my P.Natteri. Help!!!

[JuanT]

Hello. My name is Juan, I´m from Argentina. I´m 17 years old. My English is not very good, so forgive me.

I have 5 P.Natteri of 1,5" in a 13gal tank. I know that is so small to have 5 natteri, but are temporarily there, while I make your new aquarium (80gal).

The problem is that one of the 5 Piranhas, is a little bigger than the others. At the night, when i turned off the lights of the aquarium, that piranha bit the fins of her partners. That is not a big problem, but also bit the eye of one of that.
I think that piranha lost the eye, or is very complicated. I know about the great capacity for tissue regeneration of the piranhas, but i´m very worried.

I separate the injured piranha in other 10gal tank, with a sponge filter and an aerator. I place a dose of healing (Aquamed, is a brand that i can buy in Argentina, it was a healing with Aloe Vera). At the night, i gave a portion of meat, but only gaves two or three bites. The temperature of his tank is 73 degrees fahrenheit because i dont have another heater, so you believe it will be good as well?

I would like to help me to know how to continue treatment. The big piranha is separated in a 2gal tank with an aerator and the other 3, are in the 13gal tank, eating a lot of meat, and now, much quieter.

Thank you. Juan.

 

[Geryi]

Hi Juan,

I'm French. Your English is good enough for me!
The lack of space is the main cause of the aggressiveness ; 13 gallons for 5 nattereri are not enough, even if they are small. And 80 gallons for 5 adults too. My nattereri are 18 month old and 7-9" ; growth is vey fast. I think the ideal tank volume for 5 fulle grown is around 120-140 gallons ; so 80 gallons is a good intermediate tank.

Concerning the injured fish, it would be nice to heat up to 80°F(27°C) and to make frequent water changes. You can add some sea salt (without additive), 2g/l (8g/gallons) to help healing and restore osmoregulation, during 5-6 days. But, after a water change, do only add the quantity of salt matching with the quantity of water you remove (if you remove 15l, only add 30g) because salt doesn't evaporate.

Good luck!

 

[d3r]

What you're experiencing is "survival of the fittest" in its most basic form.

Nattereri are down right brutal to each other when they're small.. and for this reason people generally buy 3 or 4 more Nattereri than they actually want. So if you wanted 5 adults youd buy 8 babies because theres a very high chance some will get eaten/killed.

fins will grow back quickly...an eyeball will not.

Not a whole lot you can do about aggression when theyre babies.. just keep them well fed and hope you have more than 1 that makes it out of the baby stage.

theyll calm down on the cannibalism when they grow out more.

 

[kevbc03]

Although 13 gallons is a very small tank for 5 P's, fin nipping is common behavior for juvenile red bellies. The best way combat this behavior is to keep a steady feeding schedule, lower the temp to around 78 degrees F (give or take), and provide adequate space.

If this does not help then I recommend upgrading to your 80 gallon as soon as possible to reduce the risk of casualties.