This is something I have wondered about for a while. There have been a few times where I have seen a group of young cichlids at a store, I have purchased one or a few of these fish and taken them home. After a few months, my fish have grown considerably but then I return to the store and the original fish are the exact same size as before. Do these juvenile cichlids ever grow? Are they not getting enough food? Are these fish permanently stunted?
Question about Cichlids at a LFS
- Thread starter gnuisance
- Start date
I've seen the same thing. I think it depends on the habits of the LFS and the customer. The amount of water changes, type of foods, frequency of feeding, and the amount of space of the aquarium all contribute to the growth rate of cichlids. I have seen juvenile cichlids kept in smaller tanks at LFS grow very slow compared to those purchased earlier by me and by those kept in larger aquariums and ponds at the same LFS. I also think that fish in the home aquarium are typically fed a lot more than those fed at stores. There are a lot of variables in this though.
my male freddy sat in a store for probably 10 months or so and when i bought him was a very colorful but only 2.5" and in the last 10 months has grown almost 8" and is over 10" now. it amazes me that they can be stuck at a size for so long ans then once they enter optimal conditions and quality food that they can grow just like normal without noticeable issues.
Just what Gruff said. I know for fact that fish store owners dont feed their fish to much. I think it has to do with most consumers not wanting to buy larger or adult fish and the fact that they (fish stores) dont want to break the bank feeding their fish.
It think thats a player in how people think a fish will grow to its surroundings. More accurately a fish will be stunted if you starve it. If you dont feed it enough then all of its calories go to survival and not growth. Bad water conditions are probably also a factor, not an expert but regular water changes play a role in growth rate too.