Red Belly Piranaha or Pacu?

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My pacu also loved cichlid pellets and frozen peas and peanuts. Sorry, forgot to add that. He did fight the pleco for the algae wafers, as well. He was a pretty peaceful member of my tank -- shared with a 14" tiger oscar. I loved that fsh, but he outgrew my tank, and I can't afford a 2K set up just now. We were tank-raisng him for a friend in KY with a man-made pond (2 acres) who didn't want to put a baby pacu in his pond (thought that larger fish and snappers woul dtake him out at that size) so asked if we would get him to 14" or so before putting him in the pond. Trouble was, our friend DIDN'T do the research he told us he did -- and that pacu couldn't have survived a midwestern winter in the pond. (YES, I agree: I should have done my OWN research. I made a mistake!) So rather than consign thsi beatiflu creature to death, I did my own search to get him into a proper aquarium. BUT, not one zoo or one public aquarium with 6 hours of BLoomington (IN) would take him. Alas. LUCKILY, I found this private collector and my pacu has a happy ending.

Are there any others in the midwest who HAVE proper pacu-sized tanks or indoor ponds who might be able to help other pacu out? I think my guy is set, but the zoos/aquariums I called EACH reported that they get an AVERAGE of 250 such calls for help a YEAR - which means that a lot of pacu are in desperate need of proper homes.

Just curous. Thanks!
 
MindsEar said:
My pacu also loved cichlid pellets and frozen peas and peanuts. Sorry, forgot to add that. He did fight the pleco for the algae wafers, as well. He was a pretty peaceful member of my tank -- shared with a 14" tiger oscar. I loved that fsh, but he outgrew my tank, and I can't afford a 2K set up just now. We were tank-raisng him for a friend in KY with a man-made pond (2 acres) who didn't want to put a baby pacu in his pond (thought that larger fish and snappers woul dtake him out at that size) so asked if we would get him to 14" or so before putting him in the pond. Trouble was, our friend DIDN'T do the research he told us he did -- and that pacu couldn't have survived a midwestern winter in the pond. (YES, I agree: I should have done my OWN research. I made a mistake!) So rather than consign thsi beatiflu creature to death, I did my own search to get him into a proper aquarium. BUT, not one zoo or one public aquarium with 6 hours of BLoomington (IN) would take him. Alas. LUCKILY, I found this private collector and my pacu has a happy ending.

Are there any others in the midwest who HAVE proper pacu-sized tanks or indoor ponds who might be able to help other pacu out? I think my guy is set, but the zoos/aquariums I called EACH reported that they get an AVERAGE of 250 such calls for help a YEAR - which means that a lot of pacu are in desperate need of proper homes.

Just curous. Thanks!
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my 2 are going to need homes soon.. they are a foot or more in lengthand still growing good. they are in a 105 gal tank now but they will need more room.. i also have a smaller one if i get rid of the 2 i am going to get rid of the little guy too.
 
boredcpl said:
my 2 are going to need homes soon.. they are a foot or more in lengthand still growing good. they are in a 105 gal tank now but they will need more room.. i also have a smaller one if i get rid of the 2 i am going to get rid of the little guy too.
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Good Luck, boredcpl. It's a real challenge to find proper homes for these guys. My opinion, having just spent FOUR months on the phone and web trying to find a proper home, is that the RB pacu should NOT be sold in consumer shops, period. I mean, how many "hobby" aquariasts have the resources to safely and responsibly raise a fish of this scale and longevity? .05% is my guess -- and that' generous.

Even the Indianapolis Zoo is having problems finding a home for its 2 black pacu -- who are 19 years old and pushing 100# each. They, sadly, are closing their Amazon exhibit next year, and the keepers have no leads yet on an adoptive home for their fish. It's a sad state for this noble species, I fear. I considered building a 1,000-gallon pond for my guy, but it wasn't practical -- and would only have been a temporary home, at best. (The keepers suggested a MINIMUM of 2,000 gallons for this ONE fish!)

I wish I had better news to share, but I think that these species is not one that ANY general fish store (ala WalMart, Petsmart, etc.) should be selling as they just don't really know what they're doing in terms of monster fish. Which is NOT TO SAY that they're aren't knowledgable people who DO work in this sort of store, but, as a point of reference/argument, when our friend bought this particular pacu at WalMart, the sales dude there assured him, with great confidence, that the pacu would only get to SIX inches, and would be an "excellent companion for his guppies and barbs". I agree -- if by "companion" you mean "executioner", then they were right on target! ;-)

Thoughts? Suggestions for those TRYING to find a home for pacus? (OTHER than the frypan!) ;-)
 
I was told by the people at Walmart that they would never get more than 10 to 12 inches and that they were peaceful. I quickly set them straight. The girl was telling a lady and a little boy when I walked up that it would be fine to put 5 rbp in a 10 gallon tank. this was a ridiculous statement and much to the young sales ladies dissapointment the lady and her son chose some guppies instead. I think that these companies that do sell these fish should be better informed before they are allowed to sell such fish. People are unsuspectingly setting themselves up for a big problem in the near future. I really appreciate all the feedback that I have gotten from everyone.
 
Doc said:
Does it swim constantly?
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does it swim constantly because if it does it is pacu reb bellied piranhas nature is to chill at a spot and swim in the current and swims around when its hungry
 
You should be able to get on the internet and compare your So called paranha to a pic (easy as that)..........
 
Difference between pacu and piranha...
Most piranhas teeth you can see a outline of on their lips...
Piranha do not have the lips open all the time, will be cracked a little bit, but not fully open like a pacu's will be


Piranhas have shorter fins than the pacu's do...
Most pacu's have a pretty long anal fin as a piranha has a shorter anal fin that only gets to like a half an inch long at the most.
 
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