Red-tailed and Pacus

  • We are currently upgrading MFK. thanks! -neo
justonemoretank;3486708; said:
As an owner of three Pacu and one RTC in their "juvenile" stages, (RTC is about two feet and Pacus are from 14 to 22 inches), my opinion is that these two species coexist very well. If you train the Pacus to eat from the top of the water, and the RTC to either eat from your hand or pellets that sink, you can avoid a lot of competition at feeding time. Keep in mind that the Pacus are going to eat whatever goes in the tank, even if it sinks to the bottom, so hand-feeding your RTC is really the best way to make sure he gets enough food and the Pacus don't explode. I keep my guys in 1,000 gallons. IMO, this is the smallest size appropriate for these monster fish as adults. Also, I'm going to suggest that, rather than buying tank after tank to grow them out, just go ahead and build the final product. Chances are, nothing you purchase in the process of grow out tanks is going to be useable on this final product, and we all know you can't get your money back out of used products. This large volume, along with the opaque sides which will likely accompany it (unless you're doing a 1,000 gallon aquarium... in which case, can I have too? LOL) will solve your Pacus' skittish problems. Mine hardly ever "freak out" in the manner that I've seen Pacus exhibit while in an aquarium.

1,000 Liters is about 250 gallons... not large enough to house these guys for more than six to eight months, I think.
Click to expand...
Good info mate. And a RTC/pacu combo would be fine in 3000L for a LONG time. But I don't suggest a micropeltes (To the OP.) If you want something that hits food hard and will grow very large, I suggest getting a few cichla temensis and an arowana to accompany your RTC. But remember to grow them out before putting everyone together.
 
To the OP: Sorry I missed the question on micropellets. Do you mean Hikari micropellets? Hikari sinking carnivore when he's small, and then Hikari Massivore when he's larger, are a better bet. I use the micro wafers for hatchets, and from the smell, they're pretty much the same stuff (both stink the same, LOL). Also, little pieces of fish filet and small pieces of chopped-up shrimp, as well as squid, are good foods. The pacus don't mind a shrimp or squid, either.
 
justonemoretank;3487397; said:
To the OP: Sorry I missed the question on micropellets. Do you mean Hikari micropellets? Hikari sinking carnivore when he's small, and then Hikari Massivore when he's larger, are a better bet. I use the micro wafers for hatchets, and from the smell, they're pretty much the same stuff (both stink the same, LOL). Also, little pieces of fish filet and small pieces of chopped-up shrimp, as well as squid, are good foods. The pacus don't mind a shrimp or squid, either.
Click to expand...
No, he means channa micropeltes. (Not a very good tankmate for anything.)
 
LOL oh I thought... oh well. Thanks for clarification.
 
I went ahead and purchased the RTC. It's actually slightly longer than 3in, my bad. I placed it in my Pacu tank, they seem to tolerate each other. I also bought some shrimps, hoping can be good meal for both the Pacus and the RTC. Snakeheads are so cheap(USD0.70 for each!) and tempting but i wont be adding any to the Pacu tank because of the advice provided here. Gotta admit, i love how they go after feeder fish after 1 week of starvation!

How big is a 4000L tank? 6ft by 2ft has how many Litres?
 
If you google aquarium volume calculators, you should be able to figure out the dimensions to reach a certain gallonage (literage? LOL).
 
Or click on the "conversions" link at the top of the page between the "blog" and "search" links....underneath the M, 5 from the left.

That should do it.
 
darkcurves;3495310; said:
I went ahead and purchased the RTC. It's actually slightly longer than 3in, my bad. I placed it in my Pacu tank, they seem to tolerate each other. I also bought some shrimps, hoping can be good meal for both the Pacus and the RTC. Snakeheads are so cheap(USD0.70 for each!) and tempting but i wont be adding any to the Pacu tank because of the advice provided here. Gotta admit, i love how they go after feeder fish after 1 week of starvation!

How big is a 4000L tank? 6ft by 2ft has how many Litres?
Click to expand...
10ft by 5 ft by 3 ft tall would be about a minimum for a RTC.
 
These are almost the exact dimensions of my pond, except that it's about eight feet wide, instead of five. I think that if you have room, it will probably be better to make it a little wider, in order to give the cat some more room to move after he's grown. Ours is about 11x8x3, which is some amount of gallons over 1,000 (LOL due to having a wall separating the filter from the pond, we come up with a different amount every time). In any case, The pacu are going to need room to move, as well, and I have heard too many stories of pacu becoming aggressive toward tankmates when confined in small spaces. So, keep that in mind as well. And, to give you some extra information, you'll be looking for at least 6x turnover on your pumps (we run 12x) into the filter.
 
I've witnessed Micropeltes coexisting along with koi. And they eat the pellet food that the kois eat. But usually thats a very rare exception as the micros ended up in the pond as juveniles and they grew along with the koi. Well probably they keep the population in check also by snacking on koi fry.

But to be honest, You can keep a Giant Snakehead with RTC, but you would need an extremely HUGE tank (think 2000 gallons +). The micropeltes is extremely territorial and can strike like lightning. Your RTC will probably be safe, but not the Pacus. Its either Snakehead and RTC or Pacus and RTC. I would not recomend mixing the Giant Snakehead with the Pacus.

Just get a couple oscars if you want something else.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
MonsterFishKeepers.com
Top Bottom