Slow growing TSN?

[ericifish]

sounds like a good thing to me great looking cat

 

[Wet Whiskers]

I have had a similar experience with one of my TSN. He's probably 17" and about 16 months old. While this is still huge growth rate, its no where near my other TSN and the RTCxTSN. The bigger TSN is 25", is at least double the mass of the smaller TSN, but was only about 2.5" bigger than the smaller TSN at the time of introduction. There was no competition between the two that I could see. They hung out all the time, and there was always plenty of food. The RTCXTSN grew on the same growth rate as the big TSN and is about 23" now. The smaller TSN almost stopped growing for a couple months at about 14", and then went through a little growth spurt and hit his 17" or so.

The only difference between the fish that I could see is that the 'little' guy does not stuff himself like the other two. He eats just until he has a fairly good bulged and then stops. The other eat themselves silly. Even if there is left over food in the tank he's not interested. It does make me wonder if there is some anatomical difference in his GI tract.

 

[sbuse]

i have noticed that of my three, one was smaller to start and now is a few inches bigger then the other two and it is the one that stuffs itself more then the other two similar to what you are saying wet whiskers just not as dramatic...yet...it might have something to do with diff sub spieces...idk but it is interesting to see such diff. growth rates...

 

[sbuse]

mm, I keep pretty high temps.. 27-28C think that is about 85F?

probably nothing wrong with him and if he is a little stunted I'd just embrace it but when you see those real monster tsn' (not coruscans sp?) I just thought I'd be in over my head sooner than this.. well well.. just throwing it out there..

i wasn't saying there was anything wrong with it, it is a nice looking fish and tsns are my favorite catfish... i have heard of a few getting to 30" after 6 years or so...i also have thought i was in over my head when i first got a tsnxrtc when i was first told it would get like 20" or so...then to see that they get much bigger...then i was ready with a game plan for my 3 tsns after my other cats died and they aren't growing as fast as i thought they'd be though it is fast, it is all a mind set if you know their "max size" then you know what to be prepard for...but in the end every fish is diff. and you never know what the size will be till it gets there...just some thoughts...

 

[bobVillanueva]

shouldn't he look fatter when he reaches? 20" i dunno... it's just my experience with them tsn...

how did he stay with his previous owner before you took him? growth rate seems pretty fast for me. nice loaches btw

 

[tscharf]

mine took almost 4 months to grow about an inch or two but in the last 3 weeks hes grown about 4 inches hes growing nicely now

 

[jprp]

i would switch to feeding 2 or three times per week this allows time for the food to be properly digested and absorbed.
by giving the small daily feeds you are restarting the digestion process and the previos feed is being pushed through only partly digested.
its not how much food goes in its how much makes it to the blood stream.
your fish looks thin rarther than short.