stunted gar qn

[xander]

I have purchased potential monsters that were raised in small tanks around 55 gallons and I will never do so again.

Every time I do feel sorry for a potential monster in a tank that he can hardly turn around in I take it home and find that it can nowhere near keep up with the growth rate of other fish of the same species that have grown up in an adequate sized tank.

They hardly ever seem to recover their growth rate and very possibly may not even be able to reach a decent maximum size for that species.

Though in this case you know how long those gars have been in an inadequate sized tank, it may be that it hasn't permanently stunted them yet.In my case(s) I never knew how long the fish had grown up in a small tank.

my $0.02 hope it helps (at the very least I hope it makes sense)

def made much sense, but i'd like some personal experience input from the other side before making a decision. thanks everyone for their comments so far, but i need MORE info!

 

[aggressor09]

Theoretically, the gars should grow if put in a larger environment, provided that you feed them the correct diet conducive to growth. A few questions: have you said how small the tiny tank is? if you did i missed it. Regardless, im wondering if it is a true spotted gar; the maximum growth potential for a spotted is far beyond 14" (like 4 feet beyond 14" in the wild) and generally they will not grow to the size of a small tank at all. I kept my spotted gar in a 55 (which he consistently grew out of) until i had the ability to upgrade to a 125 gallon. Eventually i will need at least a 500 gallon to continue growing him out, and then larger to reach full growth potential. Questions: what are the fish being fed? are you sure they are spotted gars? Diet has a large impact on growth rates. Gars need proper diet and properly sized monster tanks to live a full life. You could do a couple in a 4' long tank if there is ample width for awhile while giving them proper diet. If they feel consticted and if the tank is not wide enough, gars will continuously smash into the tank, breaking off pieces and deforming the snout, and their spines will develop a curvature. Hopefully my rambling has offered something valuable. In short, make sure they are true gars before taking on the responsibility of 1, let alone 2 of them.

 

[xander]

Theoretically, the gars should grow if put in a larger environment, provided that you feed them the correct diet conducive to growth. A few questions: have you said how small the tiny tank is? if you did i missed it. Regardless, im wondering if it is a true spotted gar; the maximum growth potential for a spotted is far beyond 14" (like 4 feet beyond 14" in the wild) and generally they will not grow to the size of a small tank at all. I kept my spotted gar in a 55 (which he consistently grew out of) until i had the ability to upgrade to a 125 gallon. Eventually i will need at least a 500 gallon to continue growing him out, and then larger to reach full growth potential. Questions: what are the fish being fed? are you sure they are spotted gars? Diet has a large impact on growth rates. Gars need proper diet and properly sized monster tanks to live a full life. You could do a couple in a 4' long tank if there is ample width for awhile while giving them proper diet. If they feel consticted and if the tank is not wide enough, gars will continuously smash into the tank, breaking off pieces and deforming the snout, and their spines will develop a curvature. Hopefully my rambling has offered something valuable. In short, make sure they are true gars before taking on the responsibility of 1, let alone 2 of them.

yes it's def a spotted gar, i have 3 more floating in my 120gal, and spotted gars only hit 2'+ in captivity, so you wouldn't have to worry so much abt yrs hitting 4'. i say 14" because another gar from the same batch has reached 14", while those are still stuck at 9"

i think the tank is 2' by 10", the gars are fed like, once a week, on feeder guppies, and kept in a room with an extream temp fluctuation.

 

[aggressor09]

wasnt worrying about mine hitting 4 feet, just wasnt sure you understood the space accomodations for keeping a gar....knowing this, id say get them the hell out of their current tank and into yours immediately...once a spotted exceeds the width of the tank and has diffuculty turning around is where problems can start. From my personal experience, a steady temperature (and they can accept a wide array of temps) has kept my spotted feeding heavily and growing at a solid pace; this lack could have something to do with the stunted growth depending on what extremes we are talking about...to asnwer your ultimate question: yes, take the fish and they will grow out in a larger tank. i would try to get them on some larger dead meaty foods and supplement with live foods, or large live foods altogether, as an infinite amount of guppies will not fill a spotted, even a small one. Live foods can be iffy and its good to look for alternatives, but keep in mind that these gars are ultimately piscivorous. I know many people on here are against live food but its a great way to bulk up and grow out your spotted in a short amount of time, and its the easiest food to feed them. A hungry gar will demolish even the larget of comets, regardless of its own size. There is time after you bulk them up for a bit to change diet and go with a wide range of foods. Other than that, keep some solid water parameters and a steady temp, some good filtration and you will grow out these bad boys...I came up with some good and cheap homemade recipes for my spotted also, if you're interested let me know. Hope i helped a bit more this time..

 

[xander]

bump!! any other pros willing to help?! polypertrus? solomon? jordan? karajo?

 

[demjor19]

right now i am dealing w/ a possibly stunted longnose gar. he started to grow from about 7" then stopped at about 10". he eats like crazy and i do water changes as i always have...still he is not growing. i believe this stunting may be more related to diet rather than tank size though. i have no experience in dealing w/ stunted gar...so this is new to me as well. i could keep you posted on how mine progresses.

 

[xander]

alright. and just fyi i didn't buy the gar from my friend. lol