TSN- Tank mate gar? royal knife?

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C

conig

Candiru
MFK Member
Nov 2, 2009
211
0
46
tallahassee, fl
Hi guys first post but i have been lurching for a good week.

I have a 17 inch tiger shovel nose that I am looking to acquire a tank mate for. I purchased a 12 inch arowana and watched and integrated them carefully. after about 2 weeks i no longer saw any aggression and stopped worrying about them together........ a couple weeks went by and my TSN tried to eat and killed my arrowana.......I was extremely depressed.

I am still in search of a tank mate for this fish. its in a standard 180. I am considering a gar and a royal knife as i feel both should get big enough. I am only 45-50 miles from the Apalachicola water shed so a fl gar could be ideal. Once it gets too big I could return it to the wild with out destroying the local ecosystem. I found one at 4-5 inches. I believe this will be too small but wondered if I could grow it out in a rubber made with an over the back filter???? how long would it take for it to get 10-12 long? this wouldn't have a heater but since I am in the natural environment i figured it would be ok.

The other option is a royal knife which my wife really likes I found these on line at 8inches. My hope is this fish would be too tall to eat what do you guys think? would he get eaten? I don't have a grow out anymore so he would have to go directly in with the catfish.

last option would be a red tail gourami, I had a 6 inch blood parrot in the tank with the TSN which worked fine in terms of not getting eaten but he was too aggressive for my cat fish.

i have a 55 that has the king kong parrot but he is really to aggresive to have anything grow out with him.

thanks guys let me know what you think.
 
17in tsn needs 17in+ tank mates, or shortor but a lot wider than him i would not risk less than 15in.
arowana and similar can be curled up in the stomarch into a small ball.
even a peaceful tsn will attempt to swallow fish too big for its mouth causing damage if not death tothe victim.
 
i feel pretty much the same way.

any thoughs on growing out a gar in a large rubbermade?

would the knife not be tall enough (3inch's or greater)
 
i have 3 12-14" tsns i have a 13" gar, 21" silver aro, i just took out my clown knife as it became edible it was the same size when it whent in but the cats grow faster that was at 8" or so...i hate to say it but you are starting the process at the wrong end you should have got the cat last to let your tankmates get bigger...if you can find an aro, gar or ck at like 15"+ do that but unless you have a seperat grow out tank i wouldn't put fish in to small...
 
I started with others. green terror jaquar etc. they just got old and passed so now I'm restocking.

guess I'll be looking for gars.
 
what i ment was starting the restocking with the cat, not fish keeping or anything...as the cats grow way to fast or not fast enough depending on what side of the fence your on, but to find a tankmate for a tsn with a headstart is tough...your best bet would be to do a seperate grow out and then put them together unless you could find a big one now gl.....also in regards to your first post it is illeagal to release fish to the wild and you could introduce sickness to the natural lake/river and also you said if/when the gar gets to big...the gar is the easy one to deal with, now your cat can get 3-5' were as the gar 2' "max", if you can properly house the cat the gar would be noproblem...
 
i can properly house but i have a home already for the cat when the time comes, it will go to an aquarium like my pacu did.

just to be clear at one time I had over 15 tanks and the smallest 55gallons. I then got married and well you know. I now have 2. lol so im not totally unexperienced just getting back in the game.

didn't think about the disease but odds are i'd find a florida like the one that was in my cast net on labor day. I can also give it to the colleges marine biologist school there to reintroduce.
 
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