When to make a move

[EastBay]

All right, I've had my JD, Tex, Sev and FM for week in my 90g 5-foot tank. All between 2 and 4 inches

Observations after a week:
- As of now, the JD OWNS the tank. He won't let anything near him(her?). Hasn't really caught the sev or Tex, but is starting to put a real beating on the FM.
- The FM has never seemed healthy since I put it in. Hasn't eaten in a week and I can see it getting weaker and weaker. I've tried flakes, dried blood worms, pellets. The FM will swim right by the food without even looking at it. He's become an easier target for the JD in weakened condition.
- I added three SDs but the JD doesn't even seem to pay any attention to them - unless they get too close.
- Everything else appears to No. 2 behind the JD. The Tex doesn't bother the sev. In fact, the only one doing the bothering is the JD.

I guess my question is:
- Should I keep the JD and hope it doesn't kill everybody? Should I get rid of the JD and add something else?

I don't know if I just want a single "wet pet" which is what I'm afraid will happen with the JD. On the other hand, I think the colors on the JD will be stunning when it gets older.

Everyone says the Tex will eventually rule the tank once it gets to 5-6 inches, but at this rate, I'm afraid he might make it that far.

Has anyone ever heard of a "bully" fish getting his arse kicked and then mellowing out? I think that's what this JD needs.

 

[mbeatrice]

the tex deff will rule the tank in a short time... my guess is the jd is the biggest right now .. the tex grows faster than all the fish u have listed and is more aggro..

 

[EastBay]

The JD and Tex were roughly the same size when I got them. I'm amazed at how quickly the JD has already beefed up. The JD is, now, the bigger of the two.
Do you think the Tex will eventually put the JD in his place or will it be battle royale to the death?

 

[mbeatrice]

The JD and Tex were roughly the same size when I got them. I'm amazed at how quickly the JD has already beefed up. The JD is, now, the bigger of the two.
Do you think the Tex will eventually put the JD in his place or will it be battle royale to the death?

yes deff will put it in its place..

 

[Sarah88]

yeah IME fish at that aggro level will back down once there is someone else in charge and mellow out, my JD was also a bit aggro about guarding his cave but never really outright did damage, but this was because my carpintis was higher than him, for awhile he grew faster than the carpintis and was boss and i would see bite marks here and there but once the JD hit 4-5in and slowed in growth and the carpintis had a growth spurt and out grew him he became the boss and while he rules with an iron fist and doesnt tolerate crap from nobody the tank is much more peaceful because as long as the other fish accept their roles and dont try to start anything with him he leaves them alone for the most part. as for the firemouth, i would separate it into a qurantine tank or something as there is obviously something wrong with it and your JD will pick on the weakest link more severely (its a survival technique) i would also consider just rehoming it because IMO a grown firemouth just cant hang with a grown JD or Tex. severums are fairly peacefull too but they get larger and so its more likely that the other 2 with leave it alone as long as it accepts its place at the bottom of the rankings

 

[Amphilophus88]

the tex deff will rule the tank in a short time... my guess is the jd is the biggest right now .. the tex grows faster than all the fish u have listed and is more aggro..

Don´t underestimate Dempseys, mine is ruling over my Midas and my Midas is bigger. JD´s are usually not that aggressive but some are.
And yes aggressive fish can mellow out if they aren´t the boss anymore. But I don´t get that question, you wanna add another fish that is more aggressive then the Dempsey, or are you talking about the Texas?

 

[EastBay]

Mark, yeah, I'm talking about the Texas -- will it put the JD in its place once it gets bigger?
As far as the FM, I posted another thread -- it died overnight. I had a feeling it wouldn't make it through the night.

 

[Amphilophus88]

Mark, yeah, I'm talking about the Texas -- will it put the JD in its place once it gets bigger?
As far as the FM, I posted another thread -- it died overnight. I had a feeling it wouldn't make it through the night.

Yes I just read that other thread. Well looking at my own Dempsey and reading how aggressive yours is there is a good chance he will keep on ruling that tank, although most members are going to say the Texas will be the boss. But I would definately keep the Dempsey, I love aggressive Dempseys, but hopefully the Texas will at least stand up to him, or not getting beat up by your JD.

 

[freebyrd]

my dad has a 8in red devil and that thing has his 6in jack demp. so scared it wont even come out of its stump unless its feeding time and he can sneak in and grab a bite. On the other hand my male jack demp. only really chases the female around, and doesnt really mess with anyone else in the tank. hes def. the boss of the tank at 3.5" dark colors and always wandering around looking for a challenger

 

[EastBay]

It's funny, I think the most bada-- fish in my tank right now is the Sev. Even though the JD chases him around, the Sev just avoids the JD and once he's clear, goes back to whatever it was doing. The Sev is not hiding, cowering, or anything. Just does his thing, clears out when the JD starts the chase, and then just goes back to whatever it was doing.
Pretty cool.
From what I read, the Sev is definitely the weakling of the bunch, but he may actually be the toughest.
I say that now as everyone is only 2 or 3 inches!

As for the Tex, he just stays out of the JDs way for now. I haven't seen it actually be attacked by the JD, just chasing right now, and it only seems when the JD wants to chase someone. There is no one trigger, that I've noticed, that would set the JD off.