Which Catfish Should I Get?

[xRage10]

Ok so in my 55 I'd like to get a catfish to go with some of my other stock. I currently have...

1x Tiger Oscar (soon to be moved)
2x Convict
2x Firemouth
3x Tiger Barb (soon to add 3 more)

The question is, which catfish should I get, or should I even bother trying to get one? I'd prefer, obviously, a catfish that stays relatively small. I was thinking a Striped Raphael or an Eclipse.

 

[Moloch]

I've been thinking about adding a pictus cat to my 65...my thread 'still tempted to get a cat' in this section I believe has some info on this very topic.

(although a lot of is arguing about how stocked my tank is)


edit: general consensus seems to be...striped raph you'll never see, pictus seems like a great way to go for a small cat. Some people will tell you that they need to be in a group, but others will tell you thats only when they're young (which I'm a little more apt to believe) And I haven't heard much about any other types of cat.

 

[NCStateFisher]

i think that an eclipse would get big enough to eat your barbs and even give ur cichlids a run for their money - but a pair of pictus could be good - i'd wait until you move the oscar first though

 

[xRage10]

I've been thinking about adding a pictus cat to my 65...my thread 'still tempted to get a cat' in this section I believe has some info on this very topic.

(although a lot of is arguing about how stocked my tank is)


edit: general consensus seems to be...striped raph you'll never see, pictus seems like a great way to go for a small cat. Some people will tell you that they need to be in a group, but others will tell you thats only when they're young (which I'm a little more apt to believe) And I haven't heard much about any other types of cat.

Good to know, did a little more research myself and stumbled upon the whole "never see the raphael cat" thing, probably not gonna get one anymore.

i think that an eclipse would get big enough to eat your barbs and even give ur cichlids a run for their money - but a pair of pictus could be good - i'd wait until you move the oscar first though

Yeah didn't quite look into the eclipse cat yet, I just didn't think it got any bigger than 6" or so. Seems like I'm wrong

What does anyone think about a Porthole Cat or 2?

 

[NCStateFisher]

http://www.fishbase.org.cn/images/species/Hobra_u2.jpg
http://aqualandpetsplus.com/Catfis571.jpg

aparently a lot of stores like petsmart and whatnot advertise these as 6" max but i've read on several websites they can reach 18", not sure if that is in the wild or in a tank but it's the reason i didn't get one nonetheless.

Portholes could be good, i think they only get 3-4" max (correct me if im wrong) - personally i'd go with pictus over porthole though because A) they get a little bigger for self defense vs ur cichlids and B) they're incredibly fast - hope this helps

 

[Loves severums]

2 Porthole Cat

 

[xRage10]

http://www.fishbase.org.cn/images/species/Hobra_u2.jpg
http://aqualandpetsplus.com/Catfis571.jpg

aparently a lot of stores like petsmart and whatnot advertise these as 6" max but i've read on several websites they can reach 18", not sure if that is in the wild or in a tank but it's the reason i didn't get one nonetheless.

Portholes could be good, i think they only get 3-4" max (correct me if im wrong) - personally i'd go with pictus over porthole though because A) they get a little bigger for self defense vs ur cichlids and B) they're incredibly fast - hope this helps

After all the research I've done I think they can only get about a foot. Still pretty big though, especially compared to how big the rest of my cichlids (besides the oscar) are gonna get. Actually I saw an eclipse at my LFS today that apparently someone took in there and it was about 8 inches. BEAUTIFUL fish when it's that big. Getting to see it in person really made me fall in love with it. I'm really going to consider getting one when I get a 75 or 90 gallon tank.

2 Porthole Cat

That's about what I was thinking, but when I went into my LFS today to ask if they had any/were expecting any soon they said no and no, so idk about them anymore.

Pretty much, here are the 3 things I'm deciding between. Idea on top being most likely to happen, idea on bottom being least likely.

1. One or two Pictus cats
2. 2 Porthole cats
3. One eclipse, rehome it to a buddy's aquarium when it hits about 8" or 10"

Not sure which yet, I'm gonna give it about a weeks thought and see what some others are gonna recommend.

 

[Chefken]

I really like Eruptera......really active and they seem not to bother anyone....they get big enough to be interesting......about 8 inches I think......but not too large. Love mine!

 

[Loves severums]

After all the research I've done I think they can only get about a foot. Still pretty big though, especially compared to how big the rest of my cichlids (besides the oscar) are gonna get. Actually I saw an eclipse at my LFS today that apparently someone took in there and it was about 8 inches. BEAUTIFUL fish when it's that big. Getting to see it in person really made me fall in love with it. I'm really going to consider getting one when I get a 75 or 90 gallon tank.



That's about what I was thinking, but when I went into my LFS today to ask if they had any/were expecting any soon they said no and no, so idk about them anymore.

Pretty much, here are the 3 things I'm deciding between. Idea on top being most likely to happen, idea on bottom being least likely.

1. One or two Pictus cats
2. 2 Porthole cats
3. One eclipse, rehome it to a buddy's aquarium when it hits about 8" or 10"

Not sure which yet, I'm gonna give it about a weeks thought and see what some others are gonna recommend.

do that...

 

[PostalPenguin]

I have 3 pictus cats in my 55g. Don't see much of them during the day but at night you can see them zooming around the tank. They are pretty awesome looking fish and gobble down huge amounts of food if they can. They don't really interact much except for fighting if one tries to get in the others hiding spot.