Why do you keep catfish?

[necrocanis]

Hey everyone. Just trying to start some interesting threads. Maybe you guys allready had a similar one before. I was just thinking it would be cool to hear why you guys like to keep catfish. For instance my goal is to keep at least one of each species of pimelodid catfish to maturity and beyond. What is your goal??

 

[Vince]

Most Catfish are very mysterious in that they just come out when "no one is looking". So I like to spy on them when they like to prowl and scavenge for food. Very interesting to watch especially if they don't see you.I have two synodontis petrikola, and a RTCxTSN in my neighbors pond.

 

[lizardfishman]

the bottom of the tank is empty w/o them. and they look cool

 

[piranha45]

i keep them for the purpose of bottom-feeding, algae control, tank variety, and in the case of most american catfish, activity.

 

[Fish_are_fishfood]

When I used to have them, I forgot what kind they were, I kept them because they were just plain awesome looking. They have all there little whisker thingies...and there shape is different than just, umm, well its just different...

 

[necrocanis]

just realized that my goal of one of each species of pimes, would mean that I would have to raise over 300 medium to large catfish. oy, But that's the goal I am setting for myself. Not to mention keeping some of the hybrids too.

 

[snogard]

size

 

[sandtiger]

I am not sure why I keep catfish but along with cichlids they are my favorite aquarium fish. Part of it is that they seem so mysterious. Larger cafish are very impressive even if they don't move much. Many smaller catfish are very active, like corydoras. Some look totally bizzare like plecostomus. Others are pretty looking or interesting to look at...like the pictus with wiskers as long as it's body. And some just give me that close to home nestaliga...like my brown bullhead.

 

[AngelicGreenTerror]

They are fun to watch grow, especially plecostomus as they start out so small and you help raise them to where they get larger... I like Spotted Rafael catfish because of their hardy-ness and will hardly die.. I have lost a lot of a fish to an extremely dirty tank, but he survived that and has been peacefully (not) living in my 20 gallon... He is fun to see if he decides to eat early in the monring.

 

[necrocanis]

yeah, they are quite hardy. I once saw 3 rtc about 3ft each in a lfs, they all had lost all of their fins and whiskers to tail and fin rot. They were given to the lfs to keep when the owner didn't know what to do. They are still alive 5 years later. They can't swim or move though. So the owner pics them up ever now and again to place them in different spots in the tank to keep them from getting sores on their bellies. He also has to put food right in their mouths for them to eat. they seem happy enough. Sucks not to be able to move though. Next time I go home I will have to take pics of them to post on here.