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Messy!!!

Thu, 08/26/2010 - 23:31 — Criterkid

HELP!!! my parrot fish hide 24/7. I have 3 parrot fish in a 20gallon tank. I've had them for over 5 years know, but they continue to hide, and because they hide I have never been to sure on how much food they eat and what is wasted until I clean there tank. They seem to be very messy and I would like to buy a small fish or crustacean that would help clean up. I've tried a few small algae eaters, but they seem to always get killed by my parrot fish. I did make sure that the algae eaters were not to small but I think my fish team up to kill it any was. Please does anyone have any idea what I could do!!! Thanks!!

Comments

Sun, 08/29/2010 - 11:48 — moonchild1970

Have you considered a striped

Have you considered a striped raphael catfish?

Sun, 08/29/2010 - 10:08 — Criterkid

bigger tank

hey guys. Thanks for your advice I really appreciate it!!! I am afraid I will have to give my parrot fish away as I already have a 40 and 50 gallon tank in my house, not of which they could survive in. Thanks again !!!

Sat, 08/28/2010 - 20:47 — femacle1

yes i know... sadly... i see

yes i know... sadly... i see it a lot doing the work i do. my thing is that my parrots are about 2 years old now and they grow fast at first but they are no where near being full grown. even though they are still small they could not live well in a small tank. i know ppl do it all the time...you should see some of the fish ppl bring me that they have had in 10 gal tanks...i just dont know why they do it.

Sat, 08/28/2010 - 08:28 — femacle1

lol i dont like it either i

lol i dont like it either i just dont know how ppl can keep such big fish in such a small tank. i feel so bad for them. my parrots arent even that big yet and i would never keep them in a 20 gal. or a 30 gal. they needed more room in the 55 gal that is why they are in the 125 now.

Sat, 08/28/2010 - 16:19 — Chrisplosion

Well they doesn't usually get

Well they doesn't usually get big in a small tank without a lot water changing. "They grow to the size of the tank" which means getting stunted which kills them faster.

Sat, 08/28/2010 - 02:44 — parrotpal

Re:

Yep, get them a bigger tank. Your fish will be happier and much more enjoyable for you and your tank won't look nasty all the time. I have three in a 55 gallon that are all less than a year old and I still don't think it's enough room for them, so I'm saving to buy them a 125 gallon tank. Parrot cichlids grow up to 10-ish inches, so if you keep all three of those in a 20 gallon tank, they won't be able to move by the time they're done growing. Read the previous posts on this subject and you'll see time and again that the rule is 30 gallons for one, and another 10 gallons for each additional fish.

Good luck.

Fri, 08/27/2010 - 06:30 — femacle1

ok looks like i'm first

ok looks like i'm first again. sorry to tell you but your tank is way too small. you should have 30 gals for 1 50 gals for 3 min. they are hiding because they are not happy and need more space. they kill whatever you put in the tank with them because more fish mean less space for them. you need to get a bigger tank asap. i hope you do a lot of water changes also because you need to with that much in a small tank. you need to change 20-30% of your water at least 1 time a week. if I were you it would be 2 times a week. really though get a bigger tank or give them to someone with a bigger tank. it is mean to keep them in such a small tank and it shortens thier lives. how would you like to live you whole life in a closet with 2 other ppl. never able to get out. sorry but it is true. everyone else will tell you the same. just because they are still alive after 5 years doesnt mean they are happy they are just getting by. you could live in a closet but would you be happy? even a 50 gal tank would only be like you living in 1 large room. is that too much to ask for ?

Sat, 08/28/2010 - 05:31 — Chrisplosion

Sorry, didn't want to be

Sorry, didn't want to be first.