# How fast do frontosas grow?



## cvillanueva21 (Mar 10, 2008)

My friends and I bought 8 frontosas probably around September of last year. Each one of us took 2 a piece.

One of mine is substantially bigger than the other one.

I'm thinking about buying the other two from my friend, but I know he never took care of his frontosas. They still look like the same size (less than 2.5).

If I buy them from him, do you think they will grow? Or will they stay that size because he kept them in a smaller tank? There was a word for that but I've been out of touch with the fish hobby for a while.


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## Art_SouthFlorida (May 15, 2009)

I've read they can be stunted by under feeding. If he didn't have them on a good diet and in a small tank, its feasable that the fishes growth could be stunted.

From my experience, I bought a Frontosa from a petstore that had been mauled by another cichlid. His fins had pretty much been eaten off. His color was amazing and I had seen him at the store before at 100% health. They were gonna trash him if I didn't buy him so I decided to do a good deed. He was about 2 1/2 inches in size. Over 6 months I nursed him back to health and now he is 5 inches long and thriving. He turned into the boss of my 90gal and no longer gets bullied. His growth has slowed down enormously now... it was as if he had a growth spirt to catchup to his age. I am friends with one of the guys at the fish store and he was amazed to see how big he got so quickly.

So to answer your question, I don't feel its a lost cause for any fish. If you take on your buddies, they deserve a chance at a good life. If they don't grow, your other Frontosa will make them lunch anyway... you can atleast push that off as survival of the fittest. lol


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## thevein (May 10, 2006)

hey guys, i'm pretty new to Fronts as I've been keeping Malawis for about 10 years or so but I did do tons of research before getting my Front. i've read on several occasions that Fronts will tend to grow quickly in the beggining but slow down as they reach adulthood. I think with proper "love" aka, water quality, diet, and proper tank demensions they'll spring back. I've even had fish really outgrow a tank fast due to the previous stated.

I definetely feel that Fronts are not a begginer fish so to say, they require a good eye and someone dedicated to the hobby such as yourself. Good luck, keep us posted.

I just got my first this week, an awesome Cy.Front "kigoma" @ 5"- show quality


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## allen2 (Dec 16, 2007)

Before I make an assessment of stunted, first I would vent the fish. In many cases your description of the sizes could indicate a good ratio of 1m/3f. Females will not grow as fast as males. Males can reach 6 or so inches in the first year as females will reach somewhere around 3-3.5 inches the first year. These are not exact measurements as feeding and water quality is directly involved in the growth of your fish.

Here is a tutorial I put together on how to vent a frontosa. 
http://frontosa.com/viewtopic.php?t=1355


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