# Piranha Tank



## JHammer489 (Jul 14, 2009)

So I got the bright idea to buy piranhas the other day. And this is what happened.








When they start to grow they will be moved, but as of now they will stay in the smaller tank.
These are really fun to watch. Theyll eat almost anything from turkey to flake food to chick-fil-a sandwitch meat.


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## BRANT13 (Feb 18, 2009)

I used to have a pirahnah tank myself and yes they were fun to watch them devour anything edible put in the tank.....try tossing a pinky in there :wink: mine loved em.....make sure uve got great filtration and keep up with water maintainance, these are messy fish. How many do u have total?


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## JHammer489 (Jul 14, 2009)

Yeah, pinkys are my next food to try. I have a filter that doubles the tank size so it should be good until they get bigger.

I have 12 in there right now.

if you dont mind me asking, what happened to your piranha tank? and what did you do with the fish?


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## BRANT13 (Feb 18, 2009)

i just got tired of them....i actually moved the 8 i had over to my buddys bare 125G he couldnt think of what to put in there so i wanted something new not having money for a new tank.....hes actually still got them....1 has died since then but other than that all are healthy....i never thought they could get as big as they do.....i havent seen em in a while but im guessing theyre at least 8+ inches he feeds them large mice and small ratts it really is cool to watch.....what even blew my mind is that hes got a big common pleco in there as well that cleans the tank pretty well as they like meatier food as they grow anyways....the plecs about 12+ inches and is doing great ....he keeps the pirahnahs well fed and they leave it alone.


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## jfly (Feb 17, 2009)

whew!! owning pirannah's to me is intimidating, and what to do with them when they outgrow or you tire???


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## mok3t (Nov 28, 2008)

On the subject of plecos and Piranhas, I had a common pleco KILL one of my piranhas many years back. He was possibly the nastiest fish i've ever kept.


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## Chromedome52 (Jul 25, 2009)

Give them an occasional piece of fruit, too, for their health. Part of an Orange slice or other tropical fruit once a month is good for them, and I think you'll be surprised by their reaction to it. Mammalian meat is not good for them long term. Nor is chicken. Shrimp and fish pieces, worms, along with regular commercial pellets and flakes will do fine for them. Hopefully you do not want them simply to watch them kill other fish; that is an unfortunate side effect of their mythology.

Piranhas are not the vicious creatures portrayed in movies and stories. Even the original description by Teddy Roosevelt was the result of a staged incident. In fact, they are a bunch of big cowards unless feeding, and they certainly are prey for many larger fish, birds, Otters, and freshwater dolphins. When they mature, the most common species in the hobby are protective parents, like Cichlids, and they do tend to pair off long term.

Sorry about running on, I was once very interested in Characiforms, including Piranhas. Hope you have good luck with them.


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## TheFishGuy (Apr 21, 2005)

I had ten in a 185 about 15 years ago. They ate cichlid sticks... But everyone thought they were so intimidating... They got to the point where they didn't know what to do with a feeder.

If you want them to get big, fast feed them pellet food like Tetras cichlid sticks. It's healthier and the rewards are greater than watching them eat a pinky mouse.


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## JHammer489 (Jul 14, 2009)

Well, so far the only things *** fed them are mostly cichlid flakes, shrimp, krill, turkey, chicken, and a junebug HAHA. I didnt get them to watch them mutilate other animals, i just thought they look cool


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## BRANT13 (Feb 18, 2009)

Nor was i telling you to have them mutilate animals....i was simply stating that mine liked eating pinky mouse from time to time....pirahnahs are awesome fish and should provide alot of enjoyment for you :fish:


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## JHammer489 (Jul 14, 2009)

oh i definately didnt say i wasnt going to give them a pinky mouse from time to time :wink: 
i was just saying to the other guy that im not some psyco future cerial killer kid who likes to watch animals get attacked by fish.lol


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## BRANT13 (Feb 18, 2009)

:lol:


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## jfly (Feb 17, 2009)

i ate his liver with a side of fa fa beans and a nice cianti fffffffffff


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## TheFishGuy (Apr 21, 2005)

jfly said:


> i ate his liver with a side of fa fa beans and a nice cianti fffffffffff


 :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:


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## xalow (May 10, 2007)

From what I hear they can be skittish but even with that in mind I wouldn't want to put my hand in the tank of an animal that could seriously injure me if it chose to do so. With that in mind how does everyone do maintenance on these tanks, and for that matter how to public aquaria keep electric eel tanks clean?


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## TheFishGuy (Apr 21, 2005)

I used to put my hands in my piranha tank all the time. they do not eat or attack unless they smell blood or are comfortable. As for the electric eel tanks, all you use is long rubber gloves...


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## JHammer489 (Jul 14, 2009)

yeah, *** already cleaned the tank. they swim up to my hand, but if i chase them away they wont bite. i dont want to find out what that feels like so ill try to keep an eye out for a rogue hand eating piranha


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## BRANT13 (Feb 18, 2009)

i wouldnt be too worried....unless uve just cut your finger and its bleeding pretty nice or you starve them for sometime :wink:


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## LG0815 (Aug 1, 2007)

they are very shy and arent blood thursty animals at all


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## leopartner123 (Jun 29, 2009)

Where did you buy them from? They are illegal here in the states and apparently very expensive b/c that reason.


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## jh82 (Oct 26, 2007)

leopartner123 said:


> Where did you buy them from? They are illegal here in the states and apparently very expensive b/c that reason.


They're not illegal in all states but I believe they are illegal in Texas which is where the op is from according to his profile.

They're not illegal in the state I live in. I see them regularly at the lfs for a pretty reasonable price.


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## JHammer489 (Jul 14, 2009)

Im from texas, and yes they are illegal here. 
I bought them off the internet and they were shiped through the mail to me. I think i paid $3-$5 each for them. The shipping was the expensive part though.


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## leopartner123 (Jun 29, 2009)

Oh shoot, I didnt even see that on his profile. Wazz up Jhammer, I also live in Dallas Texas... Well Carrollton which is about 15-20 min away, im sure you know. What site?


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## TheFishGuy (Apr 21, 2005)

Um... it's still illegal even when you buy them through the mail... Your supplier should have known that.


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## JHammer489 (Jul 14, 2009)

Hey leo, im from Frisco. Where in carrolton do you live? I used to work there at a pharmacy on rosemeade and josie.

But i dont think my supplier cared that they are illegal in texas. I talked with them on the phone, and they didnt say anything. Would that make it a federal offense in they were shiped across state lines? :?


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## TheFishGuy (Apr 21, 2005)

Yes, as a matter of fact it would! :lol:


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## oldcatfish (May 27, 2009)

I'd like to add something here.

NEVER put your hands in a piranha aquarium. NEVER. I used to do it too, until I had a close call one day.

I've kept numerous species of piranha over the years, and the one thing I learned about ALL of them. They are very unpredictable. 99 percent of the time, and you will be fine....but it's the 1 percent you have to worry about. A 6 inch red bellied piranha can take quarter sized chunks of flesh...or amputate your finger. Piranhas are very nervous fish and will bite if they feel threatened...and it isn't hard to spook them. They are very fast, and can bite you before you have time to react.

Just keep that in mind.


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## JHammer489 (Jul 14, 2009)

Wow, the last post freaked me out a little. Thanks tho. When they get bigger ill definately take your advice. 
Should i get a kevlar glove or something of the sort?

And that realy sucks that i have a federal offense sitting in my house...oh well.


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## dwarfpike (Jan 22, 2008)

You can get one of those shark resistant chainmail gloves divers wear.


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## TheFishGuy (Apr 21, 2005)

You can get chainmail gloves at a resturaunt supply house...


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## leopartner123 (Jun 29, 2009)

Live off hebron. How many gallons is the tank? Have more pics of the fish?


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## oldcatfish (May 27, 2009)

What I used to do to keep safe was the following:

1) Get good long handled cleaning tools and a reacher/ tongs from an aquarium store...the ones that sell a lot of Marine accessories should have them. For water changes/ gravel cleanings...Just attach the gravel cleaner to a 1 inch ID pvc pipe with large rubber bands.

2) Make an easily removable divider to place in the tank---for when you have to reach in. Keep the barrier between you and the piranhas.

3) Make sure that you can see EVERY piranha before you reach in the tank----I almost got bit once when I miscounted the group and started to move a piece of driftwood---there was a lone "straggler" hiding behind it. He would have been cornered....I likely would have lost a large chunk of flesh. Luckily, I took one more look around, and caught a glimpse of his tail. After that, and a similar incident---I started using the divider. But I have accidentally trapped fish on the wrong side too---I always wait for a couple of minutes after I place the divider, and do a count...just to be sure.

***I didn't mean to really freak you out. Piranhas aren't really hard to keep, as long as you respect the damage that they COULD do. Just keep the respect, and they are very interesting fish. And most species really do have a sort of Jeckyl/Hyde personality---nervous, kind of skittish...until they go into feeding or self defense mode.

By the way....the above methods also work if you ever have to work with most other dangerous fish such as poisonous marine animals (Lionfish, Scorpionfish, etc.), aggressive fish with large teeth (Triggerfish, pufferfish, Moray Eels, large Parachromis or Amphiliphus cichlids guarding fry,etc.), Stingrays, Mantis Shrimp, etc.


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## JHammer489 (Jul 14, 2009)

Thanks for the advice! 
Right now, they are all about an inch long. I dont think they could do too much damege now, but at the rate they are growing, it wont be too long before they could get dangerous.

And leo, the tank is only 20 gallons. That are DEFINATELY going in a bigger tank in the next few months because they are growing so quickly. The next will be a 55g, then 75g, then hopefully, i can eventually pick up a 125g or 150g off of craigslist.

And yeah, ill get more pics soon. That one was taken from my cellphone so it wasnt the best quality. Ill try to get more tomorrow.


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## oldcatfish (May 27, 2009)

Get the appropriate sized tank ASAP. They aren't really dangerous now, but will be when they reach about 6 inches.

And let me tell you....moving adult piranhas is quite a hair-raising experience. You can't safely catch them with a net (they can bite through most nets and will try to jump out); you have to lower the water level of the aquarium and herd them into a bucket with a lid that you can put on securely. Also...you have to catch them individually---because otherwise they will damage each other. Plus, to add to the situation---besides the one that you are catching, the others will be dashing around the tank in fright. All will be snapping their razor sharp teeth at anything that gets in their way that they percieve as a threat.


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## TheFishGuy (Apr 21, 2005)

I guess mine were mellow, I never had any issues with them... Even moving them was easy... Just goes to prove that every fish and every experience with fish is different!


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## JHammer489 (Jul 14, 2009)

Yeah, *** already found a 60 gallon corner tank on craigslist that will fit nicely in my apartment. (i like the weird shaped tanks)
and as they get bigger i could move them to our 75g until I find a 100g+

and moving them might be a task. i never really thought of them biting through a net. but that is a definate problem


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## BRANT13 (Feb 18, 2009)

TheFishGuy said:


> I guess mine were mellow, I never had any issues with them... Even moving them was easy... Just goes to prove that every fish and every experience with fish is different!


this is how mine were....only aggressive while feeding :-?


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## TheFishGuy (Apr 21, 2005)

Even when feeding mine were mellow. All they ate was cichlid sticks...


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## oldcatfish (May 27, 2009)

Really...mellow?

All of the species that I kept were a bit skittish if you did anything other than feed them. Then they were shy until the first one took a bite....then they went nuts. I fed mine pellets too, but mostly frozen grocery store shrimp, or chunks of frozen Tilapia.

I've also never had a school in which they didn't occasionally bite each other....and eventually at least one or two got killed. Even when well fed.


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## TheFishGuy (Apr 21, 2005)

I had mine for about two years. Got ten as one inchers, and two died at a very young age. Tank was pretty much bare aside from substrate and one big log that went down on an angle. They all hung out under it. When I got rid of them (killed me to do it) I took them to a store I once worked at as I knew he'd take good care of them. There wasn't a scratch on any of them. He sold them for $50 a piece at 8"... And gave me $25 a piece for them because they were not flesh eating... His sales pitch was you'd save ton of cash by feeding cichlid pellets not goldfish...

I think with the anal way I am about 1/3 water changes once a week they learned that my hands were part of the tank and I never had an issue. They loved me... I was their Daddy :lol:


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## JHammer489 (Jul 14, 2009)

Well, in addition to the piranhas, I just bought a dwarf caiman. NOT to be in the same tank tho. But my apartment is about to look like an exotic animal zoo.


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## BRANT13 (Feb 18, 2009)

Get some pics up :wink:


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## TheFishGuy (Apr 21, 2005)

JHammer489 said:


> Well, in addition to the piranhas, I just bought a dwarf caiman. NOT to be in the same tank tho. But my apartment is about to look like an exotic animal zoo.


From age 18 to 21 I used to have quite the collection between herps and fish... My nick name was Jurassic Johnny... :lol:


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## JHammer489 (Jul 14, 2009)

Ill definately get some pics up when everything is up and running!
Its going in a 55g tank until it outgrows that. And its being shiped to me monday, and should arrive tuesday morning at 9:30am. Im ready for this.

And with all these exotic animals, i might just start charging people to come see. My roommate has a ball python, so any newcomers to this place might get freaked out! hahaha


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## oldcatfish (May 27, 2009)

I also did weekly water changes...but I didn't put my hands in.

Never kept any reptiles, but I did have 3 different species of Aquatic frogs at one time--- African Clawed Frog, African Dwarf Frog, and "Pipa" Toad from South America (those were cool).


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