# My Pink Convicts are savages- help!



## cywclover (Dec 4, 2012)

New to the site, new to fish...however, I have done a lot of research in the hopes of becoming a responsible fish owner!
Everything was going well. I've got 12 pink convicts who seem to be living together cohesively. We adopted them from friends who split and were basically going to flush them  They told us they had started with 20 fish (in just a 10 gallon tank, and that the others had been eaten by the rest. It was apparent that they hadn't been entirely devoted to these fish as there was nothing left in the tank aside from just a few rocks- thankfully they did have a filter and heater. We did what we could with the old tank until we could get a 20 gallon tank and all of the necessary accessories. I followed all of the protocol to ensure their success and happiness in the new tank. Before I put them in the new tank, I decided to pick up a few new fish. I did a lot of research on this too, understanding that they don't agree with many fish, including some fellow cichlids. I definitely plan to get a pleco but my tank isn't ready for him just yet. I spoke extensively with the woman at the store, and in the end she did point out that there is no guarantee that the fish I chose to buy would survive living with mine. She suggested a few that "should be fine"- they were also convicts and I was sure to pick the larger ones. I put them in with mine- everyone seemed fine all evening. They seemed to adjust well in the new tank and I watched them play, making note that they were not too concerned with the new fish and that they weren't attacking them. Went to bed, feeling great about everything. My husband woke me up this morning to tell me that all of the new fish had been murdered. I was very sad about this...I was hoping to never see a dead fish and I had tried so hard to ensure this did not happen (silly me?). My husband wanted me to call the store and complain, but I know that there is no guarantee and a friend had already told me that they do not refund you any money for the fish if this happens. I am so frustrated! I have read other posts where members state that specific fish can live with convicts, but I am afraid to try any new ones now. Should I even bother with the pleco? Any suggestions would be highly appreciated, thanks!!!


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## Chromedome52 (Jul 25, 2009)

Twelve convicts in a 20 gallon tank is still severely overcrowded. The fish are probably stunted due to the poor conditions you've rescued them from, but they can still grow to near normal size with care. You need to get rid of some of them before you can get any new fish. The new fish may not have been murdered, they may have died from some other problem and then been eaten by the other fish. There are many possible problems here, but the first is too many fish in a new tank. Read up on cycling the tank as well, your post seems to suggest that you just set up the new tank without it.

Convicts get a bad rap as aggressive, but usually they aren't so bad until they start spawning. Unfortunately, once they reach breeding age, they are almost always spawning!


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## sweety (Jan 10, 2010)

I'm new to convicts & have 1 with 3 firemouths in a 29G tank all are young & it's only temp until I get more tanks next month but wow the convict really hammers everything in the tank & TBH I think I've got an over stroppy one. With your set up I would cut the numbers of the convicts down to maybe 4 females as i've read they are a little calmer than the males & rehome the rest


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## cywclover (Dec 4, 2012)

Thanks for the replies! The fact is, our fish actually murdered the others...my husband saw them attacking the last two while the others were already dead...poked all over and the eyes gone.  Otherwise, our fish have seemed to be very comfortable and happy in this tank...although I do understand that we should have gotten a 30 gallon tank for 12 fish...I didn't realize this until afterward. On that note, the woman at the store (who seems fairly knowledgeable) said that they will be fine in that size tank but did suggest that we did not get any more, except for maybe one pleco. I have noticed that our fish have grown a bit since we've owned them (2 months) and like I said, they look healthy and are behaving normally (playing/fighting). They have lots of rocks, grass and hiding spots and they are using everything we've given them. I had mixed some of the old water into the new tank, waited for the correct temperatures, and conditioned the water. We also started it with the filter from the last tank, as recommended by that same woman, but plan to put the new one in today. I still have to test the levels...that is all new to me and science has never been my thing, but I am trying. My husband understands it all more than I do. I appreciate all of the suggestions and am hoping for more...


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## cywclover (Dec 4, 2012)

Oh, and thanks sweety...we have 2 larger ones that seem to dominate the others, while the smallest one manages to stick around- he's quick and seems to interrogate the others. 
I forget which ones are male and female...one has just the pink cheeks and the other has the pink bellies right? If someone could clarify? I'm also worried about mating (or however it's called with fish). Sorry!
Please don't condemn us for our mistakes, we are honestly trying and our intentions are pure! I was devastated to find our new fish were killed


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## cywclover (Dec 4, 2012)

How do I post a photo...thanks :thumb:


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## aicardi (Sep 15, 2012)

cywclover said:


> the woman at the store (who seems fairly knowledgeable) said that they will be fine in that size tank but did suggest that we did not get any more, except for maybe one pleco.


 A common Pleco can grow up to 18", and they grow fast.


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## cywclover (Dec 4, 2012)

Okay, I will ask her about that then. I don't count on her for all info, which is why I'm on this site! Do they not grow depending on the size of their tank? What size of tank is recommended for just one pleco then?


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## cywclover (Dec 4, 2012)

Like I said before, we rescued these fish so they wouldn't be flushed down the toilet...we have already put a lot of time and effort into keeping them, and want to do what is best for these fish within our means. 
Help and suggestions will be *greatly* appreciated... criticism is unnecessary, thank you.


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## sweety (Jan 10, 2010)

Keeping a fish in a smaller tank might stunt it's growth or just slow it down but over time it will still get close to the size it should so maybe a pleco that would normaly grow to 18" could still poss grow to 15" & pleco's i've found poop a huge amount. You might get away with a BN pleco but others would be able to advice better than me. I'm not sure on sexing the pink con's but they will beed if you have males & females in the tank & all **** will break out in your tank & some if not most of the fish will be either pinned to a corner of the tank or killed as the parents will their up most to protect their babies. Even if all of your fish are the same sex you will need to rehome a lot of them as the females grow to 4" & males 6".
I'm still learning about cons but am really enjoying the one I have at the min when it's not beating up the other fish the little monster


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## cywclover (Dec 4, 2012)

Thanks sweetie! I am planning on upgrading to a larger tank at some point...my husband will not be impressed if I bring it up now after all we went through to get this one set up! We have to travel to acquire everything...there is nothing where we live for fish, let alone barely anything for other pets also. We also get our dog food from out of town...it's only the cheap quality stuff available here. I have seen our fish grow which makes me happy but I would like to provide them with more room. I did try to upload a photo but I can't seem to email any of the admin people. If someone could contact me to help with that, I would really appreciate it. Thanks!!


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## aicardi (Sep 15, 2012)

cywclover said:


> Okay, I will ask her about that then. I don't count on her for all info, which is why I'm on this site! Do they not grow depending on the size of their tank? What size of tank is recommended for just one pleco then?


They will out grow their tank. Fish only growing to the size of the tank is a myth. What does happen is they are stunted. Outside growth slows but organs continue as normal.
Not healthy at all.

A bare minimum tank would be 55 gallons. Think about it this way. A full grown Pleco would have trouble just turning around in a standard 55g which is only 11" front to back.
75 gallon is 18' front to back. Both of these tanks are 4' long. 
In short- It would be like you living in your closet.


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## sweety (Jan 10, 2010)

Hi cywclover I use photobucket to host & upload photo's which is free. A larger tank would be far better for them & the tank you have now would be fine to house the fry (babies) intil they have grown to a size you can sell or give away


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## Pagancpr (Dec 14, 2012)

I have a pair of albino convicts with a GT and JD in my 75, there are just fine ,they have plenty of hiding places BUT! I'm still cautious with the male convict because is the smaller one and the female harrashim all around . He is fine but if I notice he is hiding too much I have to rehome him so he can be happy. But everyone is growing pretty fast and at dinner time he is no shy.
For 20 gal tank just 1 convict and maybe couple of brave tsank mates, not cichlid.


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## Pagancpr (Dec 14, 2012)

The males are plain white and the females have an orange beatiful color in the belly,! Hope it helps.


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## bluejack23 (Jan 23, 2012)

aicardi said:


> cywclover said:
> 
> 
> > Okay, I will ask her about that then. I don't count on her for all info, which is why I'm on this site! Do they not grow depending on the size of their tank? What size of tank is recommended for just one pleco then?
> ...


I agree 100% and thank you for explaining it so well. Alot of people think that fish will only grow to the size of the tank, even fish store workers and owners YIKES! A stunted fish is truly a sad happening. To op: I hope your knowledge continues to grow, we look forward to many more questions.


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## cywclover (Dec 4, 2012)

Thanks everyone for all of your suggestions and input! I will work on getting the bigger tank for sure...the 55 gallon might be our limit as we don't have a lot of space...we don't plan on getting anymore unless someone can assure us that they won't be killed! Our fish seem fine, like I said, but I still haven't tested the water. How concerned should I be about this, if they seem to be doing well? I did put the test strip in but I had a hard time reading it b/c I got the impression that the time to read it was limited and I felt pressured once confused. I just tossed it....I will see if my husband has better luck as he is more patient. I have a medical condition that does not allow me to retain large amounts of information at once and I get overwhelmed easily :S

As for differentiating the sex of these fish...they all seem to have rosy cheeks but only a few have the same color in the underbelly. Thanks for clarifying that for me! It appears that I only have two females in the tank, but one of them is quite a bit different than the other. Once of them has pink and a darker orange, both on the belly and in the tips of the fins. The other is just rosy colored in the belly. The one with orange is the only one like it...otherwise it looks just like the rest. Any thoughts?


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## cywclover (Dec 4, 2012)

Oh, what size of filter would I need to get for a 55 gallon tank? Anything else I should know for up-sizing my tank? Thanks again!!


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## Cooder (Jul 19, 2011)

You will need a mid sized canister filter...

and honestly i dont know why your fish store said that 12 would be fine in a 20 gal, i wouldnt have 5 let alone 12! a pair would be max i would put in a 20. We must remember that these are a mid sized central american cichlid that have tempers and destructive power to match. if kept properly, they should give you no trouble, I would go for the 75 gal as it is generally taller and a lil wider which doesnt take much more space.

and with your current tank? did you just take the old filter out and stick on a new one? filters need to go through the nitrogen cycle in order for them to work... they need bacteria in them to deal with the ammonia that is let off from poop, that then turns into their waste, which, in turn, needs to be taken from the tank through REGULAR, small water changes of about 10-20% depending on stocking level.

http://www.seriouslyfish.com/cycling-an-aquarium/

Please read this, it will explain it all aswell as giving you instructions on how to seed your filter. unseeded filters are dangerous to fish....

hope this helps


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## cywclover (Dec 4, 2012)

Well, we kept the old filter in the new tank for a week I think. Then my husband did replace it with a brand new one. Is the totally bad??? The fish seem okay...I notice they've been hanging out near the top more than usual, however...and acting like they are famished. I have been feeding them daily, but I was told that once every two days is better (definitely not to over-feed). Can someone please clarify? When I lift the lid up to put food in they are right there...waiting...and then they go nuts.

I have been doing a weekly water change, with conditioned water. Our tank looks very clean...I'm wondering how long it will take for algae to show up? Should we be using the cleaner that sucks up the rocks (I forget the name of it right now) and cleans the waste out?


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## sweety (Jan 10, 2010)

You should have run your old filter in the tank along side the new one for a month before removing it or added some of the media from the old into the new one as it takes a few weeks for the bacteria to develop in the new filter & the foams need to be washing in old tank water or the bacteria will die if washed in tap water. TBH I would up the water changes to twice a week min for the next few weeks until the filter matures. Fish need to feed every day infact mine get fed twice a day but only enough so there isn't any food left after 3 minutes. Yes i'd use a gravel cleaner as the amount of muck trapped in the gravel can be a little shocking but dirty gravel leads to a dirty tank & ill fish


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## Doyoulikefishsticks (Jan 10, 2013)

What brand of food are you feeding them? Are they flakes or pellets? Float or sink? From what I have read, the fish will eagerly eat practically any type of appropriate food you feed them, but fish foods come in a lot of different qualities. Feeding them a food that has been proven to be a high quality fish food is the best idea.

For example, cheap flake food from wal-mart more than likely is low quality, it might have the same protein content of better quality foods, but its the quality of the proteins in the food which is important.

Pellets are better than flakes, because the pellets retain their nutritional content longer than flakes. I think I read somewhere that flakes, being paper thin, loose their nutritional content in about 30 seconds after being in the water. I'm not sure if this has been proven? But a lot of people recommend pellets. Especially sinking pellets, as it is easier for the fish to find them and they eat them faster.

A lot of people recommend New Life Spectrum Fish Food. For you, you would want the "Cichlid Formula" most likely.


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## cywclover (Dec 4, 2012)

Thanks a lot for the advice everyone! They are fed with flakes right now, but I do have pellets. I used them a few times but I don't really see them eating it right away...just floating on the top so I removed it after a while. I will try again.. I have started feeding them twice a day after talking to someone else...just smaller amounts to be sure all pieces are being eaten.


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