# Salvini Cichlids with non-cichlids?



## HunterMorrow (Dec 15, 2011)

Are there any brighter, schooling non-cichlids that you can keep with a Salvini?

I had a Jack Dempsey and Convict and some Local Fish Shop mystery meat cichlid sort of thing when I was a kid in a 50 gallon and with Christmas the itch to start a 70 gallon cichlid tank up is getting to me.

Now, of all those 3 fish, I thought the Convict ran the show. He was certainly the smallest but absolutely didn't act like it.

Now, I saw those Salvinis at a pet shop and I instantly thought they would be a great fish but I was told that they could be bossy and even more assertive and "Little Napoleon" than a Convict.

I have also read here from others that their Salvinis only get dominant and bossy when they are going to spawn and that other than that they prefer to hide out.

I just have been getting conflicting advice as to what to keep with Salvinis, particularly as to what non-cichlids can be kept with them. Any advice or personal experience would be really appreciated.


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## irondan (Nov 22, 2007)

i have kept sals with giant danios, blackskirt tetras and rainbows with no probs but i only had 1 sal, not a pair.


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## aquariam (Feb 11, 2010)

Giant Danios can out run a bullet. I'd probably go with them.


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## CjCichlid (Sep 14, 2005)

From my experience, Salvini's are pretty aggressive and will be even more so when spawning. With that said, there are quite a few schooling fish or "dithers" that could possibly work longterm.

A few that I'd reccomend...

Giant Danios
Buenos Aires Tetras
Columbian Tetras
Congo Tetras
Rainbows
Silver Dollars
Filament Barbs

Good luck on whatever you decide!


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## HunterMorrow (Dec 15, 2011)

Thank you for your quick replies. I was thinking that if a fish like a cichlid likes to hide in the caves and stuff that I will give it, then I should have fast swimming fish in the middle (rainbowfish) and fast swimming fish on the top, like giant danios.

I am nervous about tetras and barbs. I think a tetra could be a tasty snack for a cichlid and that barbs can sometimes attack, even if fed a proper balanced diet and with a school to dissipate their dominance and aggression pack behavior.

Thanks. I am very, very new to cichlids and I appreciate the advice.


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## oldcatfish (May 27, 2009)

Giant Danios do well with most cichlids, regardless of temperament...if the tank is large enough, and the school of danios is large enough not to have individual fish singled out. The only fish that they usually don't do well with are, large piscivores. Salvini's are a medium sized predator, and a large male could pose a danger for smaller danios, but in general should be ok. But cichlids are individuals, so you never really know until you try.

For what it's worth I have giant danios in 2 of my CA tanks...all contain adult cichlids of average size for their species.

One of them is a 125g with a female Red Devil, a male Carpinte, a male JD, and a female GT. I used to have a male Salvini in the tank...but he made the mistake of challenging the RD for dominance. She killed him before I could remove him. The only fish that ever have tried to catch the danios is the male JD...for about 2 weeks. He has since given up. I have about 20 danios in that tank.

The other tank is a 75g that contains a Black Belt cichlid , and I recently added a female pink convict and a "mixed African" red zebra female (I am experienced mixing CA's with Africans, so no comments please). I have 5 danios in this tank, but plan on adding 5 more. I initially did have 10 danios in this tank; 5 normal and 5 albinos. For some reason the BB took a disliking to the albinos--he did manage to kill them all. He leaves the normal ones alone--actually he spends his time trying to catch the convict or African.

Giant Danios are my favorite all time fish---they are extremely hardy, and mix well with a wide variety of fish. They add a lot of movement, and really fill out the upper levels of the tank. And they make large, colorful cichlids look even more impressive.


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## hauntingurcoma (Dec 19, 2011)

I have had several salvini pairs and always had good luck with bala sharks...very fast and good sized fish.


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