# Questions about stocking a 30 gallon with Bolivian Rams



## catty_sam (Dec 19, 2013)

Hello, I'm new here and am hoping to get some advice.

My sister-in-law will be giving me her old 30 gallon aquarium and I've been researching different fish that could work in a tank that size. I'm not really sure of the dimensions, but it's not a "long" style tank or a tall, skinny one. To me it seems to be a pretty standard shape (although I don't know if that will mean much to anyone.) I'm not sure if a filter will come with it, but if not I will probably buy an Aqueon Quietflow 30.

Anyways, I was interested in keeping Bolivian rams in this tank. I'm planning on planting it and having plenty of hiding spots. Can anyone suggest an appropriate number of rams to keep in a 30 gallon? I would like to have a pair, but I'm having a hard time finding much on stocking for a 30 gallon.

I would also like to have
6 Colombian Tetra 
4 Albino Cory
10 Red Cherry Shrimp
1 Dwarf Orange Crayfish

Would this combination of fish be OK?

Thanks


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## ChuckinMA (Aug 24, 2013)

From personal experience, I can only comment on the Bolivian Rams, and they are a good addition.They are one of the more hardy ram cichlid species and active swimmers, often in the front of the aquarium. While their coloring is subtle, under good lighting and with proper feeding, they are definitely attractive fish. I've never seen any aggression from mine and they seem to tolerate more boisterous fish well. I'd go with 1 or 2.


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## oTheBeardedFiish (Oct 29, 2013)

I think a pair would be good for that size tank. As for the stocking the only problems i see would be the shrimp and crayfish. The shrimp would more than likely be eaten and as for the crayfish i honestly am not sure. I think the safe bet would be to leave him out of the equation. Here is what i would do
-7 Columbian Tetra
-5 Albino Cory
-Pair of Bolivian Ram
This stocking gives you alittle wiggle room for the future too. So lets say you maybe want to up the number of fish in the schools (the tetras and corys) or if you want to add some other type of fish (maybe a roseline barb?) then you can. Also i would recommend getting alittle bit bigger filter. Its best to over filter rather than skate by with the bare minimum.


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## pablo111 (Dec 10, 2013)

I'd go with at least 6 corys to make them feel comfortable. Pair of Bolivian Rams, 7 columbian tetras, and Amano shrimp. Get them over 1". The Rams won't bother them. I've kept large amanos with bolivians lots of times. Angels too. The dwarf orange crawfish should be fine too. Just make sure you give him (and the shrimp) caves that only they can squeeze into for moulting and moult recovery.


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## catty_sam (Dec 19, 2013)

Thanks to everyone for answering!

I saw some German Blues somewhere and thought they were beautiful, and after doing more research, I thought that going with Bolivians (at least for now) may be more forgiving... both for the fish and my pocketbook. I really do think they are pretty, though- I love the subtle coloring and their personalities!

The shrimp and crayfish were the ones I was the most undecided about. I have ghost shrimp in with my guppies, but I've never had cherries before and have read that they are quite different (tinier, more prone to getting nommed on.) I've also never had a crayfish, either, and some of the research I did was pretty contradictory. I might try to dig up some more dirt on them. The general consensus seemed to be to give them plenty of places to hide and keep them well fed. I may try them and keep extra tank space open elsewhere in cause things go sour.

I went ahead and looked for a filter with more heft, and there is one at Walmart that costs $10 more and is rated for up to 60 gallons instead of just 45, and even just running it through aqadvisor showed a pretty dramatic difference. Thanks for the suggestion 

One more question now! If later down the road I would decide to try out a German Blue ram in this tank, would war break out, or should they get along alright?


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## Cichlidman14 (Jul 17, 2013)

I had Germans with Bolivians and they did fine, the German was actually the boss. Though they all died due to an outbreak of camallanus worms at first they Bolivians established a pecking order with it and spoon the German was at the top


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## oetheous (May 25, 2013)

I would heavily plant the tank first, and then add the Shrimps. I would suggest not doing cherry shrimps, and doing Ghost shrimps instead. They are bigger... some are still going to be eaten... but a few should survive, hopefully. I would definitely leave out the crayfish. Everything else seems to be fine, stocking wise.

My own 29 gallon has a very similar stocking list. I also tried shrimps too. I added 10 ghost shrimps on one occasion, and 7 got eaten. Then after that I added another group of 10, but they go reduced to one. I saw my bolivian ram grab one, kill it, eat its legs and then just left the body, cause it couldn't swallow it.


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## pablo111 (Dec 10, 2013)

catty_sam said:


> I went ahead and looked for a filter with more heft, and there is one at Walmart that costs $10 more and is rated for up to 60 gallons instead of just 45, and even just running it through aqadvisor showed a pretty dramatic difference. Thanks for the suggestion
> 
> One more question now! If later down the road I would decide to try out a German Blue ram in this tank, would war break out, or should they get along alright?


Do yourself a big favor and stick with the best filters out there. Aquaclear for hang on back. I don't think anybody will dispute the Aquaclear's supremacy as a versatile HOB filter. For canisters Eheim and Fluval. Don't buy anything else. It'll underperform for the money.


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## catty_sam (Dec 19, 2013)

Hi, sorry for taking so long to post again.

I did decide to go ghost shrimp instead of Cherry- I got to comparing sizes and price, and it just makes more sense. They're less than $0.50 at Petsmart, so I can deal with having to buy more every now and then. Plus, ghosts are American and fit with the theme better- just another unexpected plus! I'm not going to do the crayfish. Fun to think about, but I don't feel like going through the trouble of having to order something that may either be killed or kill my fish.

Pablo111- I will have to keep that in mind. Eventually I'd like to upgrade to HUGE tank with a canister, so that info definitely helps!

The tank actually wound up being a 20 gallon, so I had to tweak my numbers a bit, and I went with smaller tetras. I have a Bolivian Ram, black neons, serpae, and the ghost shrimp. I also have some sword and banana plants going and I'm going to try some of those bulb packs, too. I might try a trio of peppered cory and of hatchets (the top of the tank is looking a bit empty.) I had to take out my albino cory; they kept bouncing into everything and the tetra were starting to get nippy. I wound up getting a single peppered cory for $1 at my LFS because they're closing and he/she seems much more mellow, so a trio of them may be OK.

I nabbed a 38 gallon tank at my LFS for $25 during their closing sale (with a heater and filter, too, although I may not use the filter.) Once I move out of my apartment, I'll set it up, and the fish in my 20 gallon can go in there. I'll add another ram then. Depending on availability I may try to add a 
Keyhole cichlid, too. They seem quite peaceful.


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## Cichlidman14 (Jul 17, 2013)

Good luck, I would love to see a pic of the tank. Also can you tell what gender ur ram is?


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## catty_sam (Dec 19, 2013)

Thank you! Once I get finished I will post pictures (hopefully sometime next week.) I have some driftwood I need to put in and I should be buying the hatchets and corydoras this weekend.

I bought the ram at Petsmart so I assumed it was a male and have been calling it Humphrey. BUT, the more I look up how to sex them, the more I'm thinking it may be a female. To me, it seems like that anal tube is not as skinny/ pointy as a male's should be.

Here is a picture: 
http://s941.photobucket.com/user/catty_ ... 6.jpg.html


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## catty_sam (Dec 19, 2013)

I've been asking around, and the general consensus seems to be that she is indeed female. I guess Humphrey needs a new name!


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## pablo111 (Dec 10, 2013)

Yup. That looks like a female. I had the males and females of this species backwards based on my own (apparently wrong) observations but I was corrected by people on this site.


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## catty_sam (Dec 19, 2013)

It can be hard to keep them straight!

Here are some pictures of the tank:
http://s941.photobucket.com/user/catty_ ... sort=3&o=4
http://s941.photobucket.com/user/catty_ ... sort=3&o=0
http://s941.photobucket.com/user/catty_ ... sort=3&o=1
http://s941.photobucket.com/user/catty_ ... sort=3&o=2
http://s941.photobucket.com/user/catty_ ... sort=3&o=3


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