# 2 concerns newer tank-african cichlids



## Shizark (Mar 26, 2012)

1. all my fish are smaller. my biggest is around 2 inches. I rearranged the tank, added rock, and a couple fish. my second biggest fish, lemon jake and one of the first 2 fish I bought, has now isolated himself and doesnt really seem to been eating. 
It has only been two days since I moved stuff and its for sure a male he has some blue and yellow already. 
Should I be worried??

2. Going for all male tank.I bought a german red peacock- and I am worried its not a male. its still pretty small but there is no color and no spots on the fins. I have 5 fish I am pretty sure are males in the tank and this fish is the 6th. 
Should I be worried and if so what do I do? I do not want hybrid babies, I want all males, but I dont want to get rid of the fish just because I think its a female.


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

What are the dimensions of the tank? Watch the poop on the lemon jake to ensure it remains thick and brown.

You can leave the red in the tank until and unless the other fish start harassing it or the red starts holding eggs. If that happens remove the females and strip the eggs for a snack for the others to prevent the hybrids. She will need to be rehomed.


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## Shizark (Mar 26, 2012)

Tank is 36long by 12 deep eith bowed front. 20 high. 39gallon. I realize eventually i will need a bigger tank but for now they are all smaller.


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

Once the fish pass 1.5" I'd go for the 75G or larger. Even though your jake is the sick one right now...that is one of the larger, more aggressive aggressive peacocks.


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## Shizark (Mar 26, 2012)

So I observed last night for a while and I took a video, but of course I can't get it uploaded from my phone. Everything in the tank seems normal to me but I am a novice. 
All my water tested good last night.
Jake just hides near the bottom corner, moves around a little but for the most part staionary. 
He seems to be breathing just a little different than the other fish. a little quicker pace maybe.
Other fish swim by him and he doesnt act all wierd, he just sits there. they do not seem to be harassing him at all that I can see.

All my other fish are swimming around interacting with eachother and seem fine.

I am stumped and just dont want my other fish to get sick if he really is sick??

I also dont want to be over reacting but he was fine on Friday and now hasn't done squat since i rearranged the tank and added a very small flameback. (smallest fish in the tank)


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## Shizark (Mar 26, 2012)

Here is the video i took last night. Lemon just sits there. Not always in the same place he moves from time to time but as yuo can see the other fish are all over the place.. Also if you see any females give me a shout I want them out of the tank ASAP!


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## 13razorbackfan (Sep 28, 2011)

He may be sick....yes...

Does he try to eat at all? What and how often are you feeding?

Also...as DJ suggested...you need a 75g 4' tank minimum for a couple of those fish because as they start to mature you are going to have some issues as dominance starts to creep up plus you may have a female or two which will only make it worse. Then of course all of these fish will simply outgrow a 36" tank. You should really consider finding a good used 75g with stand/lights. They are really a dime a dozen...should be able to get one with stand and lights for under $200.


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## Shizark (Mar 26, 2012)

He is not eating at all the last couple days. I feed in the morning only, but never have been sure on just how much to ffed them. I feel like I give a decent pinch of flake food. usually float all over the tank and is gone in a min. tops. Every 3/4 days I throw a small chunk of blood worms in the tank.
Can my other fish get sick from him? Do I get him out ASAP? How do I treat said illness? I plan on getting a bigger tank for the basement. I haven't been able to find anything used on craigslist local at a decent price. I will keep looking though.
Also at this point I dont have a hospital tank. So can I treat him in this tank or do I go get a set up tonight?? (really dont want too if I dont have too)


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## 13razorbackfan (Sep 28, 2011)

Shizark said:


> He is not eating at all the last couple days. I feed in the morning only, but never have been sure on just how much to ffed them. I feel like I give a decent pinch of flake food. usually float all over the tank and is gone in a min. tops. Every 3/4 days I throw a small chunk of blood worms in the tank.
> Can my other fish get sick from him? Do I get him out ASAP? How do I treat said illness? I plan on getting a bigger tank for the basement. I haven't been able to find anything used on craigslist local at a decent price. I will keep looking though.
> Also at this point I dont have a hospital tank. So can I treat him in this tank or do I go get a set up tonight?? (really dont want too if I dont have too)


Ok...that may be your problem....bloodworms. Stop that immediately. Do not feed these fish bloodworms. The fish may have bloat. Do you notice any long white stringy poop?

Here is an article to read:

http://www.cichlid-forum.com/articles/malawi_bloat.php

I will try and find some useful threads where people have had the same issues...give me a few minutes to dig them up.

Edit: Here ya go....

http://www.cichlid-forum.com/phpBB/view ... p?t=240845


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## Shizark (Mar 26, 2012)

I will stop feeding the bloodworms. 
( I am confused though, you get 5 different answers tot he same questions) guy at the LFS said blood worms were good for them once in a while (3-4 days)
but i will definetly stop. I want healty fish i dont care what they eat 

I am going to go get a 10 gallon set up tonight, can i use current tank water ( i just changed on Saturday) and then replace the tank water with new water?? So I dont have to wait to get that fish out??

How do I treat him?? just like the bloat cure on here suggests??


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## Shizark (Mar 26, 2012)

Well I actually bagged the fish up and brought it down to the LFS. He said it did look like the start of Malawi Bloat but it didnt look very bad. He told me that they didn't sell Clout or Strait Metro, i thought this was weird but I didnt ask why. its a big fish store too so im really sure if there are regulations or something on it. He said what they have is called Metro+ and I could add it to the whole tank. He said the only downside was the amount of Metro+ i was going to need to treat the fish in the big tank vs isolating him into a smaller tank that needs less meds. 
I asked him about the other fish and he said it wouldn't hurt them if done correctly.

So I started last night with no food and Metro+ on the whole tank. I'll let you guys know how it goes. I am a little leary as I seem to be getting a couple different suggestions and none of them are the same, but I guess thats the way it goes.

Any thoughts??


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## Shizark (Mar 26, 2012)

Woke up this morning and no lemon was dead. Do I have to do anything to the rest of the tank B sides remove the fish? :x


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