Hi, What are normal growth rates for plecos? I have an albino ( I don't know his scientific name but I was told by a knowledgable source he would grow to be around six inches, max.) I have had him for maybe six months, and he has doubled in size but he is still small, about two inches or so. How quickly should he mature? Here is his diet : a one inch slice of zucchini four times a week, all the algae he can find, live blackworms once a week, frozen bloodworms or daphnia (I don't think he partakes in the daphnia though) every day. Is this okay? I worried because in a nother thread someone mentioned lack of growth in conjunction with the pleco not being fed enough. thanks.
am I doing anything wrong?
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There are average growth rates, but the fish haven't read the rule book.
I have 3 sailfins, had them since they were the size of my little finger, and all 3 arrived on the same day. 6 months on, and one is twice the size of the others.
If he's eating then I wouldn't worry too much - a varied diet is better for the fish, but anything he gets down him will be fine enough to keep him going. It's when they hardly eat at all (often because they are offered completely the wrong food) that real problems occour.
At the end of the day he'll grow at his rate - and no-one elses.
I have 3 sailfins, had them since they were the size of my little finger, and all 3 arrived on the same day. 6 months on, and one is twice the size of the others.
If he's eating then I wouldn't worry too much - a varied diet is better for the fish, but anything he gets down him will be fine enough to keep him going. It's when they hardly eat at all (often because they are offered completely the wrong food) that real problems occour.
At the end of the day he'll grow at his rate - and no-one elses.
Your Pleco, under ideal conditions, will grow (or can) to ten inches...
Feeding Plecos zucchini, a practice I would never do, is not a good way to spur growth.
For one thing, there's really not a whole lot of nourishment in zucchini, known as a summer squash.
Added to the fact that they probably contain pesticides that we may be able to handle, fish may not be so accepting.
The ideal food would be Hikari sinking algae wafers fed after lights out. The first ingredient is fish meal, not algae.
--garyroland.
Feeding Plecos zucchini, a practice I would never do, is not a good way to spur growth.
For one thing, there's really not a whole lot of nourishment in zucchini, known as a summer squash.
Added to the fact that they probably contain pesticides that we may be able to handle, fish may not be so accepting.
The ideal food would be Hikari sinking algae wafers fed after lights out. The first ingredient is fish meal, not algae.
--garyroland.
Plecos will grow very large (esp common ones) they can get over a foot...there are some species that stay smaller, so hopefully yours is something besides a common pleco.
I'm not sure where garyroland got the info that zucchini or cucumber is a bad diet for plecos, it is very healthy for them. There are some people who think one or the other is better for the fish...and the only veggie that I've heard has less nutritional value is lettuce. Some people even feed their fish potatos and the like. In my opinon your pleco sounds like he has a great well rounded diet!
I believe having ideal tank conditions for the pleco (or any fish for that matter) is what spurs growth, feeding a high quality food and having a higher temperature in the tank. (within reason) but what Purple said about their growth rate is right on!
I'm not sure where garyroland got the info that zucchini or cucumber is a bad diet for plecos, it is very healthy for them. There are some people who think one or the other is better for the fish...and the only veggie that I've heard has less nutritional value is lettuce. Some people even feed their fish potatos and the like. In my opinon your pleco sounds like he has a great well rounded diet!
I believe having ideal tank conditions for the pleco (or any fish for that matter) is what spurs growth, feeding a high quality food and having a higher temperature in the tank. (within reason) but what Purple said about their growth rate is right on!
An excellent way to foul a tank is to feed vegetables...
With all the nutritious fish foods on the market developed for tropicals, there's really no need to feed low nutrition summer squash.
It's my contention that pesticides contained in veges are detrimental to fish and to humans. Certain pesticides are a contributing factor to human cancers, a well-known fact.
I would claim unknown causes for fish deaths that occur with fish fed veges can be attributed to the constant feeding of these foods.
Of my 70 fish, many of which are "bottom" feeders, I would never consider feeding any type of squash, or, infact, any type of garden vegetable. I haven't had a sick fish in years. Of course many factors add to that accomplishment.
--garyroland.
With all the nutritious fish foods on the market developed for tropicals, there's really no need to feed low nutrition summer squash.
It's my contention that pesticides contained in veges are detrimental to fish and to humans. Certain pesticides are a contributing factor to human cancers, a well-known fact.
I would claim unknown causes for fish deaths that occur with fish fed veges can be attributed to the constant feeding of these foods.
Of my 70 fish, many of which are "bottom" feeders, I would never consider feeding any type of squash, or, infact, any type of garden vegetable. I haven't had a sick fish in years. Of course many factors add to that accomplishment.
--garyroland.
No offence sir, but you would be the first to refer to zucchini as low nutrition in my experience. And it's also a well known fact that organic vegetables are available at really any health food or grocery store for that matter. My question was not whether feeding Zucchini was sound but rather if there were other vegetables I could add to his regimen. thanks everyone for the input.
yes there are many. i feed my loaches zucchini, cucumber, lettuce(which started out as apple snail food, but the loaches decided they wanted some too.) and apple slices.
anything in its natural form is loaded with nutrition (i.e. raw vegetables) the more processed food gets, the less nutritious it becomes.
anything in its natural form is loaded with nutrition (i.e. raw vegetables) the more processed food gets, the less nutritious it becomes.
I'm with Loach ^ Goodbye (bandwagon junkie)
Zucchini, cucumber and many other veggies are a well known food for bottem feeders. I vote it safe enough. If i can eat it why can't my fish? Go for it, feed them zucchini, lettuce, and cucumbers.
It seems Gary doesn't eat his veggies because of pesticides.
For 30 years of experience, funny we havn't seen you great tanks. Oh and check your PMs once in a while.
I'm done with this thread.
Zucchini, cucumber and many other veggies are a well known food for bottem feeders. I vote it safe enough. If i can eat it why can't my fish? Go for it, feed them zucchini, lettuce, and cucumbers.
It seems Gary doesn't eat his veggies because of pesticides.
For 30 years of experience, funny we havn't seen you great tanks. Oh and check your PMs once in a while.
I'm done with this thread.
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yea wtf this isn't a popularity contest.we are hardly concerened with boosting our aquarank,or else we would vote all the time.i think that yes it is important to use pesticide free vegetables in my tank.once again i think that this advice to NOT feed is zucchini is a crock.varity is the spice of life,especialy for fish.if you read any of the popular fish publications you would find that most people reccomend a wide and varied diet for fish.i don't think that cucumber is a very good food for fish.cucumber does tend to be pretty empty of vitamins.spinach,romaine(which btw is a big food in marine tanks,another garden food)squash,green peas,and pretty much any other green organic veggie can be fed to your pleco.do keep in mind that is's my humble opinion that plecos don't eat as much vegetable matter as people think.the sucker mouth on plecos is a device to help them hold their position in fast moving waters,not to scrape algae.with all that being said,i do think that wardly or hikari wafers are a good food when bought in the smallest package possible and used in under a month or less.the vitamins in fish food will oxidize quickly after opening.feeding old food is nothing but filler as all the vitamins are gone.vitamin c is the first to go vitamin c oxidizes very quickly.now vitamins in fresh food don't oxidize nearly as quick because they are in the form that nature intended them to be in.and mr.roland to be quite honest i think i speak for a large portion of our members when i say i don't think that we really care about which site is better.we like our small internet vacuum the way it is.number one isn't like its a 500 dollar prize and dinner at the local steakhouse.it's just a number generated by how fanatical the members of each site are.
The AquaRank concept puts some challenge and interest in a rather sleepy website...
But again, if hobbyists on this Site are too morbid to spice up and place some challenge in the hobby, then by all means continue doing your thing.
It would seem to me there's a whole lot of resistance to change here and a firm reluctance to learn, a recipe for going nowhere.
--garyroland.
But again, if hobbyists on this Site are too morbid to spice up and place some challenge in the hobby, then by all means continue doing your thing.
It would seem to me there's a whole lot of resistance to change here and a firm reluctance to learn, a recipe for going nowhere.
--garyroland.
I think your pleco's growth rate sounds fine. We had a common pleco that took about 3 or 4 years to reach almost full grown. Of course, different species and even different fish grow at different rates.
By the way, I think most plecos appreciate some driftwood in the tank to chew on.
On a side note, I don't think the Aquarank ratings really mean that much. It's all really a marketing ploy to get more hits for Aquarank to sell to its advertisers. Not that I don't vote for MFT, but that it's not really a measure of how happy anyone is with a particular site. I happen to like the atmosphere and members on MFT more than other sites
By the way, I think most plecos appreciate some driftwood in the tank to chew on.
On a side note, I don't think the Aquarank ratings really mean that much. It's all really a marketing ploy to get more hits for Aquarank to sell to its advertisers. Not that I don't vote for MFT, but that it's not really a measure of how happy anyone is with a particular site. I happen to like the atmosphere and members on MFT more than other sites
Children , please!
I don't care about an aquarank rating, but I'm not going to slag gary for it either. Nor do I agree with him about zucchini, but I respect his opinion after 30 years of successfully keeping fish.
I don't bother feeding most of my plecs zucchini because it is nutritionally not worth much. My panaque likes it because he is a herbivore, but for most, I give them lumps of shrimp. Most of these fish are detritivores, and prefer foods other than algae and zucchini. Want to get your bristlenoses breding - big lumps of shrimp + lots waterchanges
I don't care about an aquarank rating, but I'm not going to slag gary for it either. Nor do I agree with him about zucchini, but I respect his opinion after 30 years of successfully keeping fish.
I don't bother feeding most of my plecs zucchini because it is nutritionally not worth much. My panaque likes it because he is a herbivore, but for most, I give them lumps of shrimp. Most of these fish are detritivores, and prefer foods other than algae and zucchini. Want to get your bristlenoses breding - big lumps of shrimp + lots waterchanges
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