Question about Convicts

[rubester]

I have a 55 gallon tankwith a 4 year old Irridescent Shark and a 4 year old Plecostomus both about a foot long, A neighbor has offered me a few convicts but I am not sure after some research tonight I am confused. Do you think my fish would be safe from them????

 

[blueturq]

Your gonna need a bigger tank for both of those fish.

The fish you have may already have stunted growth from being is such a small tank for so long

 

[fishdude07]

yeah that irridescent shark needs to be moved to a larger tank. since hes 4 years old, my guess would be that hes stunted from being in that tank for so long...id say get a 10-20 gallon tank (preferrably 20, but theyre fine in 10 gallons) for a pair of convicts...just one pair. how big are the convicts you were offered?

 

[Cichlid-Man]

You're convicts would be the ones at risk if you put them in that tank. Hold off, either get another small tank like a 20gal or just wait. Get rid of at least the shark so it can find a home with a bigger tank. Then you can think about more fish.

 

[Kyle]

I don't mean to offend anyone, but all you guys can ever seem to do is complain about the size of fish anyone has in a certain size tank. Any time anyone says anything about an irredescent shark, bala shark, tinfoil barb, oscar, arowana or any other large fish, all I ever see is your tank is to small, then half of the time there are not even any answers to the question. I am sure that rubester knows that the tank is to small.

Having said that, I agree with c-man. Convicts can be mean, but I don't think that convicts would harm a foot long irridescent shark much. They would be more afraid than anything.

 

[Cichlid-Man]

Well we say this to plant a seed in the person's head to stop and think about it. Is this tank really a suitable size for my fish longterm? Do i want to keep this fish longterm? Its just something that needs to be addressed. Its a learning experience.

Like stated, I don't think the convicts wouldn't harm a 1ft fish (most likely) but they might pester it. But i don't think you should put them in the tank. A large pleco alone is a messy fish but add in another 1ft fish and a few convicts (messy) then you might get water problems on down the road. The convicts might pick the shark....possibly causing it to jump out of the tank....or swim fast, breaking a heater or bumping a decoration so it cracks the tank....so many possibilities that i just wouldn't risk it.