Betta Fish Forum banner

ID this Loach please!

2K views 24 replies 8 participants last post by  AyalaCookiejar 
#1 ·
I was given this guy (girl?) and I don't know what s/he is!? Can anyone identify this loach?? Is s/he compatible with RCS and my Betta? What do I feed?

TIA!
 

Attachments

See less See more
1
#8 ·
That's a Chain Loach (aka Dwarf Loach). They need to be in shoals of at least 6 and reach 2.5 inches. They will take flakes, catfish pellet, algae wafers, and other small-sized frozen foods. They need a soft, sandy substrate that won't damage their barbels. 15 gallon minimum. They are generally peaceful and are good with fish with similar temperaments.
 
#9 ·
He's a Angelicus Botia Loach (Botia angelicus).. Not best for my tank as I only have a 10G. :( I guess I could try to bring him in and see if the fish store will exchange him towards a couple Kuhli Loaches maybe? I definitely need a loach to keep the snails down and clean the bottom as I'm not a fan or cories at all! (Sorry to the lovers!)
 
#20 ·
AG's are snail eaters. I don't think I'd have an issue with overstocking with 5 KL's, 1 Betta, and a handful (If they're still in there, I haven't seen them since I got them!) RCS. I know there are pest snails in there too. I see them here an there but they don't really count! KL's are known to have light BL so I'd be ok with 5. I don't think hubby would appreciate the rather expensive bill if I got 5 at once thou! I'd have to start with 3 and work up.
 
#22 ·
So 10 gallons. Going off of 1 gal for inch of fish.

3 Loaches= 12 inches
1 Betta= 2

Needing 4 gallons won't be a problem in a planted tank but getting even 1 more loach would bring it to you needing a 20 gal and if you wanted 5, you need a 25 gal but could stay at about 15-20 with the plants. That's just my opinion. Not to mention the loaches will eat the snails and then need food, they eat a lot more then a betta and different food. They can eat betta food but as bottom feeder wafers and pellets contain a lot of algae (often first or second ingredient) it would be to much plant matter for a betta to deal with. My opinion, I wouldn't do it.
 
#23 ·
Oh, do not feed the poor kuhlis algae wafers. o_O The main portion of their diet should be protein based. A regular staple community feed is fine.

I never go by the inch per gallon rule, it is too faulty. I have around 70-80 inches of fish in my 20 gallon no problems. 10 of which are kuhli loaches. :)
 
#25 ·
Yeah, Kuhli loaches have a relatively small bio-load. My brother has two and they LOVE the NLS small fish formula pellets I feed them (though this may have something to do with the fact that he was feeding them Wardley flakes -_-). They even try to swim to the surface of the water because they're too inpatient to wait for them to sink :p

They seem to be pretty hardy considering his two have lived five years in his care (or lack thereof). He's been unsuccessful keeping anything else in that tank alive. However, they only come out when I feed them. This is probably due to the fact that he only has two.

I love watching them, though. I always find time to sit and watch his tank right after I drop some pellets in there.
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top