saqib

Hi guys!

I have a 40 Gallon with 3 Angels (juveniles) and 4 giant danios...

now the matter at hand:
The area where i live in..it is very hard to find clown loaches..however this time around the LFS got around 20 of em and will sell em off in quite a quick time...
can i get 4 clowns (each around only 2~3 inches) and stock them in with my angels for now and when they grow up ill shift them to the 150 gallon tank that i have with 2 oscars and 4 blood parrots?
if i do stock them in the bigger tank right now they would be eaten up by the oscars there and then

mr. Clown Loach

loaches rule i say you should but only if you stick with putting them in the 150 like you said. it might be a while before they can go in that tank because they only grow about half an inch a year (occasionally 1 in a year)so it might be like 16 years old before you do that.

Butterfly

Even when they get bigger they don't need to be in the tank with the Oscars.
Loaches need to be in groups of three or more,The more the Merrier.
I've read a lot about Clown Loaches and have lots of experience with them. If they have lots of room and really good clean water they will grow fast the first year then slow down. Mine went from just about 2 inches to 7 & 8 inches in a year, but they were in a 75g tank with plenty of room. I personally can't advise you to get clown Loaches for the forty gallon even for a short length of time.
Here's some really interesting information on Clown Loaches and some cool pics too
http://www.loaches.com/species-index...a-macracanthus

saqib

a very nice link i must say!
I love 'Marge' lol

i might pay the LFS a visit today and look into it...either way i have to go there cause im planning on shutting down my 35 & 40 gallon tank and replacing them with a 100 gallon one...im limited on space so now ill be holding a 150 & 100 gallon tank each

Butterfly

Three would be great in a 100g tank
carol

mr. Clown Loach

getting a new tank is worth it because CLOWNS RULE

saqib

i got myself 3 clowns today, only 2 inches each...**** they'r small...

so a couple of questions...do i keep feeding the tank mates i.e. the angels the same way and hope that the clowns come to the surface and eat?? or would i need to buy food that sinks??

plus how do you feed them cucumber? should i peel the skin off and throw the a piece in as is?

mr. Clown Loach

try boiling the cucumber and put sinking food in until the clowns learn to come to the top like mine are over a year old and just now started coming to the top

Butterfly

Shrimp pellets sink and they love them as well as veggie wafers. Thawed frozen blood worms are always a good treat. It may take a couple of feedings for them to decide that it's acceptable food but they will learn because Clowns are pigs. They are natural bottom feeders but will go where ever the food is
Carol

mr. Clown Loach

clowns are cool because you can tell when they're excited/hungry/in a fight because they're black stripes will turn kind of whitish like in my signature the one in the bottom right was just in a fight when i took the picture

Butterfly

Yes clowns are very unique and intelligent fish. Down at the bottom of this article is some explanations for the greying out(right on Mr. Clown Loach ). also some delightful pics of different stripe patterns
http://www.loaches.com/articles/clow...ing-variations
carol

mr. Clown Loach

lol when they "grey out" its also easier to see injuries on the fish because they will stay dark and not grey.