clinton1621

I'm pretty sure that my largest Oto is a female... the other two are about half as big as her. I've noticed she keeps getting noticably rounder, very similar to livebearers who are pregnant... anyone else think it may be a female with eggs

RandomKayos

Now that is cool. Never had Oto's breed for me but have heard it is possible in a well planted tank, Long broad leaves are best and even if you use a plastic plant for the shape, keep some real plants as well.

And good luck, nothing feels better than knowing you did enough of the right things that your fish are comfortable enough to breed.

RK

clinton1621

You just described my tank lol, its probably overplanted with all amazon swords. I've never had ANY luck with egglayers at all... my Angelfish that I had years ago kept laying eggs but they always ended up getting fungus. I didnt know much about egglayers at the time, so I tried taking the eggs out once and keeping them in their own tank. This seemed to cure the fungus issue, and they actually hatched... but I didnt know how to feed them and they ended up dying anyway lol. Needless to say by the time I learned enough about egglayers fry and how to take care of them, my Angels (who were several years old and big as my entire hand) had already bit the dust of old age....

RandomKayos

There is so much to learn in this hobby if you want to go beyond a bowl of fish. And so much advice available and not all of it good. I've made major mistakes over the years and learned most of what I know by trial and error.

I've also spent many many hours laying on docks or floating with a mask and snorkle just watching one small area to see how much really goes on in nature and to understand the bio cycle that we try to mimic in our tanks.

I once had a discussion with guy in a pet shop. He was the suit and tie type, Kept beautiful modern tanks indivualy designed for the rooms they were in. Everything sparkly clean and you could smell the ozone on his cloths. He was concerned with the rapid pace with which he had to to repopulate tanks. We ended up at his place for a drink and a chance for me to see his tanks. Everything was perfect. Water tests were 0-0-1 or 0-0-2, crystal clear. The fish appeared healthy, active and strong. They had to be to keep up with the current from the filtration.

I also noticed that his tanks looked like modern art in an old english library. I explainded that although everything was technically right, he might consider relaxing a bit. Turn down the flow on the filtration, allow a bit of alge to grow on the back walls and non viewing sides. Get some real plants in there and basicly let the tank live as well as the fish.

He called me just about a week later to thank me. Not a single lost fish that week. I went over for a drink about a month later and felt so much better. The tanks now blended into the rest of the decor. Although the viewing area's into the tanks were kept spotless, the rest of the tank had a bit of alge, lots of plants, potted and floating and a gentle sway from the filtration current. The fish were just as healty and active but could find places to rest. And he had nearly twice the fish per gallon as when he was right on the rule and losing fish often.

And the best part to me was to see him relaxed, proud of what he was maintaining and enjoying his tanks, not just pointing out fish like status symbols. You strike me as the type that really enjoys his tanks. And if you have oto's considering breeding you much be doing it right.

RK

clinton1621

Thanks for the compliment
Much like yourself, I too learned most of what I know from trial and error lol. The rest came from my mom, she always had tanks as far back as I can remember (about 23 years ago when I was 6 lol). I can remember she had large (40g?) hex tank with different breeds of tiger barbs.... a 100g community tank, with pretty much every kind of community fish you could imagine in it lol.... and a tank that was her personal tank in her bedroom, I dont really remember that tank much but I know it was bigger than the 100g and it had all large fish in it. All her tanks were natural setups, no fancy stuff or crystal clear glass and water, just a natural healthy tank. I guess thats where I get my style from too lol.

I've never really seen anyone with the superclean tank problem like you mentioned though, most of the people that I know were more of the "I didnt know you had to change the water, I just keep filling it back up" types lol. Their filters were barely running from being severely clogged... their glass and decor had so much algae it looked like one of the guys from zz top... and the nitrates were so high you could have planted a field of corn in the tank lol!

RandomKayos

LOL, the oposite of what I find lately. Seems most tanks I see now are the super clean type. Extremes in both cases. I like a happy medium. Every body of water I've ever studied that just looked healthy had a decent amount of alge, a mix of critters at all levels if you were still and gave things time to adjust to you bieng there, Loaded with critters. Big and small. That is what I strive for in my tanks, varity and living. Of course we watch to prevent preditors and harmful organisms in the tanks but diversity is nature.
RK

clinton1621

Yep, I have always liked to go fishing... and I've never seen crystal clear water in any lakes, ponds, or rivers. So that tells you that natural water isnt crystal clear and its definitely not an indicator that your fish tank is healthy. I guess to be fair, stream fish come from clear water, but they have adapted to that and its just another one of those factors that you have to account for in this hobby =)

RandomKayos

True, there are places where you find very clear water. But if you look, those fish in those streams are spending most of there time along the bank in an eddy, not out in the open. I know big tanks with just a few fish are the rage these days but even then, how many posts do we see about shy fish hiding all the time.

Now to be fair, I'm not saying clean water is wrong. My tanks get a sniff test every day. If I can smell it, then the water needs help. And I've made the statement that my tanks water is drinkable if the need arose. What I'm saying is more to the point of the crystal clear, open boxes of water with plastic plants if any plants at all. I have yet to have a fish tell me that's what they wanted to live in. Cozy is the word that comes to mind when I think of a good tank.

RK

clinton1621

I know we keep rambling off topic, but since its my thread who cares lol. I just wanted to add that this is another reason that I dont use carbon in my filters. Have you ever seen a pile of carbon sitting out in a river or lake lol. So many people swear by this... and actually all it does, unless you are removing meds from the water, is remove most of the trace minerals and metals that are actually healthy for your fish and live plants. This is another one of those examples of a tank being overly clean.

RandomKayos

Ouch, yes, I'm sorry about the topic drift. And LOL, I can't remember the last time I used carbon. Although I use HOB filters on the square tanks, I buy the replacent pads that have the carbon in packets and you assemble the pad on the frame. I never open the packets. I bet I have 50 lbs of carbon stashed away. (Yes, I'm a pack rat.) I was looking yesterday for some substrate for a new 2.5gal I just picked up and realized I still have the driveway gravel from my first tank. When ever I break a tank down for some reason I give the gravel a good rinse and put it in a ziplock or now those disposable glad containers or a bucket if there is that much and don't always use that on the next tank because of changes in taste. But I never get rid of it and look thru that when I'm ready for a change. Imagine 40 year old gravel. That's a good kick start for any aquarium.

RK

clinton1621

No worries about the topic drifting, its nice to socialize on here once in a while, instead of being technical all day long lol. I used to do the exact same thing, I had boxes of old filters and parts... bags of old gravel... old light fixtures... old driftwood and rocks. Lol, pretty much anything that wasnt broken got stored away somewhere for possible future use.

RandomKayos

Agreed, I learned to reseal tanks years ago so I don't throw much away. I've given alot away to help new hobbiests get started or deal with the need of a QT or fry tank. I have several unrelated hobbies that I'm finding do actually cross over once you get your mind opened. But the steady hobby has always been fish. I still dream of having a fish farm some day. Primarly food fish but with all that equipment in one place I would definatly have a major ornamental breeding section. Not so much to breed the common fish but to work with those that are endangered in nature because of over harvesting or habitat distruction. I figure I can't do much about what happens overseas but I could help by producing localy and thus reduce the load on the enviroment.

Ah, the dreams we have........and back on topic, perhaps I'll need to pick your brain on the Oto's breeding issue. I hear they are not easy to breed in captivity. Now that info may be outdated and they are breeding them like rabbits now but it would be a place to start. Right?

clinton1621

That sounds like a great dream If I could find a few quality breeders then I would probably stop funding all these lousy pet stores that dont know jack about what they are selling lol.

I'm actually not too sure on the Otos breeding myself... I've heard the same thing about them being difficult to breed. My tank parameters are pretty good for the recommended breeding range though, so I'll keep a close eye on her and see if she lays eggs or not... now all I have to do is remember all that stuff I learned about taking care of eggs and fry lol.