TheEssigs

Hi gang...

My husband keeps saying he wants a piranha. So far, I have been able to discourage it, (well, because, ewe) but he always mentions it... So, his birthday is coming up in November and I was thinking I would indulge him. We have 9 tanks currently, so that means adding another tank. YIKES... but I do not want to combine tanks to include this fish, nor do I want a tank to be a buffet for it either, so a new tank is a must.

OK, so... do any of you have one? Whats it like? Do you feed it prepared food or live? How is tank maintenance? I wanted to get some real-time expierence before I dive into this... any advice and/or expierence would be great.

I was thinking of only getting one (problem?)... as I dont want to get another huge tank... I was thinking 30g, but would really prefer a 20g.

Thanks!!

Butterfly

I believe they get to be 12 inches so a twenty would be a little small and I've been told they like to be in a school.
carol

TheEssigs

Thanks Carol... I didnt want to go that big... bleck... seems like a waste of tank... but hey, Its not for Me... right?

But, ewe, a 12 inch fish that likes to eat meat... yuk! I cant stand it...

COBettaCouple

a 30g would be the minimum and really, i'm not sure that i'd put them in anything smaller than a 55g. i think they like to have the swimming area.

you can feed them any kind of food.. they're omnivores so they will eat non-live foods but i think you'd at least want to feed them thawed frozen fish foods like beef heart, etc. to give them a good diet and meet their nutrition needs.

Neville

i kept some baby piranhas in 1 10g for sometime, feeding them is a little expensive and they require frequent tank maintenance, u can keep a mid-sized piranha in a 20g but they like to be in a group. it is better to buy baby piranhas so that they can adjust. they r a little skittish and prefer driftwoods; they r a little afraid of lights too. feed them live foods occassionally and feed them pellets and dry worms most of the time. otherwise it will be expensive, i won't discourage u because they r great fish to have though they eat meat; we like meat too, right?they like shrimps and mutton, boil the meat and freeze it before feeding them....... goodluck

TheEssigs

I have been doing alot of research on these guys since my original post, and well... uh, I dont think I can bring myself to get these fish. They sound very dangerous and aggressive. I have read alot of comments from owners who stress being very careful when dealing with these fish. I dont know if its alot of hype, or not, but from what I am reading there is more negative postings that positive ones...

Neville

well, u can't tell anything for sure, unless u experience it for yourself, i'll suggest give it a try........

TheEssigs

after careful re-consideration (at the insistance of the birthday boy) we will in fact give the piranha tank a whirl....

SOOOOOO

we are in the planning stages now...

TheEssigs

So we went and got our tank today, yes, another tank... a 40 wide... (and a little 2.5 QT tank too!) Which brings us to 11 tanks now.... YIKES!

anyway - so now that we have this tank, we again are considering the occupants...

Allie

We have 25, 2-3" wild caught baby red bellys, had 30 but sold a shoal of 5. They are nervous and scared all the time. I feel sorry for them.

We've been keeping all sorts of species piranha for a year and half now. I find them boring. My bf loves them.
They just sit there, until you feed them...the odd chase but that's it. They are very cool to watch in a large school.
You could get a serrasalmus species, a solitary fish, which can get only so big. You feed them frozen uncooked shrimp, or any kind of white fish, or bloodworm (for babies).

They are very dirty fish, so you need a lot of filtration. They are only dangerous if you are dumb enough to do something to make them bite you, like leave your hand in the tank longer than needed. They are passive aggressive. They are more scared of you than you are of them. For the most part they are boring especially at 12". Some species are slower growing than others, usually the solitary ones.
Remember you can hold a large piranha by its tail if needed...they cannot turn to bite your hand or arm. Our 13" Blue diamond rhom we had got stuck in the net so my bf had to pull him out.

TheEssigs

THANK YOU Allie, so much, for your advice! I really appreciate your truthfullness and helpful hints. This is the post I was waiting for!!

Allie

You are very welcome.
Oh yeah if ever considering getting a red belly piranha...just remember they are a schooling fish and seem to do better in a shoal of 5.

Barbrella

JMO, but if you're getting a large tank and want a fun, interactive and beautiful fish, I suggest a large cichlid. They get to know you, follow you as you walk around the room and will eat from your hand.

Piranhas need dark tanks, and as Allie say, they mostly just hide and do nothing.

TheEssigs

Well, we made a final selection... and we 86ed the piranha idea, and bought a JD.

Barbrella

JDs are beautiful. You're going to have fun with him!!

Allie

You'll definitely have fun tank with a JD.