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February 2nd, 2008
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| | Fish Keeper
| gold nugget pleco!?
hey everyone. i was thinking about getting a gold nugget pleco for my 55 gal. it has the fish that are in my sig in it. i was wondering if anybody owned one on here, or if they had information about the temerment, and needs for one. they hav them at my LFS for 25 dollars.
thanks for ur help! | 
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February 2nd, 2008
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| | Fish Keeper
| Gold Nuggets are beautiful plecos that grow to about 7".
They are NOT algae eaters, but must have a variety of foods including worms, insects and veggies too. They need driftwood and other cover, like rock caves. One should be fine with the fish you have. 
If I may suggest - you really should get a few more otos, since they dislike being alone. | |
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February 2nd, 2008
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| | Fish Keeper
| yea, on my next run to the LFS im getting 2 more ottos. thanks for the info!
if anybody else knows about gold nuggets, please post! | |
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February 2nd, 2008
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| | Fish Mentor
| Gold Nuggets are lovely. DON't buy one if his tummy is shrunken as he isn't eating, and won't eat when you get him home!
$25 is a good price.
They have to have FULL coverage on the top of the tank, as they jump! I had one, and there were just three little gaps in the hood, and I lost him....didn't find it for a couple of days, he was upside down in my dishwasher silverware tray with the forks!!!
That is a long story but true.
They need higher temperatures than some, and you should research this and have it right before he comes home. Also do everything you can to keep temp up on the way home, to cut stress.....Good Luck Let us know how it goes, and PICTURES! | |
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February 2nd, 2008
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| | Fish Keeper
| thanks for ur help!
my tank is kept at 81-83*F (or thats wat my digital thermometer says)
the golden nugget they had was only about 2 inches, is this a consern?
also, i dont feel my tank has enough cover right now. ill be adding a lot of rocks and making caves out of them.
ill post a pic of my tank in a minute. if its not suitable, please speak up so i dont make a mistake. thanks! | |
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February 2nd, 2008
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| | Fish Keeper
| heres my 55 gal. i wanna provide more cover, but im not sure wat to add. im probably getting more of those rocks i have stacked up, to make caves. idk wat else to do | |
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February 2nd, 2008
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| | Fish Mentor
| I was talking about a hood/lid on the tank...It has to be completely covered, to keep it from jumping out of the tank.
2" is ok, just make sure it's tummy is fat, as I said, becauce they are slow to start eating if they are stressed, and if it isn't eating now because of of transport, it won't eat in your tank and will die. This is good practice for all plecos just to make sure you get one that is healthy, and will thrive for you.
The temp sounds good. | |
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February 3rd, 2008
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| | Fish Keeper
| Yes, you'll need to add more stuff to the tank for a pleco to be happy there.
More rocks, plants and driftwood as I mentioned. The more cover there is, the happier your pleco will be and more willing to show himself. They become very stressed in a bright tank with little cover and white substrate. | |
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February 3rd, 2008
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| | Fish Keeper
| susitna-flower, i knew u meant the hood, sry if i sounded confusing. and ill check its tummy before i get it.
i also have a much bigger piece of driftwood, but for the next couple days its being used for the GBR's to lay eggs on.
barbrella, how could i provide more cover? im not sure what would look nice with sand and still provide cover.
suggestions from any1 else is welcomed! | |
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February 3rd, 2008
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| | Fish Master
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February 3rd, 2008
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| | Fish Keeper
| actully the corys all school together, and i already plan on getting another oto.
thanks for the advice | |
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February 3rd, 2008
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| | Fish Keeper
| Quote: |
im not sure what would look nice with sand and still provide cover.
| Think of a fast flowing steam in the forest. It would have rocks, tree roots, overhangs and branches fallen from trees.
We all want our tanks to look nice, but must set them up with the welfare of the fish in mind since they have to live there. 
Actually, your other fish would appreciate more plants and cover as well, especially the rams.
Here's my tank to give you an idea of the habitat that plecos like. All my fish love it, and my two BNs are always out and about, not skittish or shy and eat well. | |
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February 3rd, 2008
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| | Fish Helper
| Quote:
Originally Posted by Barbrella  Think of a fast flowing steam in the forest. It would have rocks, tree roots, overhangs and branches fallen from trees.
We all want our tanks to look nice, but must set them up with the welfare of the fish in mind since they have to live there.
Actually, your other fish would appreciate more plants and cover as well, especially the rams.
Here's my tank to give you an idea of the habitat that plecos like. All my fish love it, and my two BNs are always out and about, not skittish or shy and eat well. | do you vacuum your gravel every week? Do you take all that apart to clean it? I'd like to make some more elaborate caves for my pleco's but i think the stress i'd put on my pleco's from tearing a tank apart to clean it would suck on a weekly basis. am i mising something here? | |
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February 3rd, 2008
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| | Fish Keeper
| nice tank! i would like to make something like that, but i hav no idea where to begin  i think i should start with some big rocks piled up and grow from there but idk.. how did u do it? (like what order adding stuff)
thanks | |
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February 3rd, 2008
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| | Fish Mentor
| if only I could make a tank like that....... | |
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February 3rd, 2008
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| | Fish Keeper
| Quote: |
Do you take all that apart to clean it?
| No, I don't. I probably move one rock each time I vacuum, plus do all the open areas. It actually isn't a good idea to vacuum all the gravel at once - removes too much beneficial bacteria. When I'm doing one end of the tank, the BNs just go to the other end and are not stressed at all. It also helps to have a mini gravel vacuum to get under things.
It's hard to see, but that's driftwood piled on top of the rocks, and I have lots of java ferns and some anubias attached to the wood. The terra cotta urn I got at the petstore. All the fish love going under and through everything!
Thanks for the nice words. | |
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February 4th, 2008
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| | Fish Keeper
| i went down to my creek and got some rocks to start my tank. i plan on adding them to get down the width of the tank
do you think this makes it more suitable for a gold nugget?
Last edited by lilsoccakid; February 4th, 2008 at 06:13 PM.
Reason: pics didnt show up | |
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February 4th, 2008
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| | Fish Mentor
| those and some more plant cover | |
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February 4th, 2008
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| | Fish Keeper
| sry heres the pics | |
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February 4th, 2008
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| | Fish Mentor
| are those live plants? if so they will grow with the fish and I would worry about it. It lookes great I think that the nugget will be down right happy! | |
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February 4th, 2008
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| | Fish Keeper
| thanks!
and yes they are live, and im gunna make sure they hav plenty of growing room | |
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February 6th, 2008
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| | Fish Keeper
| darn, i went to pick him up and he was gone they are gunna call me when they get another one, but its gunna be 4 weeks | |
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February 6th, 2008
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| | Fish Keeper
| That's good. It will give you more time to put driftwood, more rocks and plants in your tank.
By the way, make sure it's the L018 Gold Nugget, since there's another pleco that goes by that common name and it grows over a foot long. | |
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February 7th, 2008
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| | Fish Mentor
| Quote:
Originally Posted by Barbrella That's good. It will give you more time to put driftwood, more rocks and plants in your tank.
By the way, make sure it's the L018 Gold Nugget, since there's another pleco that goes by that common name and it grows over a foot long. | Ditto.
Goodluck, hope you get another.
Last edited by Sabi; February 7th, 2008 at 07:32 AM.
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