MissMTS

I am sure everyone has a certain species of fish that they look at and say to themselves.....nope......I will never have one of those in my tank.....I just don't understand why other people like this fish so much.

Well....for me that fish is a common pleco. I always thought that they were big, ugly, overrated, and huge poop machines. I have been trying to figure out what to finish stocking my 80 gallon tank with, but have had a lot of trouble deciding. Most of the fish that I have wanted to stock are just to expensive for us to purchase right now. My husband saw a huge common pleco at the LFS the other day and said that he thought they were really cool looking. I agreed and said "yeah, they are kind of cool looking, but they get huge and if I got one, I wouldn't be able to put anything else in the tank".

Yesterday, I went to Petco to get some more fish food and I saw a HUGE common pleco stuffed into one of their 10 gallon display tanks. He could barely straighten out, he was so crammed in the tank. I took pity on the poor guy and brought him home. I think he is really enjoying the big tank. My husband just thinks he is the coolest thing, and I have to say that he is growing on me. Well there you go.....I now own the fish that I said I would never ever own I guess that's why they say "never say never"

PS: I have to add....It was hillarious, Zeplin (my severum) hid all night last night after I added the pleco to the tank. He thought it was a big scary monster. What a chicken lol.

Beth1965

ewww i think they are freaky looking too. but who knows, i might be in the same spot as u sometime (not too soon i hope)
Beth

MissMTS

Luckly, this guy is kinda cool looking. He has a leopard pattern instead of the usual mottled brown pattern. I just feel happy that I was able to rescue him. So many large plecos are in aquariums that are way to small for them. I feel good that I can do my part to at least give one of them a good home

Amanda

Aww! I love plecos! Can't wait to see pics! And maybe this will teach Zeplin to behave, huh?

CHoffman

Awesome Kate!!! Great rescue. I'm sure he is very deserving of a good home. I can't wait to see some pics of this big guy. Congrads on the new fishy friend and good job saving the guy!!.

MissMTS

Thanks guys I will try to get some pics tonight. It just felt good being able to give him a larger space to swim around in. I know an 80 gallon isn't ideal for the larger plecos, but heck, I bet if I hadn't rescued him that some kid would have tried to stick him in a 10 gallon or something awful like that.

Amanda....for some reason Zeplin has been behaving so well since the move. I was even able to move my keyholes back into the tank and move my blue acara over as well. Maybe the time in the rubbermaid tubs was like a really long time out for him, lol :P

MaddieLynn

Great rescue!

Today I went to a new LFS I had never tried before and saw a real monster. He was in a smallish tank too because I'm pretty sure someone had brought him and traded him in for another fish.

aecw

Congrats on the pleco - I wasn't a huge fan until I moved mine from my son's 20 gal to my 150 (he was about 3-4" at the time now he's about 6-7") It was great to see how much this fish really enjoyed the space. He also keeps the glass and fake plants immaculate! I love feeding him his chunks of zucchini!

CHoffman

I think a 80 gallon is perfect!!!. I bet he does too..lol.

MissMTS

Thanks MaddieLynn I feel so bad for the larger plecos. It seems like they always get traded in when they get to big and then end up spending the rest of their days at the LFS

Thanks I'll have to try giving him some zucchini. Sounds like a yummy treat!

Glad you think so Cesch I swear, compaired to where he was before, it probably seems like a giant lake

CHoffman

I bet it does seem like a lake. Poor thing. I hate to see big fish like that stuck in dinky little tanks.

gremlin

I love my two sailfins. I feel bad for them in the winter when they have to be inside. I know they miss the pond. At least their winter quarters is large enough for them to swim around in. I may have to get a bigger tank for next year though. I just don't know where I would put it or how I would move it around. I had enough of a problem with the 40 gallon!

Lucy

I'm so happy for the little (big) guy!
Great save Kate! I love plecos.

MissMTS

How big are your sailfins? I'd love to see pics

Thanks Lucy

gremlin

Today is clean out the pond day so I will be putting the algae crew back in the pond. I will try to get some good pics of them before I put them in the pond. They like to hide so much, it is hard to get pics of them even though they are pretty big. Of course, once they are in the pond, I hardly ever get to see them. It was such a shock for my Mom last fall - I put these tiny little 1/2 inch long fish in the pond and 3 months later I pull out a couple of monsters She thought I had bought bigger ones and was going to yell at me for it. I told her No, these are the ones that I put in small. They just grew.

MissMTS

Thats funny. If you are able to get some pics I would love to see them. How big is your pond?

gremlin

I think it is about 180 gallons at least. I'm not really sure as I got it second hand from a friend who was moving to Utah and did not want to take it with her or leave it at her old house. She had only had it set up for a couple of months. The pond is now cleaned out, but it got dark before I could put the plecos out. I'll see about doing that either Sunday or Monday. I'll try to take some good pics before I turn them loose to ravish the moss in my pond.

CHoffman

Kate...Where are the pics of this beautiful guy??

Master Snake

I love plecos!

capekate

Hi Kate
how is your Pleco doing? I also always felt they were just about the ugliest fish around lol.. but they have started to grow on me as well. But when the time comes for me to add one to my 125 its going to be a fancy one, such as a royal pleco, or a zebra or espicially the Gold Nugget etc etc. I did fall in love with a 4 inch Green Phantom at my LFS this week and if it wasnt for the price 53.00 I would have brought him/her home. He is gorgeous!
Great rescue on the Pleco and we are all waiting on photos!

Master Snake

Plecos aren't ugly. Log fish are ugly.

MissMTS

I haven't been able to get any pics yet. He spends most of his time hiding behind or under the piles of driftwood that I have in the tank. The only time he really comes out is when I drop his algae wafer in at dinner time. I'll make sure that I have my camara ready tonight when I get ready to feed him so that I can get some pics

Hi Kate,
He seems to be doing well. He spends a lot of his time hiding, but that is pretty normal for plecos. I wanted a fancy one for my tank as well (I had my eye on a gorgeous gold nugget), but since I couldn't afford one of the fancy ones right now, I though I might as well give this guy a home and get him out of that tiny tank. I'll try to get photos as soon as I can. I'm gonna have to try to coax him out of his hiding spot, lol

Bad Wolf

i think plecos are amazing and even more amazing that they get so big and they are completely herbivorous. i wish i could get one.

i've got a question about them. i saw a huge one at a place cold living jungle that was $200 AUS. he was a foot long, maybe more, i can't remember.

any way, like i said, i would like to get one. would $30 AUS be expensive for a 4 or 5 cm? they said it's already discounted but i still found it pricey. would any one here buy one that small for that much?

MissMTS

$200 Aus is $150 in US dollars.....ummm no I would never pay that for a large pleco. Mine was about $16 $30 Aus is still $22 US dollars, and I would never pay that for a common pleco (usually they go for about $5). Are you sure that it was a common pleco that you saw, or was it a fancy one? Many of the fancy breeds of plecos can cost a lot more money than the common ones.

Bad Wolf

well i asked about the pleco and on their order sheet it said plecostomus and i assumed it was the common pleco, am i right?

they could order it in for $17.95 AUS for a 4 cm and sell it for $40 AUS but they gave me a discount because they know me really well.
$30 AUS they ofered.

how big was yours when you got it and how much did you get it for?

thanx

Bad Wolf

could it be in Australia, VIC, it's more expensive (than the US)?

MissMTS

Mine was 12 inches and I got him for $16. Did you already get the pleco?

Bad Wolf

wow that is so cheap for something that size! no i didn't, i didn't think it was worth it. do you think it has something to do with different countries?

there was also one that was 2 inches for $50, i'm not buying a pleco unless it's under $25 AUS and it's a descent size.

thanx