Shaina

Please feel free to pick one, pick one but with changes (please specify), or use your imagination and ignore my options altogether, haha

(1) Big Fish, Lots of driftwood, Rocks
- 1 Oscar
- 1 Common Plecostamous
- 1 Jack Dempsey
- 1 Pictus Catfish (I'm hearing conflicting reports of whether they are best in groups or solo)
- Would probably try to put in a potted plant or two and see what happens.

(2) Discus Community, Driftwood, Fully or Mostly Planted
- 5 Discus
- 4 Bolivian Rams
- 6 Otocinclus
- 1 Clown Pleco
- 13 Rummynose Tetras

(3) Angelfish Community, Lots of Driftwood, Fully or Mostly Planted
- 3 Angelfish of different colors (would have room in my 29 for the third if two pair up)
- 4 Bolivian Rams
- 7 Panda Corys
- 7 Otocinclus
- 7 Marble Hatchets
- Either 13 Cardinals or 11 Bleeding Heart Tetras

Notes:
- The filtration would be a 29 gallon sump with about 23 gallons of water in it, so the actual water volume would be about 110 gallons, but with 90 gallons worth of living space
- Due to my occasional business travel, tank would have to go up to four days without a water change on rare occasion. Feeding and such during that time is not a problem (hubby is willing to feed, but not change a lot of water unless there's an emergency...it's my hobby after all).

Steen16

I would go for a rocky open terrain with plants scatterd with 3 bala sharks, pleco, big school of torpedo barbs(roseline shark)

Steen16

But if i had to choose 1 of your options i would defintly go with the first one! oscars are great i used to have one

mathas

I'm obviously partial to your third option, since it's quite similar to what I'm doing

However, if I were to have the room/money for a second 90 gallon tank (and if I didn't go saltwater!), I'd do a modified version of your first option.

1 oscar
5 silver dollars
3-4 synodonits or pictus cats

Make sure if you go the oscar route, that none of the rocks or driftwood has sharp edges or points on it. Oscars are notorious redecorators, and could injure themselves trying to move something with a sharp edge.

Shaina

Thanks for the input so far I kinda forgot about Silver Dollars...they are interesting fish, though then I would definitely have to scrap even the delusion of having plants in there, lol.

I'll keep that note in mind regarding the driftwood.

At this time I'm switching between (1) and (3) by the minute. I've more or less ruled out (2) because I'm not 100% certain I could adequately care for the discus, and I'm not going to get a fish if that's the case.

capekate

Hi Shaina
I would go with option #1. You are right to feel that if you are not there to watch the Discus and do a lot of water changes, it may not be a good idea.
Along with option 1 I have heard that the pictus catfish do like to be in a small group and I would not keep one. Tho I am sure one will be fine, its just that what I have read, they like to be in groups. Also with option #1, I would omit the common pleco and go for a smaller pleco, if pleco is what you want and that would give you room for more pictus.

Shaina

Thanks, CapeKate!

Do you have any ideas for plecos that are smaller than a common but still big enough that they won't get eaten, but are still primarily herbavorous and would take interest in eating a bit of algae now and then? I seem to be drawing a blank on one between the sizes of say...Bristlenose and Sailfin, lol.

capekate

Hi Shaina
I hope that others with more knowledge of Pleco's can give you the information you need. Just off the top of my head, are there some pleco's that have a kind of 'armour' or at least pointy feelers for protection? I thought I read up on some at some point. I have heard of other fish keepers with Oscars and Pleco's and they have no problem.
I do not believe that either will bother the pictus as well. What other small fish are you referring to?

Shaina

By small fish I just meant small plecos that may be in danger of being eaten. I don't think even armor will help much if the Oscar thinks it's possible he can gulp it down, lol...maybe I'd end up with a calm Oscar and it wouldn't be a concern, but I think many of them overestimate what they can fit in their mouth

I would have the pleco and pictus for a while before adding the Oscar or JD, so give them time to get established and put on some size (assuming I get everyone very small). Same thing for the angelfish tank -- the Angels would be the last to join the community.

Shaina

Well, after looking around for a while today, I think a Rhino Pleco might fit the bill for option 1, rather than the common. Unsure as so whether I think the JD and pictus will be okay though...

capekate

g'morning Shaina
Are you planning on buying your new fish as juvies or as full grown JD and Oscars? I know that Shawnie has JD's, Oscars and Pictus together in her tank and they are all doing fine together. I hope she reads this thread and stops in an gives you some of her advice on this to ease your mind on this selection which IMO sounds pretty good.
A Rhino pleco... now that sounds like a pleco with a tough skin! I will have to goggle it to see what they look like.

Shawnie

Gm kate n shaina~ I dont have my pictus in with my oscars...they are in with my angels LOL...I have convicts, jds, and silver dollars in with my oscars...pictus do like to be in pairs or more and because they are constantly moving and acting psychotic (which is totally normal for pictus) I wouldnt put them in with an oscar for fear of being eaten..the only way might be is if all were juvies and grew up together...

Shaina

Kate: I'm planning on getting everyone as babies and letting them grow up together. It takes time but I love watching tiny fish really mature and come into their own, haha. And as a bonus, it's waaaaaaaay easier on my pocket book So basically I would start with the least territorial fish, and work my up from there, making sure the less territorial fish have time to adjust, recover from the store, get eating, etc. while the next fish are sequestered in quarantine.

And I think the rhino plecos are kinda cool in an...ugly creepy prehistoric way, lol.

Shawnie: Thanks for sharing your experience ~ I will likely scrap the Pictus idea then ~ don't need anything getting gulped down, especially when they are equipped with some seriously nasty defensive equipment that would likely kill both fish.

So now I'm down to an oscar, a JD, and a rhino pleco. I was thinking about a Firemouth, a Banded Leporinus, and/or a school of like 5-6 Silver Dollars, but the problem is that I'm having a hard time really getting a feel for how many of these fish could reasonably go in the tank...I'm used to dealing with mostly schools and nothing larger than say an angelfish...:s

Markm0723

Shaina,
Is your 90 gal. the standard 48" X 18" X 25"?

Mark

Shaina

Yes, which is the big limitation I think since a lot of the space is vertical rather than horizontal. Not ideal for this setup *starts to convince herself to consider something else again*

So yeah, 90 gal tank (48" x 18" x 25") + 20-25 gal between the plumbing and sump.

Markm0723

I think you could get away with your first choice. While its true that Oscars can reach sizes of 14" to 16", most seem to average around 12". If the JD winds up being a male he'll max out at around 8" to 10". Of course I'm a Dempsey addict, I currently have around 400 (387 or so are two to eight week old babies), so I'll always tend to vote for the choice that includes a Jack.

As far as catfish go, I would suggest a Synodontis eupterus. They get about 6" to 7", are happy solo, and can stand their ground with Oscars and JDs.
They're also a really nice looking catfish, and have lots of personality.

Good Luck with whichever choice you go with.

Mark

Shaina

Wow, that is an amazing catfish! Thanks for the suggestion!

Do you have different "varieties" of JDs? Like original, electric blue...

If so, do you think there is any difference between them besides color?

Austin {Aquarist}

I'm a sucker for #3 cory cats and ottos are some of my favorite fish :]

Markm0723

Currently I have regulars and Golds. I should be getting several EBs next month. Golds are just as sturdy and have the same temperament as the regulars. EBs tend to be more delicate and more prone to illness until they reach about 3". They also tend to be slower growing. After they reach 3", however, they are as healthy as any other JD. EBs do seem to have a gentler disposition (on average) that regulars and Golds.

I hope this helps,
Mark

Shaina

oh, thank you so much! I actually didn't know there was a gold color form too...they are quite pretty.

Markm0723

Here's my breeding pair and some of their kids.
Dad with the Kids.

Mom with the Kids.

Here's some of the eight week olds eating Golden Pearls.


Mark

Shaina

Awesome - thanks for the pics. Looks like you JDs are good parents...love the shots of the parents surrounded by tiny fry!


Saw three pictus , a synodontis eupterus and a royal pleco at the LFS today...making it hard to settle on a stocking list, lol.

Fishzone08

This should help with your decision.
http://www.tropicalfish4u.co.uk/Fish/Freshwater

Shaina

Thanks -- Ironically I was actually on that site the other day, but did not find it especially helpful compared to other data collections on SA/CA cichlids.

Regardless, I do think I am pretty much decided at this point

Ghostfish

I like your third option personally. I really like my two angels. I have one that will just stare at you when he is hungry. he will follow you from one side of the tank to the other. Such a beggar. The ottos are also fun fish, but they just hide so much. I have 5 in my tank....I think. I haven't seen them in so long I'm not sure they are still there. Rams are probably the fish I want the most that I don't currently have. Panda Cories are one of my favorite Cories. The only ones I like as well are the fake Julies I have in my tank now.

Shaina

Well, right now I have an Angelfish, Rams, and Otos in my 29, and I think I'm going to leave them there...just moving a Bolivian pair to their own tank if a bonded pair seems to form. Then the 90 gal will be C. American cichlids. I won't get to have the cories (), but I think it will be worth it.

It won't be final until I actually start putting fish in, lol, but I'm pretty sure that's the direction I'm going...

Probably.

As of now anyway...