125 Gallon Stocking (Blood Parrots and Dojo Loaches Mostly)

[Gameynerd23]

I currently have these fish spread between my 75 and 55:

3 Dojo Loaches
1 Blood Parrot
24 Emperor Tetras
18 Von Rio Tetras
1 Bristlenose Pleco

I'm getting a 125 soon and was wondering if the group of Dojos could be increased and if I could do a group of at least 3 Blood Parrots. I've read with Blood Parrots to keep either 1 or 3+. I know the Dojos need a group of 3+, so I'd like to give them more Dojos to chill with.

 

[A201]

I think what you plan would work.
Blood Parrots grow pretty big, 5 - 7 inches & might eventually pick off the Von Rios Tetras.

 

[Gameynerd23]

I think what you plan would work.
Blood Parrots grow pretty big, 5 - 7 inches & might eventually pick off the Von Rios Tetras.

I'll be getting Blood Parrots that are about golf ball size, so the school of Von Rios may not even be in the tank by the time the BPs are big enough to eat them. I was thinking about this for stocking:

4 BPs (2 regular and 2 natural, not dyed, purple)
24 Emperor Tetras
3 Dojo Loaches
18 Von Rio Tetras
1 BN Pleco

And I had considered one Peacock Eel, Macrognathus siamensis, but I'm not sure on that one.
Or, this was my other thought:

3 BPs
24 Emperor Tetras
18 Von Rios Tetras
4-6 Dojo Loaches
1 BN Pleco

 

[A201]

I'm not an Eel guy so no experience there. Be sure to post pics as things progress.

 

[Fishfur]

They are quite a nice eel and unlike most they don’t get really huge, assuming they are correctly identified in the store, that is.

They need a soft sand substrate. They like to burrow and have sensitive skin that’s easily abraded. Lots of hiding places that are big enough for the entire fish to hide in are needed too - PVC pipes work nicely. More natural hiding places need to be free of any sharp corners or edges and they need more than one of these hideouts.

They are carnivores and fish eaters - any fish small enough to fit in the eel’s mouth is in all likelihood going to become a snack and because they are nocturnal, they can pick off fish while they’re sleeping at night.

They do best on live foods which stimulate their prey drive and next best is frozen food. You can’t count on them ever being willing to take any manmade food. So you have to plan for that.

The eel is also going to have to share real estate with the loaches and that might not work out too well if you have a bunch of the Dojos.

 

[Gameynerd23]

They are quite a nice eel and unlike most they don’t get really huge, assuming they are correctly identified in the store, that is.

They need a soft sand substrate. They like to burrow and have sensitive skin that’s easily abraded. Lots of hiding places that are big enough for the entire fish to hide in are needed too - PVC pipes work nicely. More natural hiding places need to be free of any sharp corners or edges and they need more than one of these hideouts.

They are carnivores and fish eaters - any fish small enough to fit in the eel’s mouth is in all likelihood going to become a snack and because they are nocturnal, they can pick off fish while they’re sleeping at night.

They do best on live foods which stimulate their prey drive and next best is frozen food. You can’t count on them ever being willing to take any manmade food. So you have to plan for that.

The eel is also going to have to share real estate with the loaches and that might not work out too well if you have a bunch of the Dojos.

Yeah, that was kind of my thought process as well. I'd rather house more loaches than loaches and an eel. I'm not 100% on how many Dojos would be good for a 125, if you can advise on that.

 

[Fishfur]

If they have been given enough space while they’re young to grow without being inhibited, they’re capable of hitting 11 inches SBL. Frankly, I doubt many actually do reach that size but even at 8 or 9” they’re a sizeable fish.

If I can assume the tank will be six feet long, then I think you’d be ok with six, maybe even seven, but if you go with that many I’d skip any other bottom feeders/dwellers until you see how much of the tank bottom the loaches are using. There might be room for a BNP but I wouldn’t want to bet on it from the get go.

They are a shoaling species so they’ll enjoy having as many others of their kind as you decide to keep and you’ll get to see more of their natural behaviours with more of them rather than fewer.

 

[Gameynerd23]

If they have been given enough space while they’re young to grow without being inhibited, they’re capable of hitting 11 inches SBL. Frankly, I doubt many actually do reach that size but even at 8 or 9” they’re a sizeable fish.

If I can assume the tank will be six feet long, then I think you’d be ok with six, maybe even seven, but if you go with that many I’d skip any other bottom feeders/dwellers until you see how much of the tank bottom the loaches are using. There might be room for a BNP but I wouldn’t want to bet on it from the get go.

They are a shoaling species so they’ll enjoy having as many others of their kind as you decide to keep and you’ll get to see more of their natural behaviours with more of them rather than fewer.

Right, I just currently have a BN Pleco, but I have considered rehoming him. So, I'm thinking my final stocking will be this:

4 BPs
24 Emperor Tetras
18 Von Rio Tetras
6 Dojo Loaches

And yes, it is a 6 foot tank.

 

[Fishfur]

That is a very large number of fish even for a 125. For interest’s sake I put the stock into AqAdvisor, which is not perfect by any means but it came back with a stocking level over 140%.

I reduced the stock to 12 each of the tetras, 5 loaches and 3 blood parrots and that came to slightly over 100% stocking.

Using 18 Emperors, 4 BP, 3 loaches, you get 99%.

If you go with 4 BP and 5 loaches you’re just over 100% without any smaller fish in the mix.

I think you need to rethink what you want in this tank one way or the other unless you’ve got loads of experience in keeping very heavily stocked tanks and on top of all the things that can crop up and go wrong when fish are crowded.

 

[Gameynerd23]

That is a very large number of fish even for a 125. For interest’s sake I put the stock into AqAdvisor, which is not perfect by any means but it came back with a stocking level over 140%.

I reduced the stock to 12 each of the tetras, 5 loaches and 3 blood parrots and that came to slightly over 100% stocking.

Using 18 Emperors, 4 BP, 3 loaches, you get 99%.

If you go with 4 BP and 5 loaches you’re just over 100% without any smaller fish in the mix.

I think you need to rethink what you want in this tank one way or the other unless you’ve got loads of experience in keeping very heavily stocked tanks and on top of all the things that can crop up and go wrong when fish are crowded.

Ok, I have noted above what I currently have, so I'd like to work with that as best I can. In my experience with Dojos, the Albinos have been a little smaller. But, I understand to plan for max sizes. I've been conflicted with Blood Parrots and their group. I've read they become less shy in a group. So, with that being said, here's what I'm thinking.

1 BP
5 Dojos (2 brown, 3 albino)
24 Emperor Tetras
18 Von Rio Tetras

OR

3 BPs
3 Dojos
24 Emperor Tetras

I'm less keen on the second idea since I think the Dojos would appreciate a group more. If you think BPs are best kept in groups, then I'm willing to rehome my one BP. In the situation where I do not have the BP, is there a good Centerpiece fish or fish species that does well in a small group, but is smaller than a BP?

I had entertained Convicts, but their breeding behavior is probably too much for the Emperor tetras. I also thought about Bolivian Rams, but to my understanding, they are similar in temperament to Angelfish, getting aggressive when a breeding pair is formed.

 

[Fishfur]

Rams are also bottom dwellers, sensitive and often a challenge just to keep alive. I wouldn’t mix them with dojos.

The stocking with 1 BP, 5 loaches, 24 Emperor and 18 VR tetras respectively gets you to 95%.
The one without the Von Rios gets you to around 76%, very sensible level.

But you might get away with all the tetras if you are extremely careful.

 

[Gameynerd23]

Rams are also bottom dwellers, sensitive and often a challenge just to keep alive. I wouldn’t mix them with dojos.

The stocking with 1 BP, 5 loaches, 24 Emperor and 18 VR tetras respectively gets you to 95%.
The one without the Von Rios gets you to around 76%, very sensible level.

But you might get away with all the tetras if you are extremely careful.

Ok, that sounds good! I'd rather rehome the VR tetras in favor of keeping the whole school of Emperors. And hopefully as the BP gets bigger and older, it'll get less skittish. The weirdest things scare those guys, lol. So, just to have it written down, I think I'm going to do this for stocking:

1 BP (Mine is currently about golf ball size, so it has some growing to do)
5 Dojos (2 Brown, 3 Albino)
24 Emperor Tetras

Would a BN Pleco be able to go in with this stocking?

Also, I plan on scaping mostly with large driftwood for the center (still leaving open water for the Tetras and BP), more branchy, intricate driftwood on the sides (to help provide more natural hiding spots), and Terracotta pots for the loaches to chill in and the BP to hide. I'll also make some PVC pipe tunnels and bury them in the sand substrate. I want to have some pothos poki g out of the back, but I have cats, so that's up in the air. I've had some luck with Water Lettuce and Duckweed, so I'll add those for floaters. Finally, I'll get some large hornwort stems to intertwine with the more brandy wood. Oh, and some anubias will be attached to the wood all over the tank.

 

[Fishfur]

Yes, you could slip the BNP in there if you don’t have the Von Rios. With pothos, you might try those little wall supports so the vines don’t droop down to entice felines to sample some leaves. Mind, it’s not truly poisonous - it’s calcium oxalate crystals that cause problems if any critter chews on the plant. Some critters may not learn from experience but most of them won’t try again if they do chew one, it is not a nice experience for them. My cats leave my pothos and monsteras alone but will nibble on hibiscus and one or two others. I’ve got some catnip seed to grow for them and I try to keep them in oat grass to satisfy any desire to chew greenery. Seems to work even though one of mine is a really stubborn loose cannonball that seems not to learn from experience much. But he’s cute, which helps.

If you like hornwort more power to you but if you can get it, possibly consider trying guppy grass, Najas guadalupensis, instead. It’ll twine around wood, no problem and it is dead easy to grow, not fussy at all. It’s very easily trimmed and doesn’t drop all those needles like hornwort tends to do. It grows just a few long, quite strong true roots, so it can be planted or allowed to float. I call it a subsurface floater as it does not float on water, but within the water column. It’s pretty versatile as plants go.

 

[Gameynerd23]

Yes, you could slip the BNP in there if you don’t have the Von Rios.

Ok, cool! I really appreciate the help and can't wait to get the tank started. Thank you!

 

[Fishfur]

Happy to be of some help. Hope it turns out just the way you envision it.