German blue ram dilemma

update* I went ahead and returned the two females to the lfs. Maybe it’s just not in the cards for me to try German blue rams again. For now at least.

Hi all,

I’m new to the forum but have been browsing for a while now. I’m kind of at my wits end with my 60 gallon planted tank and need some help please. I’ll try to keep it as short as possible. But first, here’s my tank(s) info:

20 g long (established tank)
Plastic plants
1 Male and 1 female peacock gudgeons
4 glow light tetras (moved from 29)
3 male endlers (originally in 20 l then moved to 29 then back to 20 l)
3 amano shrimp
1 nerite snail
Temp 78
Am 0
NI 0
NA 10
PH 7.8

29 g (established tank)
Lightly planted hornwort and a few lucky bamboo
16 neon tetras
6 amano shrimp
1 mystery snail
Temp 80
Am0
NI 0
NA 10
PH 7.8

60 g (cycled only been up for about a month)
Planted amazon sword, Java fern, anubius, hornwort, red Rubin sword, dwarf hair grass
1 bristlenose pleco (moved from 29g)
4 pristella tetras (moved from 29g)
9 neon dwarf rainbow fish (new)
Had a mated German blue ram pair moved from 29 both died
2 female German blue rams
Assassin snails
Malaysian trumpet snails
Temp 80
AM 0
NI 0
NA 10
PH 7.8


So, I had a mated pair of German blue rams. The female died so I bought a couple females to see if he would pair up. He seemed to like one of the girls while she was still in the bag. So I separated the two girls and put the other in my 29.After putting the female he seemed to like in with him they seemed to start the mating dance. Then started fighting. He chased her all over the tank and got really dark and became super aggressive attacking all other fish including her in the tank. The next day I put the other female in the tank to see if it would offset aggression. I did a water change and moved around the caves and decor to see if it would help. He seemed to like her better and she was charming him and they seemed to like each other. She quickly became dominant and started chasing the other female. The next morning I found him dead in the tank. No idea what happened. Now I’m left with two females, who fight only a bit, then they retreat to opposite sides of the tank and everything is fine. I love German blue rams and really wanted a mated pair. But now I’m wondering if I take them both back to get a mated pair or just keep the two females. I don’t want to go through trying to find males for them and have it keep not working out. Any suggestions please?

 

I'm no expert in rams but the first thing I see is German blue rams need a higher temp. Around 83 or so.

 

I'd probably stick with the two females. If you thought the aggression was bad before, wait till you have a pair actively spawning. A community tank in NOT a breeding tank IMO.

 

I agree that they should probably be in warmer water, but that doesn't solve your issue. Hopefully coralbandit will see this and offer some advice.

 

I'm no expert in rams but the first thing I see is German blue rams need a higher temp. Around 83 or so.

Thank you. The lfs informed me they will be ok at about 79 or 80. And the neon rainbows can only be up to 82 from what I’ve seen. So I’m trying to keep it somewhere in the middle.

I'd probably stick with the two females. If you thought the aggression was bad before, wait till you have a pair actively spawning. A community tank in NOT a breeding tank IMO.

Thank you. I had a mated pair before and saw the aggressive behavior. He started as dominant until after they laid eggs and he kept eating them. Then she became dominant. Sadly she died. And since I thought they mated for life I never tried to pair him up again. He lived about 2 years and died alone. So I wanted to try it again in a bigger tank with far more knowledge than I had then.

I agree that they should probably be in warmer water, but that doesn't solve your issue. Hopefully coralbandit will see this and offer some advice.

I’ve been hoping coral bandit would be able to help. I’ve followed him and have read his comments. Hopefully he’ll see this and respond. Thanks for the advice. The lfs told me the rams would be ok at 79 or 80. And the neon rainbows like it a bit cooler so I’m trying to find a happy medium.

 

If you get a male then you will need to move a female IMO and there is no guarantee there will not still be chaos.
I like 82+ for temp and the ram should not be second to any other fish IMO .Saving your rainbows is sacrificing/risking the rams the way I see it ..

 

If you get a male then you will need to move a female IMO and there is no guarantee there will not still be chaos.
I like 82+ for temp and the ram should not be second to any other fish IMO .Saving your rainbows is sacrificing/risking the rams the way I see it ..

Thank you for responding coralbandit. I am definitely no expert on rams. So I appreciate your advice. My last male ram was my prize fish. His female died and I never tried to pair him up again. But he lived for a couple years. I ended up returning the two females because the other two rams died. I got them from a different lfs that is not as good as the one I got my previous rams from. I’ll go back to my trusted lfs and get a pair in a couple weeks. I just want to make sure I can take care of them.

I saw on here that you’re the #1 seller/breeder on aquabid. Maybe you can help? I want a community tank and to eventually get some pearl gouramis as well. Are you suggesting that I have no other fish but rams and make all tank parameters comfortable for the rams only? Is there some leeway in what rams can tolerate so as not to make the other fish uncomfortable and shorten their lifespan. Is a 60 gallon enough for two pairs of rams plus neon rainbows, bn pleco and two pearl gouramis? My last male got his own 20 gallon long and he loved the temp of 84. But the lfs told me no other fish can tolerate that high of heat.

Im still trying to figure out why this most recent set of rams died. They were getting frozen blood worms, brine shrimp, spirulina, bug bites plus I use vitachem and garlic guard. They were still very small and seemed in perfect health then they were dead. I don’t know if it was just a weak strain from a bad breeder? Too much stress? Or just the temperature? All the other fish are doing great. Any advice is much appreciated.

 

I keep and breed my rams at 78 and they live with peacock gudgeons all very happy. They are not wild caught and I think its like the PH debate but, with temp. These have been in hard water and 78 for generations.

 

I have 2 BGR but the male is persistently chasing the female around the tank doesn’t really bother with the other fish unless it’s feeding time but constantly harasses her any ideas what I could do I had another female in and they just bullied her to death and now he has turned on what I thought was his paired partner any ideas what I could do?