PLECOS!! share yours

[JKCichlids]

Just wanted you guys to see my Pleco and I would love see anybody else's pleco . If anyone has a gold nugget Pleco please don't hesitate to post it here

Here's my pleco

 

[Coradee]

Most Pleco photographs are here
Plecostomus Photos

 

[Dave125g]

Here's my clown. He hates the paparazzi

 

[Jaxsco]

Here's Bruce!

 

[Sarah73]

Here is June.(girl I think)

This was so funny

 

[Jaxsco]

Here's another picture of Bruce! He decided the top wasn't good enough for him.

 

[Nforlivio]

My albino bn pleco

 

[fishpatch]

Rhino plecostomus approx 12" long I will post a few better photos when I get home!!

 

[JKCichlids]

All good

This is my Pleco chillin.

 

[hampalong]

I've just looked at this thread for the first time. I'd like to make two points....

Here's my clown. He hates the paparazzi

This plec is dangerously obese, possibly bloated.

This is my Pleco chillin.

and this one is dangerously thin. Commons have a huge appetite, and need high protein foods as well as veg... and plenty of them. Sorry to say it's not chilling, it's starving.

Edit... Going by the size of the eyes it should be a lot bigger than it is.

 

[fishpatch]

I tried to get better picks but he was on the back wall of the tank and the chiclids of doom kept photo bombing me

I purchased this rhino approx a week a go he was kept in a tank with pacus at the store and was not being fed very well. When I introduced him to the tank I could see he was hungry but he didn't acknowledge the vegetables at all. Surprisingly on day 5 I dropped a juicy succulent cucumber in there and he found out what it was!!! He is now putting on weight and taking almost anything that falls to the bottom. Even better he is slightly territorial so when the chiclids try to take his vegetables, he rams them the out of his way!

 

[JKCichlids]

and this one is dangerously thin. Commons have a huge appetite, and need high protein foods as well as veg... and plenty of them. Sorry to say it's not chilling, it's starving.

Edit... Going by the size of the eyes it should be a lot bigger than it is.

I put in algae wafers after I turn off the light and I even tried cucumber. And I don't think it's starving because it leaves no algae, not even a speck on my tank's walls or on any of the ornament. And I have wood that he is grazes on. Plus at least I took it away from its misery at walmart( Walmart doesn't barely care for their fishes). Hampalong I just wanted to tell u this but I don't like the way you responded, it was not pleasant. You just straight up said anything you saw wrong. What I'm saying is I think you should respond more kindly in telling us what we are doing wrong as you are one of most knowledgable members on FishLore . We make mistakes but FishLore helps us learn more information about our pets... U just admitted what we r doing wrong. An addition to to that is u could possibly provide us with a solution nicely to our unknown mistakes. Like just right now when u said my Pleco was not chilling, "it was starving", i didn't know that at all and to me that wasn't very nice.️ I'm sorry, I just had to let u know. I had no means of offending you. Thank u

 

[hampalong]

JKCichlids I didn't mean to offend. I merely meant to point out that the plec is dangerously thin. You need to know this so you can realise the severity and increase the food dramatically. I also gave the solution...

Commons have a huge appetite, and need high protein foods as well as veg... and plenty of them

I agree I could have said that better.

A Common will eat as much as a cichlid the same length. I doubt your daily algae growth is more than a fraction of this. Veg-based foods are a plec's main diet (most of them), but veg and algae are very low in nutritional value, which is why herbivores need more food than non-herbivores (it's also why they poop a lot, because most of what goes in isn't digestible). It should really have food available to it most of the time, and yours in particular needs as much food as it can eat, including high protein foods.

Again I'm sorry if you're offended or upset, but you needed to know. I'm very blunt at times but it was done with good intentions.



Edit.... I would keep veg in with it every day, and give it as much of the foods your other fish eats as it can eat, every time, until it puts some weight on. As a guide, a plec's belly should never be concave. It should always be flat or convex. You should try to get this one with a fat belly, on anything it will eat, and try to keep it like that for a while.

Another edit.... You said you tried cucumber. It can take a week before they realise it's food, so keep adding it and it will start eating it eventually. I would use Courgette (zucchini). Cucumber is mostly water and not very nutritious. Feeding it at night is great... put some high protein food in at night too.

 

[Arkwolf1995]

Here's my poor fellow... long story, sister brought me some cichlids and a pleco...

 

[hampalong]

JKCichlids

Try to hide some high protein foods by pushing them into the veg... pellets, tablets, etc, even a prawn or two.

It wouldn't hurt the convicts. That might be a good idea. You really need the food to stick around on the bottom and not get pinched. With the bigger cichlids I have doubts whether it will get enough food.

Remember to keep an eye on water quality with the increase in food. A water change with good water is never a bad idea.

So from now on your plec is improving. Good news, yes?



Edit... JKCichlids wait. I just re-read that your other tank is only 10 gallon. Unfortunately this is far too small. But a good feed of veg-with-additives at night will work well. You could also try feeding the cichlids at one end and sneaking some food in behind stuff at the other end for the plec...
aliray, any ideas?

 

[aliray]

I have 3 BN plecos. Every day they get some shrimp pellets, plus alternate days they get hikari algae mini wafers a couple anr the next day they get hikari mini bottom feeder wafers. A couple of meals a week they get frozen thawed Blood worms or frozen thawed brine shrimp. They also have a fresh veggie every day 24/7, seven days a week . They also get a variety of veggies . they may get the same 2 or 3 days in a row and than onto another type . They like some more than others but any member of the squash family including pumpkin, summer and winter squashes, any member of the cabbage family, brussle sprouts, bok choy, green cabage, red cabbage, savoy cabbage, nappa cabbage ect, any sweet bell peppers, sweet potato, white potatoe, green beans, sugar snap peas, any kind of melon, watermelon, cantaloupe, golden beets, seedlees grapes cut in half, slices of apple slices of pear, a strawberry, and dark leafy green, such as beet greens, turnip greens, kale collard greens, spinach, romaine lettuce, ect. cukes, the variety takes place over time, just keep changing and the more they find they like the more they are willing to try, broccoli crowns and slice the stem in half , they like the inside as well as the florets, cauliflower,..Turnip and rutabager. If they need encouragement them make a slit in the veg and stuff with what ever wafer or pellets that they like some inside and some on the outside. as they go after whatever you stuff it with they get some of the fruit or veg and begin to realize that it is food and taste good. I feed all veggies raw, scrubbed with a veggie brush under running water, most with the skin on, and only hard seeds removed, stick a fork in it and lay it on the bottom. I DO NOT FEED citrus fruits, avacados, red beets, tomatoes, hot peppers, onions, bananas. pineapple. A well fed chubby pleco is a happy pleco. Alison

 

[JKCichlids]

JKCichlids

Try to hide some high protein foods by pushing them into the veg... pellets, tablets, etc, even a prawn or two.

It wouldn't hurt the convicts. That might be a good idea. You really need the food to stick around on the bottom and not get pinched. With the bigger cichlids I have doubts whether it will get enough food.

Remember to keep an eye on water quality with the increase in food. A water change with good water is never a bad idea.

So from now on your plec is improving. Good news, yes?



Edit... JKCichlids wait. I just re-read that your other tank is only 10 gallon. Unfortunately this is far too small. But a good feed of veg-with-additives at night will work well. You could also try feeding the cichlids at one end and sneaking some food in behind stuff at the other end for the plec...
aliray, any ideas?

Ok I will try sticking algae wafers into the cucumbers and ya I guess I'll keep the Pleco in the 55. You know what's funny is that I did exactly what you said a while ago "also try feeding the cichlids at one end and sneaking some food in behind stuff at the other end for the plec..." But those nosy fishes decided to get double meal....fatties. The thing is when my Pleco realizes that there are algae wafers it goes to them but the cichlids are trying to shove them up their mouths and from that my Pleco kinda shys away to avoid the cichlids. Thank you again for the ideas.


"So from now on your plec is improving. Good news, yes?"
Definitely good news cause of the fact that I didn't know it was suffering. Thanks to u(again) because you were the only one to notice the condition my Pleco was in and it's my one favorite fishes and wouldn't want to lose it cause of my lack of knowledge. Have u seen my video of it? I love it's vibrant colors so much!! Thanks( Again!)

 

[Dave125g]

I've just looked at this thread for the first time. I'd like to make two points....



This plec is dangerously obese, possibly bloated.

Should I put him in a QT? I've never treated bloat. How do I treat?

 

[hampalong]

Should I put him in a QT? I've never treated bloat. How do I treat?

I'm not saying it is bloat Dave, just that it might be because it's so fat. Bloat is hit and miss, and often untreatable. Metronidazole or Octozin are usually used.

How long has it been like this? What does it eat? If it eats a lot of high protein foods it could be bloat.

 

[Dave125g]

Well he's been like that since I got him about 10 months ago. I don't have drift wood for him. He eats mainly algae and the wafers I put in.