The Sucker Loach???

Soooo I was at my LFS and there were these guys in all of the tanks and they looked very nice, I asked for them as I was advised to get them by my dad which has kept many fish and I also got some cherry barbs, I have tried out many different fish for my tank but my rainbow shark would always stress out, kill, and eat them... I tried out barbs as I know they are aggressive and I needed some loaches to keep my tank clean. So I got those guys and so I looked them up online, I know irresponsible to not have BEFORE I bought them,, but I found an EXTREMELY aggressive type of fish that will eat the other fish in the tank,, I'm a little shaken by it but they have not been aggressive for the first few days now,, theyre pretty small now maybe 1 1/2 inches long so far and they are doing a good cleaning job, I just wanna know if they are sucker loaches theyre also known as the Chinese algae eater, Indian algae eater, Siamese algae eater, Golden algae eater, Asiatic Scale Sucker just to name a few... I hope theyre not going to be a threat to my fish,,

 

Hmmm, Chinese algae eaters eat algae when their young. Though, when they grow up, I HEARD that they stop eating algae and suck on fish instead, and become very aggressive

 

Oh no... do you think it would be okay to keep them until they get bigger and then find a new home for them? aquatickeeper

 

I don't know, I'm too afraid to keep this fish.

 

I guess I'm going to have to wait to see,, right now my bully shark is the biggest threat and he actually chases them,, aquatickeeper

 

You already got the sucker fish? Hmmm, the "shark" can cause some stress to the other fish, I would rehome to stop this from happening.

 

Its only been the first two days,, he usually goes into his cave and hides after a while and the light is off so the fish can calm down and not worry,, the fish are just ignoring his flaring and just moves out of his way, ive had him for the longest time and I'm trying to get semI aggressive fish to go along with him like the barbs so far I'm just trying things out and to see how it goes and yes unfortunately I did get the sucker fish as recommended.. aquatickeeper

 

Let's see how it goes!

 

Ill keep it updated if anything good or bad happens!! Thanks for giving me the info! aquatickeeper

 

What size tank is this and what's your current stocking? A school of otos may be better.

 

Okay, just to point out, the Siamese Algae Eater and the sucker fish (Chinese algae eater) isn't the same thing. The SAE don't have a sucker.

 

There is the Siamese Algae Eater, and the Chinese Algae Eater. Both eat algae when young, and switch diets when older. The Siamese will start eating normal fish food, the Chinese will suck the scales and slime coat from other fish. To the untrained eye, they are indistinguishable.

Better safe than sorry, I'd return the fish. If you need an algae eater I suggest nerite snails, or if you have 20+ gallons otocinclus ("Oto") catfish.

 

Oh yes, ive tried ottos but the only place nearby is an hour away and theyre fairly hard to keep because theyre so sensitive,, and its a 26g bowfront I have one rainbow shark, one harlequin rasbora, six cherrybarbs, and two sucker loaches.. aquatickeeper

Thanks for the recommendation!! Ill see what happens in the week I have to return them,, @ Fahn

 

I don't think 26 gallons is enough for the sucker fish.

 

Yes definitely not,, theyll get too big ive read aquatickeeper

 

I would rehome the sucker fish............

 

Yes I think that might be the best choice aquatickeeper

 

Do it before it's too late

 

Yeah,, thank you so much for the help!! aquatickeeper Fahn

 

Your welcome, have a good night!

 

That's definitely a CAE. CAEs and SAEs are easy to tell apart. SAEs are hard to tell apart from flying foxes though.

You have stocking issues even after rehoming the CAE if you're interested in discussing them.

 

That's definitely a CAE. CAEs and SAEs are easy to tell apart. SAEs are hard to tell apart from flying foxes though.

You have stocking issues even after rehoming the CAE if you're interested in discussing them.

Just looked up a comparison, you're right. I haven't seen a SAE in person but heard they looked very similar to CAEs. Thank you for clearing that up.

 

Yes, as I said before they don't look quite the same.

The CAE is a sucker. The SAE does not. The colors are not the same, though SAE seems more attractive to me, and looks more like a "fish" to me.

 

Yes I was searching and looking pictures up and the suckers I have, have a different black stripe pattern than the SAE and the same as the CAE so I'm going to try and rehome them very soon aquatickeeper TexasDomer Fahn

 

Any updates? Is it rehomed?