doink

I brought home a trio of oto's yesterday for my 29 gallon tank. I know a lot has been written/discussed about the viability of oto's, but I trust my LFS (all the fish there look alert, healthy, and well taken care of) and it seems like several times, oto's are already on their way out before being sold. They're pretty shy, but it was encouraging to see two of them already feeding off the glass with what appears to be nice, round bellies. The owner said the otos basically fed off of algae in the tank. He would also throw in a Xtreme Bottom Wafer (shared with other fish) but wasn't sure if the otos ate the wafers. Should the otos be offered specific algae wafers? Also, any specific plants that seem to encourage more algae growth the otos would like? I have a planted tank but probably have room for another plant.

If you have a male/female gourami…I’m assuming the male isn’t harassing the female, the same way live bearers do? When I had the female platy, the male guppy was harassing her so much, I felt really bad and had to return the platy. Have they ever tried to breed? Yea..I’ve heard mixed things about guppies…that if there is no female, then the males will get along. But I’ve also heard of them causing a ruckus, and I wouldn’t want to add any conflict to the tank.

Thanks for the advice! I think my honey gourami is definitely more shy than just napping. I can usually spot him/her swimming around from the corner of my eye..but when I approach the tank, s/he quickly retreats behind a rock or some plants. The one time I saw him/her swimming around more confidently was when I had a Mickey Mouse platy (that I returned since she was harassed by the guppy). So…I was thinking my honey gourami would appreciate a similarly sized (and maybe looking?) friend. Do you know if honey gouramis do well in pairs? Sorry, to clarifying, you mean getting not just one additional honey gourami, but 2 or 3 more? It would make sense that getting more more mitigate any potential stress/aggression. But since honey gouramis aren’t considered shoaling/schooling fish, I was wondering if a pair would be enough. It may help for me to know the gender of my gourami then…any way to tell?

In my 29 gallon low-tech planted tech, I currently have: 7 harlequin rasboras (I wanted to 6, but owner threw in an extra one eyed rasbora) 6 panda corydoras 1 bolivian ram 1 honey gourami 1 juvenile male guppy (accidentally included in my bag of corydoras when a very small fry) So far, everyone seems healthy and happy. I am thinking of getting 3 otos to feed on the algae growing on plants and glass. My questions are: I previously got a female tetra who actually got the gourami (who typically hides) out swimming confidentally. Unfortunately, I had to return the tetra since the guppy was harrassing her cosntanltly. Would getting another honey gourami be a good idea to help my gourami be more confident? Does gender matter? (I'm not sure of my current honey gourami's gender). I know guppies are social and like to be with their own kind. He also seems pretty happy right now, sometimes kinda schooling with the rasboras, and confidentally swimming everywhere. I'm surprised he even survived this long considering how small he was, but he's probably comfortable with the fish that have always been there. Should I still get one or two more male guppy friends (I really don't want future fry)? I'm a little hesitant to introduce potential aggression or squabbling in what's so far been a pretty chill and peaceful tank. I'm also worried one or two more guppies may bully my still very small male guppy. If I end up getting the 3 otos, another honey gourami and 2 more male guppies, that'd be me at 93% aquarium stocking level according to aqadvisor. I was hoping to have a bit more breathing room, but I want everyone to be happy. I currently do weekly 25% water changes. Thanks so much!

I'm still a bit nervous about multiple females possibly being pregnant and then introducing fry to the tank. I could try to return the female platy and replace her with a male platy or two. Would multiple male livebearers (2 male platys, 1 male guppy) get aggressive in a 29 gal tank? There is a good amount of space in the tank right now. I prefer the look of platys over guppies, but I'm also somewhat attached to the male guppy (he was accidentally included in my tank as a small fry). Getting him some friends may be nice, but he also seemed pretty happy before on his own with the other fish (he'll kinda school with the rasboras and is bold otherwise swimming with the ram and gourami). Thank you for your advice!

Ya...I read they won't breed which is good...more concerned about the female platy getting stressed... Getting any female will probably help mitigate the attention, but I'm not wanting any fry. If I get female platys that...if they are pregnant will fry survive without my intervention? The owner said they would likely get eaten up

I wasn't planning on getting a new fish, but my LFS had a Mickey Mouse Platy in and couldn't resist. Currently, I have a peaceful and active 29 gallon community set up (7 rasboras, 6 panda corys, 1 bolivian ram, 1 honey gourami, 1 juvenile guppy that was accidentally included in the bag by the LFS). The owner said that platy and guppy may crossbreed but said they should otherwise get alone. Since the platy joined the tank, the juvenile guppy has been constantly chasing the platy around. I'm assuming he's trying to mate, and this may be typical livebearer behavior...but it looks like harrassment??? Can the female get harrassed to death by this behavior? Should I get another female to help her out? Or will the novelty of the platy wear off? I didnt' expect the small guppy to be so aggro already!