Chocolate Gouramis

[johnboy!]

Noticed my LFS (Very rare that they stock anything other then a decent range of tetras, lots of little random characins, oscars, and some community fish) had Chocolate Gouramis in yesterday, at a decent price (i thought) £2.99, so i bought 2 of them to try in my tank, woke up this morning.... they're following eachother around, eating tetra prima and their color is amazing, anyone else had much look with keeping them in a community setup? no other fish has went near them as of half hour ago.

 

[ZoddyZod]

they are apparently a very delicate and quite tricky gourami to keep. One thing that they will need is very soft water.

What pH is your water?

 

[johnboy!]

they are apparently a very delicate and quite tricky gourami to keep. One thing that they will need is very soft water.

What pH is your water?

Yeah i've read up about them a while back, with a view to getting them in a separate tank in the future, PH is 6.5-6.8, hopefully i can lower it to around 6.0

 

[loraxchick]

Ive seen these in my local LFS a few times. Ive thought about doing some more research on them to see what their requirements are. Ive heard they are difficult to keep but havent looked into why. I have extremely soft water here. I think they are just GORGEOUS!!!
maybe some time spent researching and planning are in order...and another tank...i need one of those like a hole in the head lol
best of luck with them
cheers

 

[johnboy!]

Ive seen these in my local LFS a few times. Ive thought about doing some more research on them to see what their requirements are. Ive heard they are difficult to keep but havent looked into why. I have extremely soft water here. I think they are just GORGEOUS!!!
maybe some time spent researching and planning are in order...and another tank...i need one of those like a hole in the head lol
best of luck with them
cheers

I've been reading further into them, and wild caught are more likely to need softer water, captive bred are slightly more hardy and i'm pretty sure my pair of CB, no ill effects being shown and they look healthy enough in my water (7.0) feeding on tetra prima and bloodworm too (frozen)

 

[Carlovel1]

Ive seen these in my local LFS a few times. Ive thought about doing some more research on them to see what their requirements are. Ive heard they are difficult to keep but havent looked into why. I have extremely soft water here. I think they are just GORGEOUS!!!
maybe some time spent researching and planning are in order...and another tank...i need one of those like a hole in the head lol
best of luck with them
cheers

I've been reading further into them, and wild caught are more likely to need softer water, captive bred are slightly more hardy and i'm pretty sure my pair of CB, no ill effects being shown and they look healthy enough in my water (7.0) feeding on tetra prima and bloodworm too (frozen)

Photos?

What fish are in your community tank?

 

[johnboy!]

Ive seen these in my local LFS a few times. Ive thought about doing some more research on them to see what their requirements are. Ive heard they are difficult to keep but havent looked into why. I have extremely soft water here. I think they are just GORGEOUS!!!
maybe some time spent researching and planning are in order...and another tank...i need one of those like a hole in the head lol
best of luck with them
cheers

I've been reading further into them, and wild caught are more likely to need softer water, captive bred are slightly more hardy and i'm pretty sure my pair of CB, no ill effects being shown and they look healthy enough in my water (7.0) feeding on tetra prima and bloodworm too (frozen)

Photos?

What fish are in your community tank?

Camera battery is charging as we speak
10 black phantom tetras, pair of bolivian rams, a zigzag eel, and a paradise fish (have a spare tank if she attacks them, but they're actually shoaling together!) and 2 bristlenose(temporary) 5 red nose shrimp also

 

[johnboy!]

Pics

Smaller paradise fish in community

Big paradise fish in seperate tank

Full tank shot

 

[Carlovel1]

Ive seen these in my local LFS a few times. Ive thought about doing some more research on them to see what their requirements are. Ive heard they are difficult to keep but havent looked into why. I have extremely soft water here. I think they are just GORGEOUS!!!
maybe some time spent researching and planning are in order...and another tank...i need one of those like a hole in the head lol
best of luck with them
cheers

I've been reading further into them, and wild caught are more likely to need softer water, captive bred are slightly more hardy and i'm pretty sure my pair of CB, no ill effects being shown and they look healthy enough in my water (7.0) feeding on tetra prima and bloodworm too (frozen)

Photos?

What fish are in your community tank?

Camera battery is charging as we speak
10 black phantom tetras, pair of bolivian rams, a zigzag eel, and a paradise fish (have a spare tank if she attacks them, but they're actually shoaling together!) and 2 bristlenose(temporary) 5 red nose shrimp also

Nice

Black Phantom Tetras- Can be nippy, I would not keep these with the Gouramis
Bolivian Ram- OK
Zigzag Eel- Need an alkaline pH
Paradise Fish- Aggressive, especially other Anabantoids
BN Pleco- Prefers lower temperature
Red Nose Shrimp- Like most other Shrimp, prefers lower temperature


I must admit those are not the ideal tankmates for Chocolate Gouramis, fish that are more ideal are those that co-exist with Chocolate Gourami in the wild (so have similar temperament and water requirements) such as Rasboras and other small fish. IMO the Gouramis should be moved to your spare tank.

 

[johnboy!]

Ive seen these in my local LFS a few times. Ive thought about doing some more research on them to see what their requirements are. Ive heard they are difficult to keep but havent looked into why. I have extremely soft water here. I think they are just GORGEOUS!!!
maybe some time spent researching and planning are in order...and another tank...i need one of those like a hole in the head lol
best of luck with them
cheers

I've been reading further into them, and wild caught are more likely to need softer water, captive bred are slightly more hardy and i'm pretty sure my pair of CB, no ill effects being shown and they look healthy enough in my water (7.0) feeding on tetra prima and bloodworm too (frozen)

Photos?

What fish are in your community tank?

Camera battery is charging as we speak
10 black phantom tetras, pair of bolivian rams, a zigzag eel, and a paradise fish (have a spare tank if she attacks them, but they're actually shoaling together!) and 2 bristlenose(temporary) 5 red nose shrimp also

Nice

Black Phantom Tetras- Can be nippy, I would not keep these with the Gouramis
Bolivian Ram- OK
Zigzag Eel- Need an alkaline pH
Paradise Fish- Aggressive, especially other Anabantoids
BN Pleco- Prefers lower temperature
Red Nose Shrimp- Like most other Shrimp, prefers lower temperature


I must admit those are not the ideal tankmates for Chocolate Gouramis, fish that are more ideal are those that co-exist with Chocolate Gourami in the wild (so have similar temperament and water requirements) such as Rasboras and other small fish. IMO the Gouramis should be moved to your spare tank.

Fair enough, i'm going to see how it goes but at present all fish are perfectly healthy, obviously if i see ANY signs on nipping, i'll put the chocolates in a seperate tank

 

[johnboy!]

After near on a week, i've rehomed the bristlenose as a group to my dads new 130 gallon setup (aqua medic anthias) and bought an orange spot plec, and another Chocolate to go with my pair, this ones slightly bigger and all three get alone fine, thinking about setting up a little 15-20 gallon just for them, even though they get on fine in this setup, probably better to leave them?

 

[a1matt]

I started off with 6, and then had 12 in a 180l.
They were definitely happier with higher numbers, and also when they have peaceful tankmates.

I put a single endler in the tank with them and their behaviour was considerably modified.

Mircorasboras, pygmy corys and otos on the other hand all made good tank mates.

I kept them in blackwater conditions (pure RO water) at a temp of 26deg.
Was quite a challenge keeping the tank stable at times.
They spawned once though, so it was all worth it

 

[johnboy!]

I started off with 6, and then had 12 in a 180l.
They were definitely happier with higher numbers, and also when they have peaceful tankmates.

I put a single endler in the tank with them and their behaviour was considerably modified.

Mircorasboras, pygmy corys and otos on the other hand all made good tank mates.

I kept them in blackwater conditions (pure RO water) at a temp of 26deg.
Was quite a challenge keeping the tank stable at times.
They spawned once though, so it was all worth it

I've currently got 5 in a 15 gallonish tank, they look a lot happier then just the pair did

HOW did you get them to spawn? and did you see any difference in male and females?

 

[a1matt]

I started off with 6, and then had 12 in a 180l.
They were definitely happier with higher numbers, and also when they have peaceful tankmates.

I put a single endler in the tank with them and their behaviour was considerably modified.

Mircorasboras, pygmy corys and otos on the other hand all made good tank mates.

I kept them in blackwater conditions (pure RO water) at a temp of 26deg.
Was quite a challenge keeping the tank stable at times.
They spawned once though, so it was all worth it

I've currently got 5 in a 15 gallonish tank, they look a lot happier then just the pair did

HOW did you get them to spawn? and did you see any difference in male and females?

I think 5 is a good number

I did not do anything specific to make them spawn, I think lots of plants and good water quality were probably the main factors. I will do a summary of what I did (and didn't do) here...

sexing:
I never noticed a difference between the males and females, but to be honest, I never looked that hard.

plants:
A lot of sites tell you to have lots of floating plants for cover. A choc gourami's definition of cover is that when you look straight down onto the tank from above they can not be seen. So, while floating plants were good, any large leaved plants (eg amazon swords and anubias) were also perfect for them to 'hide' under. While hiding they can be seen clearly from the front viewing pane of the tank

food:
Staple food was a mix of frozen fare (bloodworm, daphnia, brine shrimp, baby brine shrimp, cyclops)
and an army of dwarf shrimp (~200) for them to snack on, so they had a continuous supply of live food.
Live daphnia occasionally.

water chemistry:
The tank was run on 100% RO. TDS going in was about 10ppm. I used to water change enough to keep the Tank around 100ppm tds. They will tolerate higher TDS (eg London tap water of ~350ppm TDS) without any issue if acclimatised slowly (ideally upon importing and slowly over a number of days\weeks by your LFS).

I spent a long time tinkering with peat, indian almond leaves and alder cones in varying combinations. After several months I slowly stopped adding these as I do not think they made any real difference.

I got fed up with the hard work in balancing the tank between blackwater and planted tank so started to phase in some (350ppm) tap water at each water change and some extra ferts. It was a few weeks into this that they spawned. I do not think it was the increased TDS that caused the spawning, but the increased water quality that was a result of the increased plant health.

Water temp 26deg. They do not tolerate lower temperatures. I lost all the fish when my central heating was turned off during a winter holiday and the temp in the tank dropped to about 15deg where the heater couldn't keep up.

Coloration:
They are beautiful to look at, when healthy the chocolate is very dark, and the bands go a very bright gold colour. Mine took about 3 months to colour up completely. When stressed the colours go blotchy. When ready to breed the gold and chocolate was complemented with red tinges on the body and fins.

Behaviour:
They continously circled each other. Sometimes quite subtly (slight body twists while a couple of feet away form each other). This never ceased to captivate me, it was as if life was one long dance class! There was a definite pecking order and I got a sense they were all working as one unit on a number of occasions. For example, when one had fry in her mouth all the others were like a swat team circling round her protecting her at all times.

As well as change in colour they exhibit different behaviour when stressed. They will lie on their side and flutter like a leaf. If you have leaf litter in the tank (beech is my leaf litter of choice as it does not affect the water parameters and takes 2-3 months before it starts to decompose significantly) it is very hard to spot the fish.

Stock:
It is very important that the LFS takes good care of these fish prior to your purchase.
If your LFS chucks them straight into tap water upon import then I do not like your chances of keeping them alive more than a few months after purchase.
I recently saw some healthy specimens in a local LFS that I trust, so may dive in again with these fish...

I saw there is an anabantid inventory thread, so will post this info there as well (with some pics).

 

[johnboy!]

I started off with 6, and then had 12 in a 180l.
They were definitely happier with higher numbers, and also when they have peaceful tankmates.

I put a single endler in the tank with them and their behaviour was considerably modified.

Mircorasboras, pygmy corys and otos on the other hand all made good tank mates.

I kept them in blackwater conditions (pure RO water) at a temp of 26deg.
Was quite a challenge keeping the tank stable at times.
They spawned once though, so it was all worth it

I've currently got 5 in a 15 gallonish tank, they look a lot happier then just the pair did

HOW did you get them to spawn? and did you see any difference in male and females?

I think 5 is a good number

I did not do anything specific to make them spawn, I think lots of plants and good water quality were probably the main factors. I will do a summary of what I did (and didn't do) here...

sexing:
I never noticed a difference between the males and females, but to be honest, I never looked that hard.

plants:
A lot of sites tell you to have lots of floating plants for cover. A choc gourami's definition of cover is that when you look straight down onto the tank from above they can not be seen. So, while floating plants were good, any large leaved plants (eg amazon swords and anubias) were also perfect for them to 'hide' under. While hiding they can be seen clearly from the front viewing pane of the tank

food:
Staple food was a mix of frozen fare (bloodworm, daphnia, brine shrimp, baby brine shrimp, cyclops)
and an army of dwarf shrimp (~200) for them to snack on, so they had a continuous supply of live food.
Live daphnia occasionally.

water chemistry:
The tank was run on 100% RO. TDS going in was about 10ppm. I used to water change enough to keep the Tank around 100ppm tds. They will tolerate higher TDS (eg London tap water of ~350ppm TDS) without any issue if acclimatised slowly (ideally upon importing and slowly over a number of days\weeks by your LFS).

I spent a long time tinkering with peat, indian almond leaves and alder cones in varying combinations. After several months I slowly stopped adding these as I do not think they made any real difference.

I got fed up with the hard work in balancing the tank between blackwater and planted tank so started to phase in some (350ppm) tap water at each water change and some extra ferts. It was a few weeks into this that they spawned. I do not think it was the increased TDS that caused the spawning, but the increased water quality that was a result of the increased plant health.

Water temp 26deg. They do not tolerate lower temperatures. I lost all the fish when my central heating was turned off during a winter holiday and the temp in the tank dropped to about 15deg where the heater couldn't keep up.

Coloration:
They are beautiful to look at, when healthy the chocolate is very dark, and the bands go a very bright gold colour. Mine took about 3 months to colour up completely. When stressed the colours go blotchy. When ready to breed the gold and chocolate was complemented with red tinges on the body and fins.

Behaviour:
They continously circled each other. Sometimes quite subtly (slight body twists while a couple of feet away form each other). This never ceased to captivate me, it was as if life was one long dance class! There was a definite pecking order and I got a sense they were all working as one unit on a number of occasions. For example, when one had fry in her mouth all the others were like a swat team circling round her protecting her at all times.

As well as change in colour they exhibit different behaviour when stressed. They will lie on their side and flutter like a leaf. If you have leaf litter in the tank (beech is my leaf litter of choice as it does not affect the water parameters and takes 2-3 months before it starts to decompose significantly) it is very hard to spot the fish.

Stock:
It is very important that the LFS takes good care of these fish prior to your purchase.
If your LFS chucks them straight into tap water upon import then I do not like your chances of keeping them alive more than a few months after purchase.
I recently saw some healthy specimens in a local LFS that I trust, so may dive in again with these fish...

I saw there is an anabantid inventory thread, so will post this info there as well (with some pics).

Your experience is invaluable thanks a bunch for that i'll note it down somewhere, Definatley looking at increasing the water slowly, its at about 24 right now
Thanks againn, appreciate it SO MUCH