Cichilds that Play well with Pictus Cats?

[BartokTheDog]

Hey all,

Have a 16 gal with two pictus cats, that I'm kind of attached to. They are the only fish in the tank right now.

Guy at Petsmart suggested getting a pair of Cichlids as tank mates. Specifically Jewel, Convict or Firemouth.

What I've read online has been a disturbing mix of "The Pictus can hold its own no problem" and "The Jewel will kill everything else in the tank."

Is this a terrible idea?

(Yes, I know the tank around bare minimal size for these fish - was thinking of just having the two cats and two cichlids, and then shifting them to a bigger tank in a few months)

Thanks for your help!

 

[lucky62]

You may want to get a bigger tank first . I have a pimelodus pictus in a tank with 6 [male] jewel cichlids . I have no problems [ he's a brute ], I would have problems if I tried to keep 1 jewel and just 1 pictus cat in a 16 gal tank . I've had the cat for about 4 years , he's about 6" long , my jewels are about the same length . I'm not sure of any pictus cats that stay smaller than this [ someone esle may ]. I keep my fish in a 70 gal .If you want to get other fish , I would suggest you get something in the range 30 gal long , These guys are gonna need some room . If you try avoid breeding pairs of cichlids you may be o.k. , and try find a Lfs other then petsmart . Good luck

 

[Dwarfs]

I've had breeding jewels kill everything from other cichlids to puffer fish AVOID MALES AND FEMALES. And you might want to move up from a 16. Thats too little for the cats

 

[thecichlidaddict]

You can not keep convicts or firemouths in a 16 gallon tank. They get too big.

How about a pair of Kribs or Apistogramma.