Sorry but that woman is very wrong. Clown loaches can get up to 12 inches although usually a tad smaller in aquarium (still large by every means). They will grow slow but trust me they will grow very large. Also, they need to be in groups to be comfortable. Im sorry to say one is not enough. You need at least 4. Im guessing your tank isnt very big, i think you would need50 gallons to house a proper group of clown loaches. You could always take it back before it gets too large, keeping it in a small tank will just stunt it and injure the fish (it will still get large). Or the other option is buying a larger tank....sorry that you were misinformed. Good luckI recently bought a clown loach. The woman at the petstore (who has 20 aquariums of her own at home) tested my water and gave me the go ahead to get one to eliminate any snails. Now I'm reading that they can grow to be HUGE, and also that they need to be in groups. The woman told me that just one on its own is okay, and that it only grows to 5 inches. The loach seems fine (very active) and doesn't seem to be lonely, but I'm worried that it'll get grotesquely big!
The woman told me that just one on its own is okay, and that it only grows to 5 inches. The loach seems fine (very active) and doesn't seem to be lonely, but I'm worried that it'll get grotesquely big!
The woman told me that just one on its own is okay, and that it only grows to 5 inches. The loach seems fine (very active) and doesn't seem to be lonely, but I'm worried that it'll get grotesquely big!
If you want to see just how big they can get, have a look at this site and check out the video of Marge and her friends!!!!
www.loaches.com/species-index/clown-loach-chromobotia-macracanthus
I really like it, but if it's going to get that huge (AND it needs company), I can see that it's going to be a disaster. I can't believe a fish obsessed woman like that would be so misinformed. 
