Clown Pleco

[Fate2006]

Hey guys, I've got a question about clown pleocs, I got one for free the other day for taking initative at my work, also because the fish never sells, we over price them $17.99!! outrageous!, anyways, this little guys about an inch now, and I was wondering how long it'll take him to grow? He's in my 29gallon tank...

 

[xingumike]

Pretty slowly i reckon, depends on water changes, diet etc, i have had mine for about 4 months now and tbh i haven't noticed much growth at all, seems to be fairly consistent with all panaque dentex sp.

 

[Fate2006]

okay thanks much, good to know... I read on a profile of him that he needs algea waffers and sinking pellet food, so I'll be feeding him the waffers and shrimp pellets, I'm pretty diligent with the water changes, atleast 2 per week of 25-35%, any additional information from anybody would be appriciated...

Oh also does anybody know the lifespan of these fish?

 

[xingumike]

Dont go overboard on the shrimp pellets, panaques even more than other sp. of plecos have trouble digesting protein. Algae wafers (check protein amounts , wardleys are good) are good, supplemented with fresh veg 3-4 times a week and you need wood in the tank, its an essential part of there diet.

 

[cheesy feet]

That price is fair... B) Well atleast over here

 

[The-Wolf]

don't forget clown plecs need bogwood in their diet.

 

[Fate2006]

well aware, no worries ^^ okay so not overboard on shrimp pellets... like what 1-2 pellets a week? also I'm using Hikari Algea waffers... pretty good nutrition wise ^^

 

[LisaLQ]

I found Hikari have quite a lot of fish protein in them (read ingredients - the closer to the beginning fish is, the more fish is in it). I prefer the Tropical brand (can get it really cheap loose on Ebay - in date too), cant find Wardleys anywhere. Oh and Tetras newer pleco wafers seem to be pretty good too (ingredients wise).

 

[Rex740]

At my LFS, Clown plecos are $7.99 .

 

[andyw823]

Had mine now for 18 months, hardly ever see it tbh, it hasn`t grown much in lenght but it has one fat belly, dont quite know how has it seems to miss the feeds i put in!

 

[Tokis-Phoenix]

At my LFS, Clown plecos are $7.99 .

Same here.

Had mine now for 18 months, hardly ever see it tbh, it hasn`t grown much in lenght but it has one fat belly, dont quite know how has it seems to miss the feeds i put in!

Do you have any wood for it in the tank to eat (whats sorts of wood too)? Keeping them in groups will encourage them to be more active.