Columbian Shark Feeding

[Toology88]

Hello, Ive got 2 baby Columbian Sharks in a 5 gallon tank. I know im going to have to upgrade, i have a 125 gallon for them. My question is, ive got several very small guppies i cought. the catfish eat no problem, i wanted to see if theyd go for the live fish so its been a day or 2 i havent thrown in any sinking pellets. they dont pay too much attention to the guppies and two have died off. will they eat the dead ones or should i remove them to prevent ammonia in the water? do you think they will go for the remaning ones if hungry enough? these guys are only 2 or 3 months old and about 2''big. like i said, very hearty eaters but even since no sinking pellets have beeen fed to them they still havent paid much attention to them. i also have a fast growing baby pleco in their as well, will he eat the dead ones while scanning the bottom?

 

[N0body Of The Goat]

I've moved this to the brackish section, because I hope you are aware that your Colombian Shark cannot stay in freshwater for long, the salinity of the tank water needs to gradually increase as it gets older, eventually ending in marine salinity I think (specialists like nmonks will hopefully clarify this for you).

 

[fluttermoth]

Always remove dead fish; they could possibly be carrying some disease or parasite that your other fish could catch by eating the corpses.

Guppies are not a suitable food for other fish. They contain a chemical called thiaminase (as do most 'feeder' fish, like goldfish and rosy red minnows) which will make your fish very sick eventually.

Anyway, captive bred fish don't contain the right nutrients to make them a suitable diet, even for fish that would be piscivores in the wild. They'll do much better on a proper diet of prepared food, perhaps with some frozen white fish as a treat occasionally.

I would move all your fish (except those poor guppies) into your larger tank as soon as possible; a 5g tank is in no way, shape or form suitable for those fish. If they're kept in a tank that's too small they'll never be able to grow properly

 

[Toology88]

Thanks for the replies, yes im very aware of converting them to brackish waters and ive got a 6foot 125 gallon tank set aside just for my columbian sharks. i removed the dead guppies. its tough to get hard facts, people at the fish stores are useless, their all knowitalls but all have conflicting information. thats why i decided to give this site a try, suprised how quick a got a response. thank yall and im happy i found this site.

 

[crazyforcordoras]

Lfs people just want to sell you another fish. Some of them will say you can put a clown loach sith your sharks in that tank.

 

[fluttermoth]

You'll always get the best advice on this forum

We have members who are far more experienced than I am with these kinds of fish and who'll be happy to help you give your fish a long and happy life

Oh, and

 

[Toology88]

yeah thankfully ive been into aquariaums and all sorts of reptiles and amphibians my whole life and my father is also an avid fish freak so i can usually see through their crap, sometimes i ask em questions just to see what kinda answer they give to me knowing i already i know the answer. this is one fish ive never had before though and i know other cats will eat everything in their way like our 2 baby south american red tails, one outgrew the other by a little bit and ended up eating him

 

[nmonks]

Colombian Sharks should not be difficult to feed. They feed by day and night, and greedily take things like tilapia fillet, squid, prawns and chopped mussels as well as pellet foods (mine enjoyed trout pellets). If they're not feeding, there's something stressing them. Could very easily be the size of the tank, aggressive tankmates, wrong water chemistry, water quality problems, etc. Review, and act accordingly. Once happy, they'll eat anything and as often as you throw food at them. I remember mine on occasions eating so much their bellies swelled up!

They aren't going to be happy in a 5-gallon freshwater tank for long. These fish are highly social (they "talk" to one another via sounds) and need as much swimming space and water current as you can afford. Even in 200 gallons they are prone to "treading water" by the filter outlet. The best tanks for them are circular, so they can patrol about just like real sharks. Failing that, use a good sized filter and supplement with powerheads and/or airstones to the best of your ability. Certainly aim for water turnover rates above 8 times per hour, and ideally 10-12 times.

Cheers, Neale

Thanks for the replies, yes im very aware of converting them to brackish waters and ive got a 6foot 125 gallon tank set aside just for my columbian sharks. i removed the dead guppies. its tough to get hard facts, people at the fish stores are useless, their all knowitalls but all have conflicting information. thats why i decided to give this site a try, suprised how quick a got a response. thank yall and im happy i found this site.