Golden Loaches (chinese Algae Eater) Need Opinions?

[Neo8223]

Bought 2 a few years ago, one for my guppy fry tank, the other for my community tank, the fish keeper said, Yea they are happy fish good for the community tank. They were fine in both tanks. Then 3 months later, i bought some sword tails for my community tank, the blasted thing killed all 3 within a day. The one in the fry tank was peaceful all the time (although there were sooo many babies, i wouldnt have seen the odd 1 or 2 eaten)

 

[cheesy feet]

I need everyone's opinion on the golden sucking loach in other words the chinese algae eater
If you could answer these questions i'd be greatly appreciated


1- Are they aggressive or not?
2-How big do they grow?
3-Can they be kept together more than 1?
4-What size of tank is needed for them?

Need as many as possible because lfs banned me from shop for returning these because i wasn't happy keeping these as from what i read about them. so need to prove to shop that they are wrong as they are selling these to people who have no idea of the consequences

Chinese Algae Eaters in my experience are awful!!

I had 2, I got rid after 2 weeks, they kept trying to suck the eye balls off of my cory's!!

Get some little Ottocinclus, they are great in a little group of 4 or 5, get on with every one, dont get too big and eat all the algae.

The same happend to two of my plecos aswell, both over 12'. I hate the things.As neale said they're like phsychopathic thugs when adult

 

[Butch]

I have one chinese algae eater in 55 gal community tank and have no problems with it. Its about 4inch long. Its tankmates are mostly endlers, daffondi cichlid and bluefin killifish. They were too fast for CAE. I think they need to be with right tankmates that's not easy to suck on such as smaller fishes and slender bodied fishes that always swimming all day. Like smaller tetra species and smaller livebearers, and aggresive cichlids. I even kept one with gambusia. The CAE are not bad fish, its just its not right tankmate like I put piranha with goldfish and hope they will become buddies or I put fancy goldfish with convict cichlids. That would be no. CAE's best tankmates are danio species, smaller tetras, guppies, medaka fish and gambusia.

 

[CrashingWaves]

Is a Chinese Algae Eater a type of loach? I feel kind of stupid asking this question since loaches are my favorite type of fish, I just never really thought about it. I've never had any experience with them by the way.

God Bless,
Joshua

 

[kamber]

These are Indian algae eaters not CAE? The CAE is black with a different coloured head?

 

[pastabake]

The Golden sucking loach, Indian Algae Eater and CAE are all the same fish.

I have a small one ~2" in a 70ltr community tank. He doesn't pay much attention to the swordtails and never touches the Cory's even though they play all around him (you've scared me with these tales of eye sucking) in fact the only fish he dislikes is the Leopard Danios which he seems to hate with a passion which were added after him.

I'm moving him to a new tank soon but am a bit scared that if he's the first one in then he'll think its his tank and not take too kindly to later additions.

 

[nudzy]

I bought 2 gold sucking loaches from the lfs about 3 days ago, on the advice from the educated people there that a pleco would be no good for my 20g tank.

I want a peaceful community tank, and am now worried about the fact that they seem fine at the moment but what are they going to turn into.

Will the lfs take them back do you think?

 

[Lateral Line]

CAE's are no good for small peaceful tanks. They grow large, and become increasingly aggressive. They don't grow as large as a common Plec, but there are a load of small plec type things around these days. Or Ottos if you want an algæ eater of course.

Try taking them back, can't hurt to ask.