Had This For 6 Months And He Hasnt Grown

[snazy]

If the dorsal fin ray number is less than 10 and considering the resemblance with common pleco, it might be a Hypostomus species.
Some of these can stay rather small, even smaller than a bristlenose which would explain the lack or maybe slow growth of yours.  I think the largest I came across is about 10". A lot of them have a spotted pattern and of course the most famous one is Hypostomus plecostomus
 
Here is the entire list of pictures of Hypostomus. Have a look if yours resembles any of them.
 
http/www.planetcatfish.com/catelog/genus.php?genus_id=17

 

[TooManyChoices]

Second is absolutely some kind of pleco. No chance of it being a bristlenose. Have you got any actual wood in the tank? I think it is quite an important part of their diet.

 

[Paradise3]

Second is absolutely some kind of pleco. No chance of it being a bristlenose. Have you got any actual wood in the tank? I think it is quite an important part of their diet.

 
Erm, Bristlenose's are Pleco's It's not a Bristlenose for sure but they are both pleco's. Also, not all pleco's absolutely need wood. Only certain ones.

 

[Ruskull]

I might look into driftwood. I have a very hard time keeping live plants in the tank... I get a whole bunch at a time, and still, within a week theyre all gone... my fish eat them all.... maybe wood will be a better alternative

Bristlenose Plecos require driftwood to suck on.  The first pic is def. a Bristlenose, the second I don't think so.  

 

[coyemuse]

 

 

[JenCliBee]

Sorry to say but that is a very unhealthy looking plec, is it eating ok?, what are you feeding?

 

[Ruskull]

I agree that Pleco looks down & out, his fins aren't perky and he/she is very thin.  Have you tried any veggies?

To be honest maybe your tank is too clean!  I don't see any algae so I hope he's getting wafers, bottom feeder pellets and some fresh blanched veggies...........

 

[coyemuse]

The bottom feeders (sydney "syno", Corys "3 musketeers", and the two plecs) get 5-6 algae wafers a day, and sydney loves his bloodworms every other day. plus any flake food that makes it past the swords, platys and tetras... should they be getting more? how much?

 

[Ruskull]

That sounds like a lot to me.  I feed no more than 1 or 2 algae wafers per tank per day and one of my tanks has 7 Corries, a mean fat female BN Pleco & a huge fat male Bolivian Ram, a Dwarf Gourami & a Molly.  They all share 2 medium sized wafers that I break in 2 or three pieces each.  They get some flake every day, bottom feeder pellets a couple of times a week & frozen brine & bloodworm mix once a week per tank.
 
Do you see that particular Plec eating?  I always try to make sure I can actually see every fish get a bit of whatever I'm feeding.

 

[coyemuse]

i will watch him during the next feeding time. i seem to remember him showing interest in the wafer... do you think he'd be better in my 10g, maybe sydney(synodontis) is picking on him?

 

[snazy]

Try a cucumber. Plecos love them and you'll see if he eats it although it shouldn't be his main diet. At least there'll be no competition. He looks skinny and weak and his tail is all torn so something isn't right with him. Just to mention on a side note that corys aren't vegetarians and need protein food as well as algae wafers.

 

[coyemuse]

Just texted a roommate to bring a cucumber home... wont get dirty jokes for that one Anyway. the corys also have access to bloodworms and brine shrimp and the falling flake food. Also, How can I build algae without live plants?

 

[snazy]

Also, How can I build algae without live plants?

 
Don't worry about the algae. You don't want it. As the tank matures there'll be always a small bit healthy one, enough for them to rasp on but not enough to make the tank unsighty. My bristlenose constantly polishes something invisible but I can't see algae in the tank he is in.

 

[Ruskull]

Yup, try a cucumber or zucchini slice a few times a week.  Try not to leave it it the water more than a few hours.  I usually do the slice right when I get home from work and try to remember to remove before bedtime.  You should be able to see if any fish are bullying each other too, just watch  the tank a bit more with that Plec in mind.

 

[N0body Of The Goat]

This pleco is looking much thinner/unhealthy to me than it did in your original photos. In your position I would isolate it in your 10g (having put the presumably bigger and therefore safer fry back in the main tank) and try to get this fish to put on some weight with some quality food. It would not surprise me right now if this fish is so weak that it is unable to compete for food in the main tank.
 
If this fish was healthy, then by all means a good amount of vegetables would be fine, but this fish needs to put on weight urgently and so it needs some good quality high protein catfish pellets. Cucumber and to a lesser extent zucinni both have very little nutrition in comparison. The "New Era" brand for example are loved by my fish since introducing them to their various products just before Xmas.
 
Give the plec some sort of cave/tube it can feel safe in and test the water regularly, its bioload will almost certainly be more than that of the fry you had in your 10g before, so you will probably need to do 50-95% water changes most days. If the catfish is looking healthier in a couple of weeks, you can reintroduce him/her to the main tank and just keep a good eye out on how the plec does back in the community.