Looking For Advice

[NaughtyT]

First off sorry for posting this in here but i am still waiting for my vaildation to happen,i have emailed the address given so hopefully this will be done soon.

I am not new to fish keeping(just away to set up a 3rd tank in April) but new to cat fish as such.

About a month ago i bought a gorgeous little cat fish and he was around 3 quatrers of an inch in length,i told the shop my tank size and what i had in there already and he said this little indian cat fish would be ideal.So i bought it.

When i tried to research this fish i couldn't find anything like it on fish index's etc and the likes of scot cat etc was proving to be a bit of a nightmare to find my fish on but finally i have identified him as a featherfin cat fish.

I have read very mixed reviews on this fish and would like some opinions from people on here if possible.

My tank is around 20 gallons (rectangle)and in the tank i have

2 flying fox
1 kissing gourami
3 odessa barbs
1 albino plec (about 2 inches)

So far the cat fish has been fine with all of the other fish,he hid for the first couple of weeks but has now became very active,it does occasionally chase my plec but nothing serious.

As the cat gets bigger will it be a threat to the other fish?space is no problem as i have a 6 foot tank arriving in april so cat fish can be moved if need be,how big can i expect it to get?

Once again i apologise for this being in the wrong section.

I have added a couple of photos.



Thanks in advance.

 

[BobbyBray]

I personally have never kept a featherfin, though they look like very interesting fish. Check out that link, its got some information on your fish, but it unfortunately looks like they recommend a 30 gallon tank as the minimum size. An 8" fish in a 20 gallon tank would definitely be tight, especially with all the other fish in there. You may be able to get away with it for awhile, but either bring him back to the LFS, or keep your eyes peeled for a 30+ gallon tank you can prepare for him.

 

[rdd1952]

Hi NaughtyT,

Have you tried having the validation email resent? Please check your Spam folder and also any spam blockers you may have in place. The email would come from gmail.com so if you happen to have that domain blocked as I did at one time, the email won't come through. You can have the email resent by clicking the link at the top of the page.

rdd1952

 

[Ficious]

well i have first hand experience with these guys and they quickly have become a good stable in my hobby.

20 gallons is going to be too small...now usualy i would say that it would take a few years to outgrow it and youll be ok until you can upgrade, but unless youre upgrading soon, he will outgrow that in 5 months promised. please dont be put off by this and am not trying to be a d!c%

very cool looking fish, the spotted pattern is beautiful in the right lighting. everytime i can see him i get as good as look as possible because they are just so stunning! once he reached 4 inches or so his dorsal and mid body became extremely massive.

mine was 1.5 inches 3.5 months ago and he is now going on 6 inches. mine eats everything everytime i feed. (shrimp pellets mainly) and unless at the surface, i dont see mine comming up for flakes very much (which is good for your other fish). try not to let them get too much food, they can be easily overfed...just look for the swollen belly to get an idea if hes overeating. they stay hidden or upsidedown undersomething until its food time or night has arrived. i could see them eating small fish like neons but wouldnt be put off until you have proof of him eating them. especialy when hes bigger, not at all when hes young. very peaceful, only a bully at feeding time...but this is just sloppy and hastey eating.

all in all get a bigger tank (mine is 55g) or wait until he gets too big...youll know when its time lol

hope this helps, good luck!

 

[NaughtyT]

Thanks alot for the advice folks,i'm going to keep him because he is just a wonderful fish to look at and watch,the new tank will be here in april so space for him is not an issue.