New Catfish In Town.

[M.R Otter]

Howdy Fellas, I'm wanting to bring home a walking catfish maybe an albino one. but I don't know much about this catfish.........I need some info about it's tank mates and diet. and is it okay if I bring home only one?

 

[indigoj]

One is fine but you know thay reach up to 24" don't you? Mine eats anything but as varied a diet as possible is best. They will eat smaller fish. I keep mine with 2x Kissing Gourami at the moment.

 

[mixmaster jay]

-what indigo has said really mate mine eats everything but live fish lol but more often than not they will eat them i just must have a lucky one lol

what size tank have you gat mate

 

[Davo86]

Howdy Fellas, I'm wanting to bring home a walking catfish maybe an albino one. but I don't know much about this catfish.........I need some info about it's tank mates and diet. and is it okay if I bring home only one?

These are voracious eaters and greatly vary in temperament from one fish to another, I've seen some in the past that would live happily with any medium to large sized fish, one that would only tolerate a large pleco and chased and harassed anything else it was put with, and then one that even cornered a fully grown oscar and pretty much tried to eat it alive, stripping it almost completely of its fins.

If you get one relatively young you should have plenty of time to judge the temperament of the specimen you buy

 

[indigoj]

Mine will not tolerate any bottom dwellers but leave mid/top swimmers alone.

 

[mixmaster jay]

mine don't care at all lol it has a 6" snakehead on its head or by the side of it most of the time 2" convicts around its face and 2 13" plecs with it too its sooo laid back mine its un-natural lol

it goes giant gourami tipping now and then lol
the only fish it doesn't tolerate at all is my 16" perunno (which is in another tank now) and shovelnose cats it wants to kill them both

 

[indigoj]

Yours is a beauty Jay is it male or female do you know?

 

[mixmaster jay]

thanks mate
do you know ive not even checked mate lol i will find out

 

[mixmaster jay]

looking at the genitals its a male

the genital papilla is elongated and pointed at the end

 

[indigoj]

Mine too sort of thinking finding a female could be interesting.

M R Otter - they are such fun fish if you have room then go for it !

 

[mixmaster jay]

yeah they are great mate mine is hand tame too
yeah i would love to get a female and see what happens

 

[M.R Otter]

COOL, are they realy that fun? And they can be tame to the point of accepting food from owners hand? that is way cooler than having a lousy Hamester. Oh and before I forget...... I've heard that the walking catfish has a poisoness spine attached to it's pictorul fins, is that true? and should I worry about that spine? Oh and one last thing do they need hiding places? and what decoration is suitable for it's presence?

 

[indigoj]

Mine happily eats from hand, even chews on fingers (very gently) they do need a refuge to rest/hide like a pipe (eg plastic drain pipe) or cave but they will also move decor around so if you have rocks make sure they are either very heavy and secure or siliconed in place! They can jump too so a well fitting lid is needed.

Don't actually know about the spines? Have to do some research! (Suffice to say I'm still here and not poisoned so reckon they are harmless enough, and it's not like you'd handle it a lot anyway.)

 

[M.R Otter]

Mine happily eats from hand, even chews on fingers (very gently) they do need a refuge to rest/hide like a pipe (eg plastic drain pipe) or cave but they will also move decor around so if you have rocks make sure they are either very heavy and secure or siliconed in place! They can jump too so a well fitting lid is needed.

Don't actually know about the spines? Have to do some research! (Suffice to say I'm still here and not poisoned so reckon they are harmless enough, and it's not like you'd handle it a lot anyway.)

Nah you are right, it's not like im going to pet it all the time LOL. yes actualy I did some research on this cat fish but...... no useful info in the internet, but I have this book that sais that they have a poisoness spine........ but it does not say anything about the catfish axcept that they are omnivores and they migrate from a water source to another.

 

[indigoj]

they can survive short times out of water - hence the name - in nature they can cross land to find a mate/food etc.