Pictus Catfish

[arobinson1984]

Has anybody got any experience with pictus catfish?

I'm interested in getting a group of 3 for my tank.

I'm usually quite good with stocking issues but the pictus catfish is a fish I have no experience with.

What is the minimum recommended tank size? I dont trust half the websites saying 20 gal.

Also, are they compatible with corys or will the attack the corys?

Any information from people with experience of the pictus catfish will be greatly appreciated.

Cheers

Andy

 

[mattlee]

Hi Andy,

ive never owned one myself but these cats are very fast and active which could out compete the corys for food especially with 3... they are great looking cats and ive been tempted in the past but never actually got one due to my corys and the reason given about feeding!

 

[Liam50]

i would go with 4 as they are pretty competitive when feeding and a larger number should spread the aggression. i personally wouldn't have any time of catfish except plecs with them as they do generally get most things that come down to the bottom. i would say a 3ft tank would do nicely.

 

[arobinson1984]

Thanks for the reply guys,

The tank is a 33 US gal tank (the rio 125) and is about 32" in length.

Other bottom feeders in the tank are:

4 sterbai cory
1 BN Plec


Would I be ok with 2 pictus catfish? Are they ok in pairs? I didnt want too many as it would overload bottom of tank.

I normally feed flake food, catfish pellets, hikari algae wafers and a variety of different veg.


Andy

 

[Liam50]

well three would be better. but the feeding seems to be pretty good.

 

[arobinson1984]

You think I would be ok with 3 liam?

I've never seen them before until last week when I found a new maidenhead aquatics near me, they stood out, they looked stunning.

Andy

 

[Assaye]

I personally wouldn't keep them in less than 40 imperial gallons and I think they should be kept in trios as they are fairly sociable. They are highly active and do get quite big! Plus they are not compatible with small fish because they like to nom them.

 

[winner2010]

Im sure he comes out at night. you may try to get one more because they do like to swim together. his may coax him out more, or give you what you want to see which is that brilliant silver spotted lightening in the tank. Mine hides as well. he is sooo lazy. I have a raphael ( also a hider) and a colombian shark( he is the swimmer of the group) good luck, and hope he comes out more for you.
====================

 

[didz04]

Yeah that will be a problem if you have cory's in terms of feeding that they are likely to get to it first, so the best thing to do is feed them atleast twice a day and try dropping the sinking pellets right next to the cory's. However, Assaye is right and they should be in atleast a 4ft tank as you have seen they are really active fish and need the space to swim, with the right decoration as in hiding places for them and still enough space at front and sides for them to swim you will see them all the time. They will not do harm any other fish but when they are in groups you may find some fighting against one another however the bigger the group the happier they are. Since they are very active fish and need to be with other active fish to be entertained, the best tank mates would be their own species.

 

[vega]

I used to have a little one in a 29 gal and all it did during the day was swim up and down in a tight circle in the corner of the tank. It had plenty of places to hide, and nothing ever picked on it...lonely behavior I guess. I had a couple of corys in there with it too; they all got along and out-competing each other for food was never an issue.

 

[fishfinderdave]

hi.

i have plenty of experiance in keeping these catfish. I had 3 of them.
first things first.
they are certainly not fussy eaters...because like most catfish they will eat anything.
they are very sociable fish so are kept best in a pair or more.
if kept alone they will hide away and sometimes refuse to eat anything atall.
when it comes to choosing tank mates for the pictus..its not that hard really, i kept my catfish with gourami's (golden and kissing), a royal pleco, angel fish, rainbow shark, swordtails and black skirt tetra's.

its said that the pictus will pick of any small fish in there tank but its not very common for them to do so really. ive never had any aggression from from any of my fish.

the pictus catfish will reach about 15 inches in all.
when first introduced to a tank its best to feed them on bloodworm (frozen or live) just for a few days and see how they get on.
and a tank of 20 gallon is far too small for a pictus catfish really.
id say more like 100 gallon plus.
mine wer kept in a tank of 180 gallons.
good luck with your catfish keeping!!!

 

[snowflake311]

I have 3 in my 100 gal. I would not keep any other bottom feeders with these guys but a pleco. They get crazy when food hits the water. I have never seen fish get so excited about food. They will eat till they look like they will pop. They have a big mouth little fish don't stand a chance.

My 3 fight with eachother. They all have their own little place in the tank. They make sounds when really mad. I would not keep them in any thing smaller the. A 4 foot tank. These guys are hardy and fun. Great with larger cichlids.

 

[nurglespuss]

According to Baensch a 32-36" is fine, I would say 3 would be good, but they are far more active in a larger shoal.