Possibly Need To Rehome Common Pleco

thisguyek

Fish Crazy
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I've got an approximately 7" common pleco in a 4ft 55 gal tank. It is about 5 years old.

It grew up in a 10gal tank for the first 4 years until i upgraded to the 55 gal. I believe that living in the 10gal has stunted its growth, as it doesnt appear to be growing since being moved. I've been struggling with disappearing fish and beaten up tails lately, and in another section of this forum, it was suggested that my pleco may be the culprit. Does anyone have experience with their plecs attacking/harassing their community fish? Is he too small for my tank?

any comments/suggestions greatly appreciated!
 
If his growth was stunted it would have been from lack of nutrients/nutrition/poor water quality. So, if those needs are met then the fish will grow. They don't grow to the size of the tank otherwise, it's just a myth. If nutrition and water quality are met, he will grow to the size that his species is intended to grow. I think personally, he's too small for your tank. A fish that doesn't have enough room can have problems such as aggressiveness because fish need their own territory. A 7 inch fish can require a large territory and in a 55g, other fish are going to be entering his territory a lot. He is 5 years old but I don't know how long it takes them to reach their mature size. Some fish take years to grow to full potential, others reach it very quickly. Again, water and nutrients are the key, not habitat size.
 

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