Raphael Catfish

[Barracuda518]

I got these fish about 10 months ago and just wanted to give an update.

Here is a picture when I first got them:

Here is the original topic:

[URL="http/www.fishforums.net/content/forum/212579/New-Catfish/"]http/www.fishforums.net/content/forum/212579/New-Catfish/[/URL]

New pictures taken today:

They have trippled in size

 

[big-george91]

nice fish

how big will it get?

 

[Straydum]

their stomachs are BIG! i tend to try not to feed my two too much. they get bloated easily. lovely cats by the way

 

[Barracuda518]

Thanks for the comments

nice fish

how big will it get?

I had some in the past that were 6+" that I give away. Some reports say 10+".

These have grown quickly, about 2.5" in 10 months, but I have also heard they are slow growers. The ones I had that were over 6" got that big in about 2 years. The ones I have now are probably a little over 3".

their stomachs are BIG! i tend to try not to feed my two too much. they get bloated easily. lovely cats by the way

Yeah, their stomachs are like that right after feeding. They swallow the pellot whole

I also have to watch how I feed them. They only get fed maybe once a week. Its quite a challenge trying to get food to the cories and holding the Raphael Cats back

I also have a Spotted Raphael Cat in that tank too thats bigger then they are, but I never see it.

 

[Straydum]

i took my cats out into a separate tank from my cories for that very reason

 

[LetsBeFriends]

iv been looking into getting one of these guys, they are very cool looking, yours look great!

 

[paul_219]

Very cute fish looking gr8.

 

[alysonpeaches]

What can you keep these with please?

Im just setting up a new tank and these appealled to me because my grandson is called Raphael and I think he would like them. It worries me that they will grow big though. My tank is 96 litres and I was planning making it a community tank, but I can imagine these eating some of the smaller fish.

 

[Barracuda518]

Thanks for the comments everyone

What can you keep these with please?

Im just setting up a new tank and these appealled to me because my grandson is called Raphael and I think he would like them. It worries me that they will grow big though. My tank is 96 litres and I was planning making it a community tank, but I can imagine these eating some of the smaller fish.

They need to be with fish they can not fit into their mouths, because they will eat them. I have to move mine to their own tank soon because of that.

Im not sure how many US gallons 96 litres is, but they will need a good size tank and lots of hiding places as they grow. They really arent the ideal catfish for a community tank with smaller species of fish.

 

[bordercollie05]

Hehe, looks just like mine, Pierre. He was given to me about 6 months ago, so I never saw him as a little one, but he's grown a bit too. Love that fish, even though he barely moves . Great pictures!

Laura

 

[alysonpeaches]

Thanks for the comments everyone

What can you keep these with please?

Im just setting up a new tank and these appealled to me because my grandson is called Raphael and I think he would like them. It worries me that they will grow big though. My tank is 96 litres and I was planning making it a community tank, but I can imagine these eating some of the smaller fish.

They need to be with fish they can not fit into their mouths, because they will eat them. I have to move mine to their own tank soon because of that.

Im not sure how many US gallons 96 litres is, but they will need a good size tank and lots of hiding places as they grow. They really arent the ideal catfish for a community tank with smaller species of fish.

Im not sure how many gallons it is, but there is 5.5 litres to a gallon so I guess its about 20 gallons. Its 32 inch long anyway. Maybe there is another smaller catfish that doesnt eat smaller fish.

 

[willtang3000]

Look how broad they are now
Obviously doing your job well so keep it up

 

[Barracuda518]

Look how broad they are now
Obviously doing your job well so keep it up

Thanks

Its not hard to keep them seeing as how they will eat anything. I think they have grown even more in the last week. I didnt even get any pictures of the biggest one, it likes to hide more. The spotted one is the biggest of them all, but I never see it.