Rd Fin Cactus Pleco

[stan1979]

hey folks,
picked up one of these beauts during the week
http/www.planetcatfish.com/catelog/speci...?species_id=125

just wondering if any one has any experience with these plecs or has any more info they would like to share

enjoy the christmas and new year
stan

 

[KathyM]

Merry Christmas - what a cracking Chrimbo pressie! Very envious - I can't keep them with my other plecs but they're definitely on the wishlist should I ever get more tanks.

Pseudacanthicus species are carnivorous plecs, and are incredibly messy, so filtration and space is the key with them. Because of the huge amount of waste they create, they're best not put with other messy/large fish. I've just looked at the profile on PC that you gave, and realised I'm just repeating what that says!

Hope someone on here can help you further, and congratulations!

 

[stan1979]

Merry Christmas - what a cracking Chrimbo pressie! Very envious - I can't keep them with my other plecs but they're definitely on the wishlist should I ever get more tanks.

Pseudacanthicus species are carnivorous plecs, and are incredibly messy, so filtration and space is the key with them. Because of the huge amount of waste they create, they're best not put with other messy/large fish. I've just looked at the profile on PC that you gave, and realised I'm just repeating what that says!

Hope someone on here can help you further, and congratulations!

so far it has settled in very well with the royal pleco, once there is enough wafers and in the tank for them they are grand. its been tough trying to get some prawn to him cause the bogwood area he hides in is where my male krib patrols so he has a habit of robbing the prawn but think he is still getting some bits and pieces.
using a standard jewel filter with a fluval exteranl 304 with 25% water changes every week
think that should be enough

 

[KathyM]

Depends on the size of the tank and the size of the plecs as to whether your filtrations up to it (I'm rubbish with that and tend to go massively overboard).

You may find that you'll run into problems keeping the Royal and the Cactus together. It's not advisable to keep Royals with other non veggie plecs as a high protein diet is incredibly bad for them in the long run (sorry ). There are some people who do keep them together but in the long run the Royal will suffer health problems if he gets hold of the more protein rich food. Can you feed them separately for now until you decide what to do long term? It'll mean feeding the Cactus and then vaccing up leftovers immediately. It'll do temporarily but in the long term it might be better having them in separate tanks.

Of course, you can always send me the Royal

 

[Shaker]

Lovely fish, very envious. If you don't mind me asking how much did you pay for it ?

 

[stan1979]

Depends on the size of the tank and the size of the plecs as to whether your filtrations up to it (I'm rubbish with that and tend to go massively overboard).

You may find that you'll run into problems keeping the Royal and the Cactus together. It's not advisable to keep Royals with other non veggie plecs as a high protein diet is incredibly bad for them in the long run (sorry ). There are some people who do keep them together but in the long run the Royal will suffer health problems if he gets hold of the more protein rich food. Can you feed them separately for now until you decide what to do long term? It'll mean feeding the Cactus and then vaccing up leftovers immediately. It'll do temporarily but in the long term it might be better having them in separate tanks.

Of course, you can always send me the Royal

thanks for that extra bit of info kathy,
they both seem to stay at opposite ends of the tank and when they do meet up in the centre they both just look at each other and scurry off back to their own areas, moving into a new house in the new year and have managed to persuade the missus to allow an 600lt tank( although i had to agree to treating her to a weekend spa treatment in exchange, well worth it)to take pride in the living room so i will be able to home both of them in seperate tanks. at the moment they are both in a rio 300 with a shoal of congos, rainbows and 4 golden panchax and my other pride and joy my brown spotted perch, and mixed group of corys.

would find it easier to give away the girlfriend than my royal

 

[Darkstar]

I keep L25 Pseudacanthicus and royals together without problems....it really isn't as hard as some are making out.

 

[stan1979]

will see how they pan out together if it works it works if not i can split them up.
onlly paid 30 euro for him in my lfs which i thought was a good price,
what price have others paid for them

 

[Darkstar]

What others paid is only really relevent in your area since the cost of living differs on where you are in the country.

I paid £70 if I remember rightly for my L25 and I paid £45 for my L273.

 

[KathyM]

thanks for that extra bit of info kathy,
they both seem to stay at opposite ends of the tank and when they do meet up in the centre they both just look at each other and scurry off back to their own areas, moving into a new house in the new year and have managed to persuade the missus to allow an 600lt tank( although i had to agree to treating her to a weekend spa treatment in exchange, well worth it)to take pride in the living room so i will be able to home both of them in seperate tanks. at the moment they are both in a rio 300 with a shoal of congos, rainbows and 4 golden panchax and my other pride and joy my brown spotted perch, and mixed group of corys.

would find it easier to give away the girlfriend than my royal

Sounds like you've got a good plan of action there (although I'll let you keep the girlfriend!!). If you split them up you could even add to your collection with plecs that suit each other better, if you get me.

Darkstar - I did say that some people keep them together, I was just saying it's not the best thing for them, as has been proven by people far more experienced than you and I. Whether you or I like it, the truth is Royals and other Panaques do suffer from getting hold of high protein food, and their life expectancy is considerably reduced. No offence was intended whatsoever, it's just something people need to be aware of when thinking of keeping plecs that are technically incompatible.

Sounds like he was very reasonably priced too Stan - how big is he?

 

[Darkstar]

Darkstar - I did say that some people keep them together, I was just saying it's not the best thing for them, as has been proven by people far more experienced than you and I.

chill!

Perhaps you might try even owning a Pseudacanthicus before telling other owners what is possible and what is not.
There are no hard and fast rules in fishkeepnig just good guidelines and what works or doesn't for one person won't definitely be that way for someone else. So relax, my opinion is just as vaild as yours.

I have never once recommended others do the same....I simply stated yesterday in another thread that no matter what you think it works for me and others that I know, the fact that you can't believe it for one reason or another makes no difference...you just seem intent on having the last word.

 

[KathyM]

I'm perfectly chilled ta, I was just trying to help someone.

Maybe this information will help:

http/www.plecofanatics.com/forum/showthr...t=royal+protein

I'd appreciate it now if you'd stop trying to discount everything I say (and being so rude in the process) - like you, I'm only offering a different opinion based on my personal experience and the advice of extremely well regarded experts that I got when I was looking into this exact subject. I can't sit and say you're right when I've learned differently, but I have tried to be diplomatic.

Stan - I'm ever so sorry this happened on your thread. I'll steer clear now, and hope the link was useful to you.

 

[Darkstar]

I'm perfectly chilled ta, I was just trying to help someone.

Maybe this information will help:

http/www.plecofanatics.com/forum/showthr...t=royal+protein

I'd appreciate it now if you'd stop trying to discount everything I say (and being so rude in the process) - like you, I'm only offering a different opinion based on my personal experience and the advice of extremely well regarded experts that I got when I was looking into this exact subject. I can't sit and say you're right when I've learned differently, but I have tried to be diplomatic.

yes I am aware of the thread....I've read it before and no doubt looked into farther than you have since this is starting to sound like a competition to you.

I haven't discounted everything you say....(try reading it!!) What I said was as a general rule it shouldn't be done, and I wouldn't recommend it to be done by anyone. However it works for me and my fish...and whether you like it or not you cannot prove otherwise other than repeating other peoples experiences but discounting mine and others who say it works for them....You shouldn't be so opinionated if your only intent on seeing one side of the argument.

 

[KathyM]

I give up. I have been open to your experience, and I remain so. What would be helpful information to hear is how long you've had both your Royal and your other species. Because the advice I had is that this is a long term issue, so experiences of a couple of years or less wouldn't be that helpful. Your specific Royal doesn't go for the prawns, well that's great, I'm glad for you. Mine, and many others, would and do, and this is what's bad for them - and what happens when the lights are off and noone's hawkeyeing them. I haven't once discounted what you're saying, I've just said that when planning keeping plecs together you can't rely on the Panaque not being a meat fan just because yours isn't. If at all possible, it's best to keep them apart.

Now I've given the info I wanted to to Stan, and it's up to him what he does with it either way. He might have an experience like you, or he might have an experience like the tonnes of others who have greedy Royals that'lll eat "junk" food. At least I gave him the information to make an informed choice what he does - he's an intelligent bloke and doesn't need you or I having a hissy fit on his thread. If you wish to debate things further with me, take it to PM, otherwise, let's let Stan have his thread back.

 

[Darkstar]

Thankfully it sounds like your actually understanding my point.

This particular L191 I've had for 6 years....

As I've said I can't guarantee it will work for everyone but

I feed my royals fruit and veg at least every other night. I have a tank with over 20 pieces of bogwood in it, ranging from 8" to 20" in size...the only decor is bogwood. I do not feed high protein foods such as prawns and beefheart other than 1 single prawn hand fed twice a week to my black ghost knife fish. I do not over feed my fish at any point but instead prefer to prefer to opt for several smaller feeds such as bloodworm, brineshrimp, daphnia, tablet food etc to all the other fish, of which there are cories, synodontis, tyre-track eel, and others who ensure any food which enters the tank is cleaned up with minutes. This feeding regime also means there is no food left overnight.

If I was under any impression that my royals where having too much protein they would be removed immediately to another tank. However they only seem interested in the wood or the large green pieces of veg that get stuck to the glass or buried in the substrate...

Anyway, it sounds like the guns have been put back in their holsters....so I'm off home now and Stan can have his thread back.