Trouble With Otocinclus

[Term`]

Hi guys, sorry to ask what I can assume is a really simple question,


I have recently just lost 2 Otocinclus with no obvious signs of death steming from desease, like white spot etc,

so I turned to water conditions, but the Nitrate level doesn't register, the pH is 6.4 which I thought was within the 5.5 to 7.5 which I was told was the main range for an oto to be happy in,

the Nitrate however is quite high, I kno really high levels are dangerous, but I didn't think it was enough to kill the both otocinclus especially as the other new fish were fine (albeit the fact they were neon tetras who seem to be able to stay alive in anything upto used toilet water)

any ideas why they may have died, I am gonna do water changes to try combat the nitrate levels, will this help/cure ?

Sorry if this is an obvious question, but I have had a long break from keeping an aquarium, and now I am older and want to do things properly,


Second point (thanks for still reading )

why are otocinclus so expensive ?

my local fish shop sells them for £3.80 each and that seems high for the size and lifespan of the fish, anyone else agree or am I just being a total newbie.


thanks for your help guys, hoping to get a few responses to this post, my last 2 didn't drill up much of a reaction.

thanks again,

Term

 

[kimmers318]

I have read that otos can be real hard to acclimate, and are sensitive, so that may be why you have lost them. High nitrates are damaging over time.....and probably more so to the more sensitive fish. I purchased 4 for my large tank...lost 2 within a couple of weeks, and the other 2 over the next couple of months, although there was plenty of good eats in there for them...but it was a fairly new tank which from what I have found since, probably wasn't a good idea for them. I also purchased 2 for my dp tank, 1 is still surviving, lost the other right after a water change....he swam into the area I was slowly pouring water in, and before I caught the movement he was swooshed away...found him dead a couple hours later!
As for price, I only paid $1.99 for mine...so maybe they just have a hard time keeping up with supply and demand where you are and that jacks the price up.
Hope you have better luck in the future...I plan to stay away from otos now.

 

[france]

I read somewhere that most Otto's are wild caught and go through a lot before getting to your tank.... this makes them susceptible to all sorts of killing things.
As for price, the wild caught thing would increase the price my guess. I've seen Ottos for both cheep and expensive. I got mine for around $2 each (4 of them) and all 4 are doing fine after a month. I guess I got a good batch.

here's a good article on Buying and Acclimating Ottos:
http/www.otocinclus.com/newoto.html

 

[BBrain]

I understand that Otos are entirely vegetarian. Because of that, they don't often get the food they need (algae, etc.) during the long period of time, and several homes, between capture and your home aquarium. Therefore, by the time we get them, they are weak and easily die. I found this article very helpful:
http/www.planetcatfish.com/shanesworld/s...?article_id=178