Yo-yo Loach

[pandey22]

Hey i have 4 yo yo loach myself. They r all very very active i have provided caves(they love it) and the tank is heavily planted.

-They need a bigger tank
-Provide them with caves,driftwood and a planted tank
-They r gregarious(like to live in groups...but do not school)
-caution-cover ur filter intakes and outlets...becz...they surely will love to check out your filters.

 

[Lestat999]

Loach need to be in groups of 5+ to see their true personalities, a 10g tank is too small in my opinion. You may get away with the sids/dwarf chain loach, if you want professional advise log onto forums.loaches.com and ask the residents there.

 

[KraKen]

I'd go with khuli loaches, bu not the black ones imo they're too active for a 10 gallon tank.

 

[overboard]

I'd go with khuli loaches, bu not the black ones imo they're too active for a 10 gallon tank.

DO Khuli loaches eat snails?

 

[Rubix]

or two stripe loaches Botia rostrata would be suitable.

WAIT! I think i saw these when i got the Yo-yo Loach. Is one of thier commen names the Zebra Loach?

Zebra Loaches are usually Botia striata. They're OK in a 10 when they're young, but they really should have at least a 20 long when they get full grown - they top out around 4", usually a little less - a 36" tank would be even better. Loaches.com has B. Rostrata topping out around 8", and while they tend to overestimate in my experience, that's still way to big for any tank less than 4' long.

I'd skip the Dwarf Chain Loaches (Yasuhikotakia sidthimunki) in a 10 too. I think they be better off in a 20 or more, and at the price they command, you really ought to have a tank that's easy to keep stable, which a 10 isn't. They're also super active if you get a good group of them and they have a nicely planted environment with enough swimming room. Still, reasonable people could disagree on whether they're suitable, and the Wolf is certainly reasonable.

IMHO, Kuhlis or black kuhlis are your best bet. Make sure you have absolutely no sharp edges in the tank - I've had kuhlis literally gut themselves on a sharp rock. Also, make sure you have a soft bottom so they can dig.

Well said. No 10 gallon tank is suitable for any Botiine loach, nor Khulis, unless it's used temporarily such as for quarantining (which should be done with all loaches). Honestly, I wouldn't keep a Botiine loach in anything smaller than a 36 inch tank, and even then I would plan to move them to at least a 48 inch tank down the line. I'd keep khulis in a 10 far before any Sidthimunki, these fish are quite active and need a good size social pool. Loaches.com publishes proven fact, if the fish didn't grow that large then it wouldn't be said and published. The folks which make up that site have been keeping these fish since they were discovered (and theyre still being discovered), meaning the fish have time to reach full (or maybe not even full yet) sizes. Most basic discussion thrown around about loaches is based on keepers's experience so far, which is rarely a fish's full life span. Rostrata, almorhae, and striata are very different fish contrary to what loachman said. I think what he meant is more along the lines of care and needs for these species is quite similiar. Sand is the preferable substrate for loaches btw, sharp things are bad