Sucker

[Ericag90]

hello all! I welcomed a suckerfish to my tank to help clean up a little for me! I’m just wondering what all I need to care for him! Thanks in advance!

 

[Colin_T]

Any idea what sort of fish it is or can you post a small picture of it?

Most algae eating fish require plant matter and driftwood. The plant matter is normally algae but many will also graze on bottom feeding pellets and algae wafers, thin slices of zucchini, cucumber, pumpkin, etc. Just make sure anything you give them is free of chemicals and has been washed well and peeled too if you can. Some fish prefer their fruits and veges raw while others prefer them lightly cooked/ blanched. Put the fruits/ veges in boiling water for about 20 seconds to soften it a bit and them offer to the fish.

A small piece of driftwood should be in their tank so they can graze on it and use the woof fibres to help their digestion.

 

[Ericag90]

My husband got him while I was working my 16 hour shift yesterday I got home last night and couldn’t find him. He apparently didn’t know an exact name besides freshwater sucker fish! He is black and white too bu what my kids told me! I did see that on google about the supplements...will my cichlids eat the cucumber and such?

 

[Colin_T]

some cichlids eat fruit n veg but others ignore it. Most fish will pick at it tho.

don't put too much fruit/ veg in because it is plant matter and will eventually rot and cause ammonia that should be picked up by the filters. But if you put too much in and it doesn't get eaten, you might get ammonia spikes that could stress the fish.

 

[Ericag90]

Okay, so how often would you recommend the fruit/veg? I will need to go get some wafers as well

 

[Colin_T]

If there is lots of algae in the tank, you can offer cucumber, or pumpkin once or twice a week. If there is no algae then you should feed them once a day.

Catfish, including algae eaters are normally most active after dark. So a lot of people feed them at night and remove the leftover food the following morning. If there are lots of floating plants in the tank the catfish might come out during the day to feed, in which case you can feed them during the day while the tank lights are on.

 

[Ericag90]

I have yet to even see him!!!!

 

[Ericag90]

I don’t really know if that brown is algae or not? But it keeps showing back up! I’ll get a pic when I can! Just did a water change yesterday so it’s not as bad

 

[fluttermoth]

You really, really need to identify this fish; some 'suckers' need a more meaty diet, and many species grow very large; well over two feet in some cases.

 

[Essjay]

And one species needs to be in a shoal (otocinclus)

 

[Ericag90]

Well I just called the pet store my husband purchased it from and sure enough it is one whom will grow to be 2 feet!!! We will be taking him back and exchanging him for a smaller one lol

 

[Colin_T]

Post a picture before you return it. Pet shops sell hundreds of fish every week and they might have sold a big catfish to someone else.

 

[Ericag90]

If I could get one! He has done nothing but hide!

 

[Ericag90]

Got him!

 

[Colin_T]

It looks like a Peckoltia. If it is they only grow to about 4 inches. However, there are heaps of suckermouth catfish that look similar and don't always stay small. Have to wait for the catfish guys to give their opinion