Adopting A Chocolate Cichilds .

[snowflake311]

Someone in town is looking to find his Chocolate Cichild a home. I have a 100 gal with a Uaru and some silver dollars. I have a Pacu that I rescued and I am bringing him to a pet store that has a 300gal tank. 
 
My Uaru is older and but this chocolate is older too. I think they will be ok but thats why I have the silver dollars as dithers. The chocolate is about the same size as my Uaru 7-8". 
 
Should I get the chocolate Cichild it is a 4 years and 7". ever since I sold My Ture Parrot I have wanted a fish like it. This I think would be a great fish. 
 
 
 

 

[snowflake311]

Well I got him. I rearranged the tank, did a water change, turned the lights off,  and took my Uaru out. I am let the new fish settling first before Mr.Bossy Uaru is let back in the tank.
 
The Uaru has become a big jerk over the years and I am looking for a new home for him. Some guy with a 55 gal tank and breeding pair of Convicts wanted him. I said no I don't want my uaru to die. SO the search is on. My Uaru is bossy but he could not live with a breeding pair of Convicts. 
 
I did find a good home for my rescue Pacu I am very happy about that. He will be off to a new home tomorrow. 
 
I will post photos of my new fish soon. I am pretty excited I have always wanted one of these guys but never had the chance. 

 

[snowflake311]

Well my Chocolate Cichild is weak and stressed out he needs time to recover. So I look the Uaru out again this time he will stay out and go to a new home tomorrow This Uaru has just become too nasty. I can't keep anything but silver dollars and a pictus cat with him. 

 

[Wills]

I had a chocolate cichlid for a while, when I added him I had a female severum in there as well and she was the boss of the tank. To start with the Choc just hid constantly but eventually it balanced out though I could tell they didnt like each other.
 
Unfortunately I lost him to a disease outbreak I had a few years ago and the severum died earlier this year at about 10 years old
 
Wills

 

[snowflake311]

Good to see you are still around Wills. Sorry to hear you lost your Chocolate. 10 years is a long time for severum they don't often live much longer then that. 
 
 My Uaru (The same Rescue I got in 2010) has been a healthy bastard. He killed my favorite fish Nip. I should have re-homed him a long time ago. Tonight I said good bye to him. He is off to a 200Gal tank with some Oscars as tank mates. We will see how that goes. A part of me feels bad giving him up after nursing him back to health. When I got them my plan was to find them a new home. I kept him 5 years. I wish I kept that True parrot I had. 
 
I like this chocolate much better than the Uaru. He is so laid-back and mellow. He is still a bit weak and adjusting. The Silver dollars seems to be happy the Uaru is gone because he lashed out on them. I have a baby severum that is 3 inches now. Growing out with some angle fish. I feel like I should move him into the 100gal now that the Uaru is gone. I thinking adding young fish to old fish is the best way to go. What do you think? 

 

[Wills]

Yeah Im still here occasionally Lilly could have been older I had her for about 6 years and the guy before me had her for 4 and she was imported as a wild adult! I have lost quite a few fish in the past 18 months unfortunately but I have had most of them that died for around 7 years, though I lost my Thayeri to a fight, though Im not sure who with I had only had her for about a year - year and half.
 
Funilly enough I have 2 Uaru now, they are not growing that great which is a little worrying but seem to be happy enough. Will have to see how they go. I am debating a shake up in my tank as some of the other smaller cichlids are not filling the tank in the way I was hoping a group of them would.
 
I remember you rescuing the Uaru ages ago I cant belive it was 5 years ago!! I seriously couldnt belive they pulled through. You shouldnt feel bad moving them on, you really saved them from a bad situation and getting him into a big tank like that is great all round
 
Adding the severum sounds good though Adding youngsters to a tank has always proved more successful for me, though its always tough not to chuck in adults to get the instant tank impact...
 
Wills

 

[snowflake311]

Thats funny you got some Uarus. They are cool fish very outgoing. The wood I had in the tank with them has teeth marks on it from them. They are weird fish. I did enjoy them they are much more fun kept as 2 or more. 
 
I have 2 little severum growing out in a 80gal with some angelfish. They are very good together and just ignore each other. When they get larger they will go in with the chocolate cichlid. I was thinking of getting a Heros Notatus wild caught. I bought one years back but lost him due to a bacteria bloom that cased the O2 in the tank to drop a lot ! I don't know if 3 severums and a chocolate will work for my tank in the long run. 
 
My chocolate cichlid took a week to warm up to me. He was always in hiding but is a gentle giant. I named him Buggy because he has bug eyes. Buggy has been coming out when he sees me now. He has warmed up to me. He did not eat at all for the first few days. I had to bribe him with blood worms. I got scared he would never eat for me. It took awhile but he trusts me now. These guys really are pets like wild animals. 
 
I don't know if it is personality or just the way this breed is. He is so laid back and chill. Not at all jumpy or mean. He will hold his own and show his mood by changing his body color. He is awesome with his tank mates. He lives with some big silver dollars, a Buffalo head Cichild (I rescue with the Uarus 5 years ago), 1 pictus cat,  and 1 Dehezi. So the Buffalo head is the only other cichlid in the tank. I caught them sharing the chocolates hiding place under a log the other day. Both fish are laid back and not aggressive but can hold their own if need be. In the end they don't like to fight. 
 
When I move the Severums I am scared I still have some time till that day. So far my severums seems really calm and not aggressive but they are young.