Aggressive Hillstream Loach

[picothepleco]

I have had this fish in my 30 gallon community tank for about two weeks and he seems to be getting progressively more aggressive. I'm tempted to take him back to the pet store, he chases my apistos around constantly. What should I do?

 

[BerryAttack]

i've had this fish before, it was a dream, no issue. 
are you feeding him properly, could be hungry and attacking other fish because of this.
how long have you had the tank up
stats of the water?
 
these fish like fast moving water
 
if you are tired of the fish disturbing your other fish, then take him back.

 

[picothepleco]

i've had this fish before, it was a dream, no issue. 
are you feeding him properly, could be hungry and attacking other fish because of this.
how long have you had the tank up
stats of the water?
 
these fish like fast moving water
 
if you are tired of the fish disturbing your other fish, then take him back.

I'm really not sure what he is eating other than the spots of algea that grow on my plants and such. My stats are just fine, however I'm not sure about how fast my water is moving. I have both an airstone and my HOB filter which seem to create enough current to cuase the leaves of my plants to move. My tank has been set up for about two months. I've decided to just catch him and return him to the store, it was kind of cute at first how he would try to swim/ jump on to the other fish but he's just gotten meaner. I have the feeling that I may not be feeding him properly. Too bad, I really did like him. Thanks for the help.

 

[N0body Of The Goat]

"Hillstream loach" is a generic term to describe a massive range of loach species that come from low-end tropical waters with lots of current. What species are you talking about? If unsure, upload a photo via a hosting site like Imageshack.
 
You should not be simply leaving this loach to clear the tank of algae, you should be giving it suitable food. In the wild some of these hillstream loaches look as if they are eating the algae, but they are actually looking for the far more nutritious "aufwuchs," which are basically tiny critters that live in the algae.
 
I've had a male Aboricthys elongatus for over 3 years now, I've yet to see him attack anyone with his mouth.
 
What fish are you keeping yours with?
What is the setup like in terms of lph water movement and temperature?

 

[DreamertK]

Hillstream loach also likes cold water. In a community tank you're probably got too warm of water for the poor guy. Putting a cold water fish in warm water is detrimental to their life.

 

[the_lock_man]

As Goat says, there are various genus of hillstream loach. In my experience, the gastromyzin sp. are peaceful little things, whereas the sewellia sp. can be feisty little wossnames.

 

[DerpPH]

Throw in some algae wafers. Check the exact sp . And rehome him if needed

 

[picothepleco]

I don't believe in my buying any fish for the sole purpose of keeping my tank clean, tank maintenance is my job. I've decided to rehome the loach, although with some research I found that he is most likely of the sewellia sp.
Thanks for all of the replies.