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Juliak

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A few weeks ago I was able to buy some fish for my future large tank and I was hoping some of you would have some suggestions. As of right now I have a 2" black ghost knife fish with 2 delhezi bichirs (3-4"), 1 Senegal bichir (2"), 2 rope fish (12"), 1 giant Danio (2.5"), 1 dojo loach (5") and 1 oranda goldfish (5") I know that it wasn't the best choice but he is doing really well as of right now, I've had him for about a month. Right now they are in a 55 gallon grow out tank together. Most of the fish in this tank (bichirs, rope fish, and BGK fish are very calm and lounge around/hideout most of the time other than the occasional swim around the tank). It is not crowded (do to the BGK and bichirs still being babies), I just bought a aqueon 125 gallon aquarium and am picking up a fx6 canister filter today. Would this be okay in the long run (for life), or would I have to re-home the BGK after some time? (I'm in 9th grade so I live with my parents and am limited to only my room pet/space-wise).

Also I have been feeding them frozen bloodworms, sinking cichlid pellets, sinking algae wafers, goldfish pellets, betta food (for the danios, just to mix it up), and earthworms. And am planning on trying frozen beefheart, ghost shrimp (I'm forming a colony now), blue Moscow guppies (also in the breeding process), and blanched spinach or cucumber:).

Any suggestions and responses will be greatly appreciated, Thank you all so much!
 
Hi what are the dimensions of the 125? A big footprint is important with all of these fish. If it’s 2 foot wide that the important thing then length I’d hope for at least 5 foot if not 6?

Are you going to keep the 55 if so I’d leave the goldfish and dojo loch in there. They have different temperature requirements to the others and keeping fish in the wrong temperature long term can really shorten their lifespan.
 
The 125 is 72.5″ (6ft)L x 18.5″ W x 23.4″ H
I can keep the dojo with the oranda in the 55 gallon without a problem. Do you think the 125 is a good size for the rest? It's a fairly large tank luckily:)
 
It is a really big tank :) which is great unfortunately I would have hoped your width and height would have been flipped as the knife, bichirs and rope fish are all likely to all grow to over a foot long with most of them being capable of reaching 2 foot in length. The Bichirs and Rope Fish are probably flexible enough to be ok here but not as sure about the knife. The good news is that you have a couple of years to work that out as these fish are all pretty slow growing, especially as they get over 12 inches.

They are also all pretty common fish, so its important to weigh up if rehoming them is good as they could end up in a smaller 'big' tank and with a less dedicated owner?

One other thing I meant to mention was that you should get more giant danios they are a shoaling fish so need the numbers, in a tank that size a school of 10 would look pretty phenomenal.

Really good news you are keeping the 55 for the Oranda and Dojo - you would probably be ok with a few more fish in there too. The general guide for fancy goldies is 10g for each fish but you have the loach too which does appreciate being in a small group of at least 3. Something like 3 fancy gold fish and 3 dojo would probably be achievable though but you would have to be on top of maintenance properly and in a really consistent way to make sure you deal with the vast amount of poop the fish would produce (same as the 125 really).

Wills
 
Yes, that makes sense. I originally planned to get more giant danios but the store didn't have any more at the moment, as soon as I get them in the 125 gallon (I'm setting it up this weekend) I am planning on getting a small school of the danios. Do you think they could live in the 125 for life or do you think I will have to rehome the BGK fish/any of the other ones? Thank you!
 
The BGK and Birchir long term won't be happy together so at some stage a decision will have to be made, who will stay and who will go.
 
Honestly, the larger the tank the better but since they are babies, the 125 will do fine. Although, if you do want to keep all the fish, you should do an upgrade to a 200 or possibly 250. And just a personal opinion, I would choose bichir over BGK ,but I still love the fish.
 
Yes, I'm planning on picking up two more this weekend. Do you think the 125 can hold the bichirs and other fish for life (without the BGK fish)?
 
For the most part... I would be worried about the danio and goldfish later, once the bichirs have matured. Mabye not the goldfish. but there is a high chance the danio might not make it. Bichirs eat whatever they can fit in there mouth. danios stay slim there whole life and grow to 4-6 inches. Bichirs grow up to about the length of 2 medium sized hotdogs and mabye even longer. Although I can say the combination of dojo loaches and goldfish is great. If i had the tanks, I would get more dojos and goldfish and keep em' in the tank you have currently. For the 125. Keep all the bichirs and get tank mates that are not more agressive but get to the same size. For example, clown loaches, oscars, and flowerthorns. Also, keep in mind, BGK get up to 20 inches, rest assured the will need a larger tank or you might have to give them away.
 
I have a 55g that the goldfish and dojo loach(s) are being put in, I guess the giant danio can go with them:). About the flowerhorns, I read that they are aggressive, could I really keep one with the bichirs and rope fish without too many problems? Could I keep one oscar and one flowerhorn together? Right now the only fish that stay in the midlevel tank are the goldfish and danio and they won't be there for much longer, so I do want to get a fish other than the bgk (who I will try to rehome) that will stay out in the middle of the tank. Thank you so much for the responses! I really appreciate it:).
 
I have a 55g that the goldfish and dojo loach(s) are being put in, I guess the giant danio can go with them:). About the flowerhorns, I read that they are aggressive, could I really keep one with the bichirs and rope fish without too many problems? Could I keep one oscar and one flowerhorn together? Right now the only fish that stay in the midlevel tank are the goldfish and danio and they won't be there for much longer, so I do want to get a fish other than the bgk (who I will try to rehome) that will stay out in the middle of the tank. Thank you so much for the responses! I really appreciate it:).
Well... I am not a fan of flowerthorns mainly because their price can go up to 300+! Also, most people reccomend keeping flowerthorns solo. Also with the 125 gallon you could try clown loaches. They get to the same size of a bichir and are kinda like water puppies. If I were to get any fish, it would be clown loaches. Make sure you get 6 of them though if you do plan on it. Here is some ideas for the 125. 3+ dojo loaches, 3+ goldfish, and some kind of schooling fish. All your bichirs, clown loaches, and chichlids. And BGK, discus, and catfish(some kind of pleco or pictus catfish). Another common idea is puting like a 100 of a schooling fish and some kind of clean up crew and a show of fish.
 
Wow, flowerthorns are expensive! I like your idea of discus and clown loaches though.:) What do you think about this for the 125g;
2 delhezi bichirs
1 Senegal bichir
2 rope fish
Temporary BGK fish
3-5 discus
3-6 clown loaches
And either a pleco (I love the green phantoms, but they are pricey) or a pictus catfish?

Thank you! I was also able to put the goldfish and dojos (I got 4 more!) Separately into the 55g.:)
 

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