Blue Rams. X

[lil-x-me...x]

heyaa,

i am about to get two blue rams. firstly does it matter if they arnt male and female? and if it does, how can i tell the difference between the sexes?

also, i am getting quiet a few plants for them, they will be in with neons and ottos, which i have reserched that they should be ok with, any ideas ifr they would be ok with my zebra loach untill i take him back in a few weeks?

i have sand and bogwood, would they need a cave or would bogwood be fine? i have reserched that they would be ok with pellets, flake and bloodworm, which i have, is that correct?

thanks x

 

[lil-x-me...x]

anyone? x

 

[TigerIssey]

Whether you keep a pair or two of the same sex really depends on the size of the tank. I allow at least 20g per male / female pair. I have found that if you have a pair they will share the territory however if you keep two of the same sex they tend to need a territory each, which would mean 20g each.

In order to sex them you need to examine the anal fin. In a male the anal fin will go past the junction between the body and the tail, in a female the anal fin never passes the juction between the anal fin and the tail.

Male

Female

See the difference?? If you see a pink abdomen, that is definately a female.

 

[electric yellow]

Hey

I have four blue rams in my communal tank. I have 1 boy and 3 girls. I love them. They are mixined in with 1 gold gourami, 1 albino cory, 2 bristol nose plecs, 1 neon tetra, 1 tiger barb, 1 rosy tetra and 2 clown locahes. They seem to get along with everyone. They have their own hiding spots but the dont cause any problems. They can be aggressive towards each other so mayb try 1 male and 2 girls?

Mine are fed high protien and small pellets. They love amazing water quality so frequent water changes is a must. I have bog wood and a couple of caves for fish ti hide in and a couple of silk plants.

 

[lil-x-me...x]

ok, well i can definatly tell the difference between the male and female on them pics, thanks tiggerissey!

i have been told that just a pair of 2 would be the max for my tank, so ill be sticking with 2, and hopefully it wil be fine

thanks for all your replies x will keep my bogwood, and get some live plants.

any ideas wether they would be ok with my zebra loach untill i take him back? thanks x

also, i need some new water conditioner, as i have got away with none for the past week! and the fish seem ok at the moment (touchwood) however im not sure that the rams will be. any ideas on a cheap water conditioner?

thanks, anything else you think id need to be aware of please let me now, and feel free to pm me f you want x thanks for the comments so far x

 

[electric yellow]

why do you want to take him back?

how big is your tank??

 

[lil-x-me...x]

My tank is a 48ltr (10 or 11 gallons) and is too small for my zebra loach, i have 8 neons and 4 ottos in, and then i have been told i could squeeze in a pair of blue rams. i have been told this by a member here, who has plenty of experience so im sure it will be ok.

thanks x

 

[Truck]

if you want water conditioner dont buy loads of small bottles, its a false economy

buy pond dechlotinator
http/www.tetrapond.com/sites/tetrafish/c...276&cid=131

get the biggest you can find as it save faffing

 

[lil-x-me...x]

ok, thanks truck

 

[ppipanman]

Hey

I have four blue rams in my communal tank. I have 1 boy and 3 girls. I love them. They are mixined in with 1 gold gourami, 1 albino cory, 2 bristol nose plecs, 1 neon tetra, 1 tiger barb, 1 rosy tetra and 2 clown locahes. They seem to get along with everyone. They have their own hiding spots but the dont cause any problems. They can be aggressive towards each other so mayb try 1 male and 2 girls?

Mine are fed high protien and small pellets. They love amazing water quality so frequent water changes is a must. I have bog wood and a couple of caves for fish ti hide in and a couple of silk plants.

As for the water quality you are correct but german blue rams form monogamus pairs and should be kept in a 1 male to 1 female ratio because the males have been known to harass and kill extra females just keep that in mind if you get a bigger tank

 

[TigerIssey]

Have to say I agree with ppipanman there, I was always under the impression that German (or any other blue or gold) blue rams formed monogamous pairs and that ultimately in the long term (may work short term) that a pair would harass a single to death particularly if breeding. Water quality is important, absolute maximum for nitrates is 20ppm. Food wise I feed mine Tetra prima granules, New Life Spectrum cichlid food, anything containing spirulina (including algae wafers), blood worm, daphnia, brine shrimp (enriched with spirulina), basically a varied diet. Sand is also a must with rams, the latin name is Micrgeophagus ramirezi, micro = small and geophagus = eartheater, they do enjoy sifting sand. Rams also like slightly warmer water, I keep mine at 28 degrees, the higher the temp also means brighter colours. It is also said that keeping them at higher temperatures helps their immune systems to fight any infection. I am sure Truck will enlighten you more on this.

EDIT They also enjoy the vegetables I put in the tank for my plecs.

 

[electric yellow]

Hey

I have four blue rams in my communal tank. I have 1 boy and 3 girls. I love them. They are mixined in with 1 gold gourami, 1 albino cory, 2 bristol nose plecs, 1 neon tetra, 1 tiger barb, 1 rosy tetra and 2 clown locahes. They seem to get along with everyone. They have their own hiding spots but the dont cause any problems. They can be aggressive towards each other so mayb try 1 male and 2 girls?

Mine are fed high protien and small pellets. They love amazing water quality so frequent water changes is a must. I have bog wood and a couple of caves for fish ti hide in and a couple of silk plants.

As for the water quality you are correct but german blue rams form monogamus pairs and should be kept in a 1 male to 1 female ratio because the males have been known to harass and kill extra females just keep that in mind if you get a bigger tank

Yes they do pair off. I never said they didnt. I got a pair first and then got two girls. The pair do their own thing and the other two girls hang round together that they arent aggressive at all. My tank is a 3ft so there is plenty of room for them The largest fish i have are my clown loaches and gourami. All the rest are tiny like the rams

if you want water conditioner dont buy loads of small bottles, its a false economy

buy pond dechlotinator
[URL="http/www.tetrapond.com/sites/tetrafish/c...276&cid=131"]http/www.tetrapond.com/sites/tetrafish/c...276&cid=131[/URL]

Actually someone recommended that to me aswell. I was confused as to why use pond water conditioner in a tank though..isnt it meant for ponds?