Channa Bleheri

[dave_oddballs]

well id start with a group of around 6 but remember if you don't want deaths on your hands, you will have to watch for them pairing off, as if and when they do they will want the others out of there and commonly ends in death. bleheri will get to around 8" so if the 6 get bigger it will be a bit tight. with that sized tank (37 g) id honestly say you'd be a lot better with assam or orientalis.

 

[mr130gallon]

what about if i just got one, and would a pictus cat be able to join him in that tank?

 

[always4lora]

They're best kept in species only tanks. Also if you went with Assam's then they're sub trop so wouldnt be able to have many tank mates due to that plus once again keep them by themselves.

 

[dave_oddballs]

if you just want a tank with different fish in than a snakehead is not for you, you should get a group, and thats assuming you get the 37 gallon, and wait for a pair to form, as always4lora said they are subtropical so you would find it difficult to find tankmates that would both co-exist with a channa and also be sub-tropical.
i think you should think hard about what you really want before you go buying anything.

 

[mr130gallon]

oh, i know i want a channa, but i need to see how much they will cost before i get a group, im going to call the store today, and i was just wondering about the pictus, it would have been nice, but when i know the price ill see if i can get a group or just one.

if i get one, could i get like 5 more later and then let them pair up, or will the first one kill them

 

[dave_oddballs]

it depends on the actual fish really, i mean, i removed one of mine as it tried to eat one of the smaller ones, and after a few weeks when the smaller ones had bulked up a bit i put it back in and it got battered, i didn't expect it as it was the biggest one. i personally would just stick with one or wait until you have the cash for a group, you don't have to get 6, thats just what i see as a suitably sized group in order to obtain a bonded pair, you could get four and get a pair or you could get 20 and never get a pair. i would say how ever many you want, get them all at the same time, even if it means waiting a few weeks or so.

 

[mr130gallon]

ok, its 3 weeks till they get them in, and ill be getting payed before that so ill decide how much i want then

 

[always4lora]

Best adding them as a group and letting them grow up together. best have a look a snakehead forums uk and get them private will save you a few penny.s.
i would though unless you're deffo getting a bigger tank go with orientalis as they can grow quite quick.

 

[mr130gallon]

im deffinetly going to get the 37 gallon, and i wont get snakeheads from their because i live in canada so it would cost more lol

 

[mr130gallon]

so i can get the tank for 100 bucks, and the store is for sure ordering in rainbow snakeheads, i didnt know if they might be getting red snakeheads (aka giant snakehead)


now... feeding... i have 3 weeks to research this fully, they probably eat the same as other snakeheads, and ill research on google, but personal experience anyone? and is it possible to train these to eat flakes? i know one of my lfs's has taught their RBP's to eat flakes...

 

[always4lora]

No luck on flakes with mine , i couldnt get mine to take pellets. mine feed mainly on meal worms / crickets / earth worms and prawns. If you think about the size the snakehead will grow do you really think flake would fill it up? you'd need loads of the stuff!

 

[dave_oddballs]

i doubt rbp's would live a good life on flake food, pretty cruel really, and the same for channa, they are in reality meat eating fish, be it insects, spiders, crustaceans or other fish, they need something to replicate this in captivity and this is normally done as mentioned by always4lora, with meal worms, crickets, bloodworms, cockles, prawns, lance fish etc although they have been known to eventually take pellets of some kind its natural for them to want to hunt prey, so having food that at least looks life like and meaty is a good start. really you should have known all this well before even thinking about ordering them.

 

[mr130gallon]

ok, i know i can get crickets and bloodworms from my lfs for super cheap, and im going to have molly babies soon that i wont want that i was planning on giving to them. how much and often do they get fed? i know some predators get one big meal a week, but i would think a few crickets or little things like that would keep them full for longer than a day, but maybe a bigger fish would?

 

[mr130gallon]

ummm... anybody know how often?

 

[england]

I feed my channa sporadically, one day yes a few days no,yes no yes yes...seems to work fine that way