After losing my last Pakastani loach (who admittedly was a tad hit and miss in the snail eating department, but did seem to leave shrimp alone), I happened to be in one of my local pet shops and on the very off chance asked if they had any Dwarf Chain Loaches in. They have NEVER before carried these wonderful little loaches, but amazingy they did have in 4 that the owner said had been in for around a month and nobody had snapped them up
. Why nobody had wanted them (aside from price) I have no idea, I don't know what price she had on them but being a near weekly visitor and buyer from the shop she sold me the 4 for $100. One of the 4 I thought was going to die after being acclimatised because not only is it very skinny (hopefully just from missing out on food in a mixed cramped sale tank) and started doing death spirals as it struggled to the surface of the tank. I netted it and kept it secure in the net near the surface of the tank so it didn't have to keep struggling and so the other fish in the tank wouldn't pump into it as it floundered on its side. A few hours later and the good news is the little struggling guy was up and at them and ready to rejoin his companions in the wilds of the tank. I am debating getting some more Dwarf Chain Loaches to up their numbers to at least 14 because they do love being in a group. I can buy them online and delivered to my door for 10 @ $19.99 each or 5 for $24.29 each. I am pretty sure that the pet shop I got these new 4 from wont be getting them in again
Which is a shame because these great little guys although expensive are a better choice than the potentially monsterous adult sized clown loaches.
In another tank I already have at last count 10 or 12 Dwarf Chain Loaches in another tank and they have done an outstanding job of decimating the MTS and Ramshorn snails so I am hoping that these new guys do a similar excellent job in their tank. The only thing these loaches may not be able to resist is shrimp, but the only shrimp that do end up in their tank are cull cherry shrimp that are otherwise only useful being sold as live food for other fish. I will also be interested to see how these guys buddy up with the pack of Khuli loaches that currently inhabit the tank along with a few hundred cull cherry shrimp and a couple of Bristle noses.
In another tank I already have at last count 10 or 12 Dwarf Chain Loaches in another tank and they have done an outstanding job of decimating the MTS and Ramshorn snails so I am hoping that these new guys do a similar excellent job in their tank. The only thing these loaches may not be able to resist is shrimp, but the only shrimp that do end up in their tank are cull cherry shrimp that are otherwise only useful being sold as live food for other fish. I will also be interested to see how these guys buddy up with the pack of Khuli loaches that currently inhabit the tank along with a few hundred cull cherry shrimp and a couple of Bristle noses.
