Green Terrors

[Crazybob]

hey guys, i have a 75g currently housing 3 green terrors, an orange pike, and an ocscar. i think that im going to have to give my oscar away because hes starting to try and eat the terrors . anyway, i was wondering what else i can stock my tank with?

the terrors are about 4" and the pike is about 6" at the moment.

 

[shroob]

I would seriously add nothing, although GTs are (relatively) slow growers, they can soon bulk up and turn nasty. A 75G with 3 GT's and an orange pike I don't think will work in the long run. Especially if a pair forms, then the GT's will not tolerate any tank mates. At around 7" the GT's will 'snap' and become aggressive, they don't call them terrors for nothing

 

[chicklette]

I agree I would not add a thing. An oscar needs a tank to himself because they get so big. And three green terrors I doubt will work in the long run. If a pair forum the odd man out will get picked on big time. A suggestion you may want to consider is giving away two green terrors then you could add a FEW more cichlids. But if you are determined to keep the three don’t add anything else.

 

[Davo86]

Agreed, if two of the GT's pair up then that you will find that you will need to remove all other fish for their safety.
(You say the Oscar is trying to eat the GT's at present, well if the GT's were mature you would probably find them attacking the oscar)

The best option i think which has already been mentioned would be to go for one GT and the pike, then you would be able to add maybe 3 or 4 slightly smaller species.

 

[Crazybob]

cool, thanks for the advice, so if i did get rid of two of the terrors, would would be good tankmates? i know that theyre going to be rather aggressive, but what can go with one?

 

[chicklette]

You can add a convict or a jack Dempsey. Depending on aggression level of your GT a firemouth might work. But always remember when with cichlids you never know what’s going to happen, if someone will get picked on or get hurt. For this reason I prefer to house my cichlids alone. But that’s just me.

 

[Davo86]

You could also look at adding a few medium sized catfish,

 

[Crazybob]

excellent, thanks. i do like the convicts, they seem fun lol. a catfish shouldnt be bothered by the pike?

 

[Talleyrand]

The Convicts I keep are only about 3" long. They ended up ruling the tank though, the convict pair would go nuts when they would spawn. I was afraid it would go to far so I removed them. My Green Terror lives with a Jack Dempsey and an Upside Down Cat.(an unidentifiable synodontus cat)

 

[chicklette]

When you add the new fish make sure you re-arrange the decorations. Convicts are a blast to have. If you still have a lot of aggression after removing the decorations you can add the convict and take the green terror out and put it in a bucket for a bit. Re-arrange the decorations again and place the GT back in the tank. I did that on a few occasions and it worked. It seems to confuse the fish into thinking they are in a totally different tank.

They aren’t shy and it should go well. However I would not get a breeding pair as they will get way to aggressive.
Good Luck, I hope it goes well!

 

[Crazybob]

well i think i found a good home for my oscar, so thats good news, now i cant decide which of the terrors to keep. im fairly certain i have 2 males and a female, because the one (female?) has a much darker body than the other 2, and is still a little smaller, tho theres def a hierarchy that ive noticed. if i keep the female will she still have to coloration of the terrors that i originally got them for, or would i be better off keeping a male?

i typically rearrange my tank every or every other time i do a wc, to try and keep aggression down, so thatll be good. last night i had the idea of each week keeping the arrangement the same but moving everything down a little so it looks like the fish are slowly moving down a stream lol.

i think i might add a convict, the lfs i normally go to has a tank of purple ones that look nice, tho im going to go to a couple other places first. would texas or cuban cichlids be okay in there?

also, i was thinking about getting a pin cat. i was talking to someone that said he had one in an aggressive tank, and when he first put it in it got attacked but its spines stabbed the aggressor and he was left alone ever since. is that typical or somehting i should try to avoid?

sorry for the long post lol

 

[chicklette]

Personally I would keep a male GT. The largest one. It's hard to tell how aggressive the texas would be. They can become very very aggressive. If you have a plan if things don't work out then go for it. But each fish is different so all you can do is try it and see what happens. They are more aggressive then green terrors.

 

[Crazybob]

i see. a friend of mine asked me to grow a texas a little for him, because its too small for his tank atm, so i might do that i spose.

anyway, i went with a spotted pim cat, but he stays in a little cave-like area i made. he doesnt get bothered by anyone, i think its because when i first put him in he dive bombed everyone in the tank with his spikes. i was told he prolly wont come out very often unless i get him 2 other companions, is this typically true? or will he become more active once hes used to the tank a little more?