Need Fish ID

[Colin_T]

It is sick, it's covered in excess mucous, has frayed fins and cloudy bug eyes. It could be a dud that didn't get culled at the farm.

 

[PheonixKingZ]

That is a possibility @Colin_T.

Maybe it is a hybrid between what we already ID it to be and another smaller fish?

 

[SuzyQ]

Agreed. I'm stumped. It looks like an ID shark and should be bigger even if severely stunted. If he was stunted this badly, he should be dead or at least very sick by now.

The more I have researched the more I am convinced he is an ID Shark. He’s always seemed healthy, but obviously not. I feel terrible that I’ve stunted him. If I was to put him in a larger tank would he grow? Although, I know that would be a mute point as he needs a giant tank for full potential.

 

[JuiceBox52]

He might, obviously not to the extent otherwise but it might help

 

[trash.binh91]

The more I have researched the more I am convinced he is an ID Shark. He’s always seemed healthy, but obviously not. I feel terrible that I’ve stunted him. If I was to put him in a larger tank would he grow? Although, I know that would be a mute point as he needs a giant tank for full potential.

Don't feel too bad. Yes, you did make a mistake but everyone does! It's terrible that the pet store uninformed you with this animal that, without proper knowledge, proper care could not be provided. Don't take it too hard on yourself, you did the best you could with what you knew.

 

[Byron]

Yes, there is a lesson here that all of us must learn, and we usually learn by making a similar mistake. I did. The lesson is, never acquire any fish without fully researching the species. And unfortunately store staff generally do not know themselves, so do not take their word for it unless you happen to know the individual's education in fish.

A few years ago I saw a tank of "loaches" in a local store, and having never seen them before I asked the employee about them. She said they remained very small (they were scarcely over an inch and swimming frantically all over the tank, not surprising given the stress of store tanks on fish) and peaceful. I got the scientific name off their invoice (the owner knew me well enough not to refuse) and I looked them up at home. Good thing I did. They got considerably larger, needed a group, and had a rather nasty disposition as they matured. Had I bought them, they might or might not have taken them back, but that would have been even more stress on the poor fish, or I might have been in the position of having to euthanize them.

Always research the fish, on forums like this one or reliable sites like Seriously Fish. I have one local store, one of the better, that has a terminal in the store for customers to research fish.

 

[Wills]

It could be some kind of Wood Catfish like a Tympanopleura or a Ageneiosus. I used to have a couple of Ageneiosus sp.Blue and they seriously looked like Pangasious but totally unrelated to them and only ever got to a max of 10cm. If this was a Pangasious even in a 30 gal it would have got much bigger. I would check out the profiles on Planet Catfish and see what you can find.

They are both rarer species but they do become available from time to time and are not usually an expensive fish when they are. The posts above from Byron are always extremely valid though - especially with anything that looks like a monster.

Wills