Newby Needs Help!

[mrjingles]

hi all, i was completely new to the whole fish keeping business until about a month ago. i bought myself a
tank that i thought would be a reasonable size for the fish i was wanting. the tank measures 2ft by 1ft and
16 inch deep, think thats about 16 gollons if i worked it out rite . like i said im new to this lol.

i then bought myself a heater (decided on keeping tropical fish) , filter (fluval 2) a hood with built in flourescent, some gravel and some live plants. after cicling my tank for a couple of days i went to a tropical fish specialist with a water sample for them to kindly test for me. the water was fine so they told me to buy three plateys just to start and see how they go on for a week or two. after a couple of week the plateys are fine and really thriving in there new aquarium.

now heres where you guys come into the equation
yesterday i was at my local town and popped into a seedy little petshop just to have a look around. since it had been a while since i put the plateys in i decided to buy another one or two fish.before buying i made sure they looked healthy and there where no dead fish in the tanks. i spotted some really cool fish that looked kinda like little sharks. i decided to buy two. i asked the guy in the shop about them first and he said the following - good community fish, good size for your tank, mainly eat tropical flake.
well i woke up this morning and decided to look up the species, i totally forgot the name but i knew it began with P..... catfish. i think its the pengasius catfish. ile post pictures, there not very clear but if you guys can tell that would be fantastic . if it is this species i hear they grow huuuge are they gunna be too big for my tank! any replies would be great...
cheers guys

 

[Coomon10]

Look like iridescent sharks to me, so yes pengasius catfish. Yes they will be too big

 

[Scykotic Belief]

yes they do look like pengasius, though they are beautiful fish, they do grow to a amazing size for an average hobbie fish "well how often i see them for sale", the adult specimens grow to an average 36-39 inches so around the size of a Black arowana, having seen a full sized specimen, they are still amazing fish, but be prepaired if you wish to keep it, that it will require a large aquarium with no-other or equally large companions
and as it grows it will show no sympathy in eating smaller companions.
this site may help http/www.petsmart.com/global/articles/ar...696503937&N=230

 

[mrjingles]

thanks for the speedy replies guys,much appreciated
i dont believe the guy at the shop gave me false infomation!
if i was to keep them, how long have i got until they need re-housing there about an inch long at the moment and also,how big are we looking at for the aquarium they will be needing? will they need to be seperated when adults?
since i got the false infomation about food aswell what do you peeps sugest, ive seen the list of food from the link Scykotic Belief sent me and woundered whats best for them?
thanks for this btw, really help me out here

 

[Coomon10]

My advice would be to have a staple diet of flakes and then have additional frozen foods like bloodworm occasionally. Basically see what they like and whether they eat the same as your platy's, a little variation helps all fish... Cooked, shelled and crushed peas also help keep fish healthy, just see if they take it

 

[mrjingles]

hey! thanks for that! ile try some peas tomorrow,
is it true about the fish growing to the size of the tank there put in? sorry about the newby question

 

[catxx]

nope, that fish-to-tank size thing is a myth, they'll get stunted, their insides keep growing, equals a grizzly death.

pangasius, gah, i wish fish stores wouldn't stock these guys. he'll need a BIG tank to keep him, like 7ft tank maybe? he'll potentially be a 3ft fish and need space to turn around.

not necessarily the same pangasius species as yours but you get the idea!

this is his cousin, the pangasius gigas, fortunately not found in the pet trade!

 

[mrjingles]

WOW ! thats amazing! i wounder why the small everyday petshop was stocking them if they knew most people cnt really house them, i bought two for £4.50 and they came from a small tank with about twenty or more in them!
pfft
looks like im gunna have to re home them sooner or later

 

[catxx]

you'll find it easier to rehome them when they're small and healthy than when they're larger. large fish that keep growing large can only be given away!

public aquaria is heaving with red tailed cats, bala sharks, clown loaches, giant gouramis, pacu, and pangasius that people couldn't house anymore.

 

[Scykotic Belief]

it also helps because large pangasius require a fish fanatic too keep, not many people would want a large catfish in their livingroom, but a fish fanatic
as said above better to rehome it when its young and pretty then when its big and more difficult to relocate, ive heard growth rate for pangasius is generally the same as most catfish, not faster...not sure if this is true but it be a good idea to seek new home, or confront the LFS with the info you got and complain, most will give you your money back "ones where i live anyways" because the staff have wrongly informed you

 

[mrjingles]

well today im gunna go down to the pet shop and see what he say's, i hope he's gunna take them back off me because if he doesnt im gunna be stuck with these monsters and that wouldnt be i good idea by the sounds of it
thanks for all ya help peepsv ile be intouch!

 

[Miss Wiggle]

yeah I wish shops wouldn't stock them too, poor fishies, I dread to think how many just die cos they're in tanks way too small for them.

If yuor lfs won't take him back (which they really should) then you could try advertising in the buy sell and swap bit of this forum, maybe someone with a bit enough tank will take him for you.

 

[mrjingles]

hey im back!
been down to the shop and i told the shop keeper my problem. He said to me "ive never seen them grow to that extent, usual i have seen them get to about 5 - 7 inch in which they stay this size for a good 20 years"!
and yes he says there good for my tank size.
what you think guys! i asked for the breed name and they are definatley "Pangasius Catfish"

...... .......

 

[Scykotic Belief]

a rediculous lie, ive seen them grow bigger then that, in much more time. all hes trying to do is keep his money, because he knows he wont get anything for them when they outgrow the tank they are in at shop.
I would tell him i have consulted with an Expert fish keeper who insists your advice was unclear and i should get my refund and they take back the fish...even the newest LFS employee knows you wont be able to sell a batch of around 20, Large fish when they large.

 

[Hysterian]

They will stunt their growth in a smaller tank. I had one in a 20 gallon tank for a little over a year. He was about 3 inches long. Decided I wanted more fish so I got a bigger tank. You should be fine for a little while but I would suggest getting a bigger tank within the next 3 or 4 months since you bought more than one of them.