Pair Of Rams In A 10 Gallon Species Tank?

[Wind Dancer]

i'm thinking of resetting up a ten gallon tank and was considering a pair of rams, but first i have some questons.
a.) how hardy are rams? i had some once and they died farely fast. i'd rather not set up a tank around the needs of one fish and then have it not work out. so are rams just that picky or did i get them from a bad source?
b.) how readily do rams breed? i'd really like to watch what ever kind of cichlid i choose raise a family.
c.) what, if any tank mates would be best? if they'd do better on their own, that's fine.
is there anything else i should know about rams? and if anybody happens to have pictures of their rams tanks, i'd really love to see them!
Anna

 

[Fried rice]

rams are relatively easy to care for, some tankmates are cardinal tetra, angle fish, neon tetras, cory cats and thats all the ones that come to mind but im sure there are many other fish that are suitable tankmates for ram fish

 

[kribensis12]

rams are relatively easy to care for, some tankmates are cardinal tetra, angle fish, neon tetras, cory cats and thats all the ones that come to mind but im sure there are many other fish that are suitable tankmates for ram fish

Rams are hardy after you get them used to your tank. I had a ram die within a week for ne reason., He wouldnt eat or anything. But that dosent mean put agnels and everything in your 10. I would get a few corries and then your 2 rams and nothing else, as you dont have the room.

 

[DiscusKeeper403]

rams are relatively easy to care for, some tankmates are cardinal tetra, angle fish, neon tetras, cory cats and thats all the ones that come to mind but im sure there are many other fish that are suitable tankmates for ram fish

I have to disagree some what with you. You really need pristine water condition for Rams (very clean especially for Blue Rams) or else they are going to suffer...


A) Rams aren't the toughest things out there, Bolivians are definitely hardier then German Blue Rams. They need clean water, that is the main thing. If you keep up with cleaning, then you will find they should rarely get sick, and should live a happy, healthy life. Watch where you get them from, sometimes stores will get in the really bad odd batch (I have seen this a few times.)

B) Once Rams get to adulthood, you should have no problem seeing them breed. You might even have better chances if you buy 4 young ones, and wait for 2 to start breeding. The other 2 can then be re-homed. Be careful with your water perimeters though. Ram come from very soft and acidic water. If the water is very hard and alkaline and too high in calcium/other trace elements, then you may find the male not being able to penetrate the eggs.

C) A small school of dithers should be okay, any Tetra that stays under 2 inches will be good (Cardinal, Neon, Rummynose.) Make sure you feed them a variety to great a well balanced diet. Give them a few places to hide and spawn in (driftwood, terracotta pots, slate caves, ect.) this should also help mellow out some aggression if they each get a place for themselves.

I'll post a picture of my ram in a few a little




C)

 

[Wind Dancer]

maybe four panda corys and a pair of rams? would that work?

 

[DiscusKeeper403]

maybe four panda corys and a pair of rams? would that work?

That should work.

 

[Wind Dancer]

could anyone who happens to have these little beautys tell me the best way to decorate the tank for them? it's going to be in my room, i want to set it up where they can easily breed. and live plants are out of the question. also, are the corys going to be bad if they breed in terms of getting in the way and/or eating eggs/babies?

 

[Wind Dancer]

i've been doing some thinking, and i was wondering. are Apistogramma cacatuoides(Cockatoo Dwarf Cichlid, Crested Dwarf Cichlid) hardier/less picky about the water than rams? a pair of those would work in my tank, right? how easily to those breed? thanks so much for the help.
Anna
edited to add: wow, are all of them $60ish? because if that's the going rate for them that not going to work. if they are that pricy, is there any other dwarf cichlids that are cheep, pretty/colorful, and easy to breed(hopefully). thanks!

 

[DiscusKeeper403]

Well, the Cockatoo Cichlid gets a little bigger, and I think needs a bigger tank. A pair of rams shouldn't be a problem though, as long as you are going to keep the tank clean, then they should be happy. A 30-40 percent water change weekly should suffice. You may be able to get away with a pair of Kribensis Cichlid (African Cichlid species), but I think the tank might be a little small for them...

If you wanted to go down a different route, you could always do shell dwellers...

 

[Wind Dancer]

ok, i guess i'll stick with rams. could any one suggust a good place to get them from, and if online, the shipping would need to be farely cheap.

 

[Wind Dancer]

EVERY WEEK?!?!?!?! can't do that, i don't have the time.

 

[Mr._Fishy]

Where are you located?

Once a week water changes really aren't that bad, especially in a 10g. Ever try doing 50% weekly changes on an 80g, 55g, 20g, and a 10g all with buckets? That's what I did for a few years. I finally broke down and bought a python, they make water changes a cakewalk. 30-40% weekly changes on a 10g would just be maybe one 3 gallon bucket out and back in. Only takes like 5 minutes or less for all your weekly chores like replanting and occasionally cleaning the filter.

Ryan

EDIT: On the 55g (my discus tank) I did 20% daily water changes.

 

[Wind Dancer]

central florida(it getting hot again ). i really love rams.........i guess i'll give it a try. ok, so the filter that goes with this tank is a bio-wheel but i tossed the wheel when i took the tank down last year. what would be better, getting another wheel or putting some other kind of media where the wheel goes? and what kind of decor would be best(i'd like to set the tank up where they can breed in the main with as little work on my part.)? and where's the best place to get them from? like a very trusted online store or a LFS in central florida(orlando area). thanks!
Anna
oh, one more thing. which tends to be hardier, the wild type(german) or the golden?

 

[DiscusKeeper403]

Weekly water changes are recommended for any type of fish, and is the bare minimum you should be doing to keep your fish happy and healthy. I do a daily 30% water change on my 50 gallon Discus tank, takes me about half an hour...

Bio-Wheels are actually better, because bacteria grows better in air, as long as it stays moist anyways...

Any decor should be fine, create lots of ground cover using slate, drift wood, etc. They like to have caves and holes to hide/breed in.

Buying off line is going to cost you for shipping. Stay away from chain pet stores, and try to find a few locally owned places, then decided from those.

 

[Wind Dancer]

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