Quick Yellow Lab Question

[fish_keeper2]

ive asked this in tropical chit chat already but i wanted to get info from the cichlid experts too:

ok basicly i got a yellow lab from petco today becuase it was on sale from 15 bucks to 2.50. the prob is that i didnt really have a spot for it . i would love to keep him if possible. right now he is in my 20 gal with the 5 tiger barbs, 1 rainbow shark, 1 blue spot gourami, and 1 bammboo shrimp. decro is just gravel, malaysian drift wood, and lots of live plants. atm he doesnt seen stressed or anything and seems happy..........he even trys to follow the tiger barbs around. will this set up be ok or do i need to do something else? also once i upgrade to a 46 gal bowlfront will this be large enough and can i also add my baby common plec till he gets too big?

 

[Soaup]

I think he would be following the barbs not to fit in but to chase them away. Cichlids are very territorial. They for the most part like to be with few other africans. Anyways i think you need to find another way of housing him away from these other fish if not now at least soon and with other africans.

 

[fish_keeper2]

ok i guess im either gonna get rid of him or keep him then. if i keep him would a 30 gal cube from oceanic make a good mbuna tank? how many africans can i keep in there?

 

[Soaup]

30 gallons is a good size for mbunas. Im never good at this but i would say about 8 would be a good number for 30 gallons you can wait on someone else to confirm that number.

 

[freddyk]

Hey fishkeeper.

How big is your yellow lab. If he's young (under 2.5-3") then right now he's got juvenile mentality and he'll get more aggressive as he grows. These fish are unpredictable, he may just keep working in your setup, or he may end up causing trouble. Most likely he'll end up messing with the shrimp and gourami at some point. It's a chance you'd take.

A 30 gallon cube is really not a great tank because it doesn't have the length to allow for these fishes active levels. You can squeeze them, but make it a species tank - just yellow labs, no impulse shopping! Almost no other mbuna will work for very long in this tank. Yellow labs are very social groupers, so your little guy will certainly do best with some buddies in a tank dedicated to them, and adding them soon, while he's still young, will prevent him becoming a mean bossy fish.

If you want to seem them at their most natural, get a tank, preferrably 3 feet long, decorate it with sand and rocks, and introduce 5-7 more labs.

Nice fish, but they're easy to breed and quite common, so don't go paying 15 bucks for them - your lfs marked it up to make it seem a better deal. I don't know why since he was a good deal regardless.

 

[fish_keeper2]

thanks. i guess im just left with the decision to keep him or give him to a good lfs. tough one..........

 

[Soaup]

Where you from?? I would get rid of him because he may cause trouble like freddy said when he gets bigger. See if you could return the fish or sell it elsewhere for the more than 2.50 you paid.