Stocking Approval

[CKutz]

So I've finished my fishless cycle and went to the lfs today and got some fish, i've been trying to plan out what i want to stock it with..but i could never quite make up my mind. Plus i can't drive so my friend and i planned to go, and i let her pick a fish also.
This is in a 10 gal.

-1 dwarf gourami
-1 cherry barb (her pick, i believe it's a male cause it is a bright pink, all the others were more goldish)
-4 harlequin rasbora
- 1 balloon molly (her other pick, she couldn't decide between the two)

I hadn't planned on getting a cherry barb so i hadn't looked anything up about them. but i liked him also so i let her get it. Now i see the prefer to be in groups although loose schoalers, but also read they can handle being alone. is that true..he seems pretty happy at the moment, not too timid or sulky like some lonely schoolers might be.

i read that harlequin's like groups of 6, i couldn't remember the exact number at the store, but i guessed 4 would be ok and it being a 10 gal, i thought if i had got more there wouldn't be much room for much else. the harlequin's seem great, they don't really school much unless people approach the tank which i guess is how they will be. i'm a bit concerned about one of them though..it has like a bump on it's back..it's head is smaller then the arch of it's back...it is the biggest one, and a bit fatter. it's swimming around pretty normally now but before it was just sitting in one spot in the middle of the tank. also it's dorsal fin is down most of the time, unlike the others. is it normal for this species to look rather unique? some have a tint more red, some have more red in their fins. they chase each other on occasion but doesn't seem to be a big deal.

the balloon molly seems fine, it's a male

the dwarf gourami seems pretty timid. he's at the bottom rightnow, actually touching the rocks, and he stays there pretty much most of the time. every now and then he chases his reflection. I had one before and i think it started out acting like this also but became more social after a bit.

so what do you think? everything ok?
I did let their bags stay in the water for several minutes and kept the light off for a few hrs. i also did a 100% waterchange right before we went to get them. i felt it best because of using the same water for the whole fishless cycle, thought it'd be best to start fresh.

Thanks for your input!

 

[superman1]

So I've finished my fishless cycle and went to the lfs today and got some fish, i've been trying to plan out what i want to stock it with..but i could never quite make up my mind. Plus i can't drive so my friend and i planned to go, and i let her pick a fish also.
This is in a 10 gal.

-1 dwarf gourami
-1 cherry barb (her pick, i believe it's a male cause it is a bright pink, all the others were more goldish)
-4 harlequin rasbora
- 1 balloon molly (her other pick, she couldn't decide between the two)

I hadn't planned on getting a cherry barb so i hadn't looked anything up about them. but i liked him also so i let her get it. Now i see the prefer to be in groups although loose schoalers, but also read they can handle being alone. is that true..he seems pretty happy at the moment, not too timid or sulky like some lonely schoolers might be.

i read that harlequin's like groups of 6, i couldn't remember the exact number at the store, but i guessed 4 would be ok and it being a 10 gal, i thought if i had got more there wouldn't be much room for much else. the harlequin's seem great, they don't really school much unless people approach the tank which i guess is how they will be. i'm a bit concerned about one of them though..it has like a bump on it's back..it's head is smaller then the arch of it's back...it is the biggest one, and a bit fatter. it's swimming around pretty normally now but before it was just sitting in one spot in the middle of the tank. also it's dorsal fin is down most of the time, unlike the others. is it normal for this species to look rather unique? some have a tint more red, some have more red in their fins. they chase each other on occasion but doesn't seem to be a big deal.

the balloon molly seems fine, it's a male

the dwarf gourami seems pretty timid. he's at the bottom rightnow, actually touching the rocks, and he stays there pretty much most of the time. every now and then he chases his reflection. I had one before and i think it started out acting like this also but became more social after a bit.

so what do you think? everything ok?
I did let their bags stay in the water for several minutes and kept the light off for a few hrs. i also did a 100% waterchange right before we went to get them. i felt it best because of using the same water for the whole fishless cycle, thought it'd be best to start fresh.

Thanks for your input!

hello

seems like no one has replied so i will

personally the gourami will be pretty boring because its on its own.. when i had 2 they always used to swim around and ignore all the other fishes but when one of them died the other gourami just used to stay in exactly one spot.. seemed very lonely... i leave the tank as it is and see how it goes.. it migh just be that there in a new tank and will become more active once they get used to there surroundings. if it was my tank personally i would add another 2 barbs and maybe another molly although mollies eat alot and i find are more messier.. that might overstock the tank but i think its better that there not alone at least. and if u look after the tank they might be more happier then if it was a big empty tank on there own..
others may disagree and tell you to take the fish back but seeing as uve got the fish... you mgiht aswell make best of the situation. what gourami is it that u have.

 

[Colin_T]

I would get more cherry barbs too. Barbs, tetras & rasboras prefer to be in groups of 6 or more, preferably 10 or more. Cherry barbs and Harlequin rasboras are small fish and don't make a lot of mess. Therefore you could have 6 of each in the tank without any real problems. Male cherry barbs are bright red and the females are a brown colour. They do best when males and females are present.
Big Harlequins do get a slightly humped back but it can also be caused by disease. If you could put a pic up for us we can be a bit more definitive about it.

The dwarf gourami is probably sulking and will settle down in the next few days. It should be fine.

When you get new fish, float the bag of fish in the tank for about 30 minutes. Every 5 minutes add 1/2 cup of tank water to the bag. Do this throughout the 30 minutes period. Then pour the fish into the tank.
A lot of people don't like adding shop water to their tank so after the 30 minutes they pour the bag of fish into a bucket and scoop the fish out. The fish are put in the tank and the bag of water is poured on the garden.

Don't bother feeding the fish today because they don't normally eat straight away.

 

[CKutz]

I would get more cherry barbs too. Barbs, tetras & rasboras prefer to be in groups of 6 or more, preferably 10 or more. Cherry barbs and Harlequin rasboras are small fish and don't make a lot of mess. Therefore you could have 6 of each in the tank without any real problems. Male cherry barbs are bright red and the females are a brown colour. They do best when males and females are present.
Big Harlequins do get a slightly humped back but it can also be caused by disease. If you could put a pic up for us we can be a bit more definitive about it.

The dwarf gourami is probably sulking and will settle down in the next few days. It should be fine.

When you get new fish, float the bag of fish in the tank for about 30 minutes. Every 5 minutes add 1/2 cup of tank water to the bag. Do this throughout the 30 minutes period. Then pour the fish into the tank.
A lot of people don't like adding shop water to their tank so after the 30 minutes they pour the bag of fish into a bucket and scoop the fish out. The fish are put in the tank and the bag of water is poured on the garden.

Don't bother feeding the fish today because they don't normally eat straight away.

darn!..i tried to do everything just right and i still messed something up haha (the acclimating). I guess i never read to add the water to the bag that's a good idea. i am one of those people that don't like adding the lfs water to my tank. my fish come from a petsmart, and they have frequent out breaks of ich, and who knows what else. although i did switch petsmarts because the one i had been going to was as i described, and it seemed this other one kept the fish in better shape. I was right i think as there was very few dead fish, and many fish weren't too overly stocked. I didn't even notice any fish with ich.
anyways, i'll have to keep that in mind for the next time around.

you really think i could get 5 more cherry barbs and 2 more rasbora in this tank? i thought i would be pushing the limits already.
bottom dwellers are typically my favorite, I'd ideally like to find some but there arent too many you can get for a 10 gal. petsmart doesn't have pygmy cories, i was thinking about some type of loach maybe (like khulie or dojo) i'll have to check if any of them are suitable for a 10 gal. and i'm going to look at a lfs back home (i'm at college) for pygmy cories. but i might just not get any as limited by size...


there's the rasbora in question. i think it might just be older. just want to make sure before i end up spreading some disease through my tank. it seems much more active today not just sitting in one spot it swims around constantly.

here's the whole tank...just because

 

[CKutz]

anybody else think it's ok to add 2 rasbora and 5 cherry barbs?

 

[Colin_T]

cherry barbs and harlequins are small fish that don't make much mess. Therefore they don't put a lot of load on the tank. If you are concerned about numbers then only have 4 or 5 of each instead of 6.
A couple of khuli loaches would be fine in the tank.

Keep an eye on the big harlequin and if the lump on its back gets worse, or the fins get really clamped up and stuck to the body, then treat it with something like "Waterlife Protozin" or Wardley's Promethyasul". If it doesn't get worse and the fish swims around normally and eats well, then leave it be and don't worry about it. But try to wait a few days and see how it settles down. It should be fine and not need treating.

 

[CKutz]

alright thanks a lot!

I'd love a couple of khuli loaches
I'll see how things get settled in first though.