why does my blue ram chase the other ram?

[kandy12]

ive been having a few problems with my german blue ram cichlids! i cant actually tell them apart and # 1 chases #2 around the tank alot and seems to like nugging #2 alot! i have a ten gallon tank and i have isolted them!! what should i do?

 

[paulioo]

I've got two rams which do the same thing. One constantly chases the other one

So i think this is just the way these fish are.

On another point though I think 10g is probably too small for two rams, this may be the main reason for the chasing. You could possibly get away wth 1 in a 10g, but having two will lead to territorial issues.

 

[caspercanuck]

could both be males... when i had 2 males 1 was definately more dominant... i guess they could also be opposite sex and one wants to breed more then the other

 

[kandy12]

actually 10 gallons is the minamum tank size but i guess there the opposite sex or maybe not ill probably try to get some pics in! thanks

 

[Fishy411]

my rams do that all the time too and theyre in a 10 now. i had to move them from my 55 when i got my bichir and they have actually been less agressive so far.

 

[Elisabeth83]

My pair started doing this the past week The male is chasing the female around. They are in a 30 gallon. Is this just something they do or could the female possibly die from the stress of being chased??

 

[Katchan]

This is quite normal behaviour between male and female rams, the best thing to do is add a target fish, this is a fish that both the blues (given male and female) will team up against to defend the territory, ideally another dwarf cichlid goes will here, if you use another blue ram you risk turning it into an abusive threesome so avoid if possible, also make it (if possible) the same size gice or take a little, to big they wont have a chance, to small it may be killed, also make sure there is enough plants and or caves for the target fish to hide. HTH

Katchan

 

[Mondego]

my rams do that all the time too and theyre in a 10 now. i had to move them from my 55 when i got my bichir and they have actually been less agressive so far.

[snapback]857467[/snapback]​

come on! where's the risk? put 'em all in one tank! ;-)

could both be males... when i had 2 males 1 was definately more dominant...  i guess they could also be opposite sex and one wants to breed more then the other 

[snapback]854669[/snapback]​

are you suggesting he's either homosexual, or a rapist?

I am actually having the same problem. i have one Ram who appears more mature than the smaller one, who has very little coloration compared to the other. i've once seen him violently chasing the smaller one around, but they are usually best buddies rarely 6" apart from each other. I still can't tell what sex the smaller one is.

 

[scrappy]

Rams can be like this, the submissive fish will always get chased around the tank and in many cases leads to the death of the submissive fish be it male or female. Most experienced fishkeepers can tell if the fish is being bullied or its just playful banter between fish. However if your not sure then things like heavy breathing, hiding in corners and pale colours are a sign that the fish is stressed and is likely being bullied.

And Mondego i notice you have RTBS in your tank... mine (slightly bigger than 4" now) took an instant disliking to the rams and had to be moved to another tank. RTBS become more aggressive with age so keep an eye out.