amb44 Posted September 13, 2012 Report Share Posted September 13, 2012 Hello everyone, I think I have fallen victim to dodgy fish shop advice again and now I'm not sure what to believe/do. I have a 54l tank which I was searching for a feature fish for. Fi5shguy mentioned dwarf gourami, so I did a bit of research (apparently not enough!) and went down to my local fish shop. This fish shop has a good reputation, and I ask a lot of questions to make sure I will be doing right by my fish, especially as I am a beginner. I mentioned several times that I have a 54l tank and mentioned the other fish. I said that I wanted a male and a female dwarf gourami as I had read that this was the best combination. The person serving me said that they don't have any females, so I asked whether two males would be alright. This person said they might be alright but may fight, so an option would be to get three males and hope that the disputes were divided out between the three rather than one being picked on. I asked whether they were sure this would be alright in a 54l tank and they seemed confident enough. I've had them nearly two weeks and have seen one tiny squabble which resolved within seconds. Tonight I came home and did a water change and find one breathing heavily at the top of the tank and not eating, even when I put food right above him. His mouth is torn up a bit and he has a small hole in his tail fin. I thought he was on death's door as he then just lay in the corner on the bottom of the tank on his side, but in the past 5 minutes he has seemed to perk up again and is swimming around. I am doing a water change every 2 days at present to help deal with the added fish so I am hoping that water quality issues do not lead to any kind of infection. I am just not sure what to do - return them all? Return two? Ideally I would like at least two, just because they are so small for a feature fish. In my mind they have areas that they could all claim as I have driftwood and plants breaking up the tank, but like I said I am a beginner so I could easily be deluding myself. I am getting very frustrated with this hobby - there is a lot of conflicting information so I am not sure who to believe. It is horrible to go to a fish shop that is highly spoken of, ask A LOT of questions, and get crappy advice. If this fish dies I have paid nearly $20 for the privilege of watching an animal suffer and die slowly. Sorry for the rant, but advice appreciated. Thanks very much. You are all very helpful, I should probably just ask here! Amy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Godly3vil Posted September 13, 2012 Report Share Posted September 13, 2012 Hate to say it but the advice the shop keeper gave you is not entirely false, in theory that should work but every fish is different and they nearly always behave how you don't expect them too. I have kept 2 male dwarf gourami together in a heavily planted 54ltr with no aggression problems but wouldn't recommend keeping 3 males in the same small tank. If possible return 1 of them and see how it goes. How heavily planted is their tank? They prefer plants that either reach the surface or float on the surface. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sheepsnana Posted September 14, 2012 Report Share Posted September 14, 2012 Can we get a pic of the tank please? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amb44 Posted September 16, 2012 Author Report Share Posted September 16, 2012 Hate to say it but the advice the shop keeper gave you is not entirely false, in theory that should work but every fish is different and they nearly always behave how you don't expect them too. I have kept 2 male dwarf gourami together in a heavily planted 54ltr with no aggression problems but wouldn't recommend keeping 3 males in the same small tank. If possible return 1 of them and see how it goes. How heavily planted is their tank? They prefer plants that either reach the surface or float on the surface. The poor little guy died overnight so at least I don't have to choose who to return. I guess I am just not used to this, and since there is so much conflicting information I got a bit overwhelmed. I wonder if my version of 'heavily planted' is not actually heavily planted so will get some more plants and at least one surface covering one this weekend. Thanks for your help and reality check! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amb44 Posted September 16, 2012 Author Report Share Posted September 16, 2012 Can we get a pic of the tank please? Hi Sheepsnana, Unfortunately my camera broke last week so can't get any photos. I will be going to the shop this weekend to get more plants, as I think my version of heavily planted is not actually heavily planted. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sheepsnana Posted September 17, 2012 Report Share Posted September 17, 2012 Sorry for your loss. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
F15hguy Posted September 17, 2012 Report Share Posted September 17, 2012 Unfortunately my camera broke last week so can't get any photos. I will be going to the shop this weekend to get more plants, as I think my version of heavily planted is not actually heavily planted. its more about how many places they can stay out of sight from each other, easier with lots of tall plants Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sup42 Posted September 17, 2012 Report Share Posted September 17, 2012 Sorry you lost the Fish. I had the same experience , had to put a wee dwarf Gourami to sleep. The fish had lost condition from bullying and like yours was lying on the bottom of the tank on his side. I wrapped him in tissue and put him in the freezer as i read that is the humane way to do it ? Anyway I have Two females and a male that are going ok now. The Bullying male was kept in a seperate tank for a week then reintroduced to the old tank to give the Females the Claim on the the big tank. Most LFS don't stock the bland looking females. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
F15hguy Posted September 17, 2012 Report Share Posted September 17, 2012 yeah, most LFS's only order them in if they are asked, they are a lot blander and harder to get anyone breeding these guys??? I'm after a few more females and there hasn't been any on the lists for a while. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
#!CrunchBang Posted September 17, 2012 Report Share Posted September 17, 2012 I have two females, that i'm not willing to part with, did try breeding them but had no success. Sorry about your loss, sometimes they fight savagely, sometimes they're cool with eachother, but cover and distance between them is needed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amb44 Posted September 18, 2012 Author Report Share Posted September 18, 2012 Thanks everyone, I caught Killer chasing around the remaining gourami so I will likely take either Killer or them both back to the shop. I heard that Pearl Gourami are a lot more social - is that correct? Maybe I will exchange them for Pearl Gourami instead. It's such a shame; Killer is a pretty fish, but apparently leans towards the territorial side! I seem to attract the killer fish, my betta slaughtered half my neons when they were together too :-? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ira Posted September 18, 2012 Report Share Posted September 18, 2012 Thanks everyone, I caught Killer chasing around the remaining gourami so I will likely take either Killer or them both back to the shop. I heard that Pearl Gourami are a lot more social - is that correct? Maybe I will exchange them for Pearl Gourami instead. It's such a shame; Killer is a pretty fish, but apparently leans towards the territorial side! I seem to attract the killer fish, my betta slaughtered half my neons when they were together too :-? I never had any significant fighting with my pearls that I noticed out of the 400ish of them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amb44 Posted September 18, 2012 Author Report Share Posted September 18, 2012 They seem quite a bit bigger than the dwarves, so it would probably look good with just the one too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
F15hguy Posted September 18, 2012 Report Share Posted September 18, 2012 pearls tend to be more agressive to other species IMO Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
F15hguy Posted September 18, 2012 Report Share Posted September 18, 2012 also you would only want one in your tank (and even then it would be pushing it), they are HEAPS bigger fully grown, and get a male, females are quite boring. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Godly3vil Posted September 18, 2012 Report Share Posted September 18, 2012 I have 2 male pearls and they chase each other constantly, no damage to either of them though and it's not just one sided. They don't bother any of my other fish at all and are quite tame really, both are the first fish to come eat out of my hand. They do grow quite large though mine are only around a year old and already 12cm+ and I have seen even bigger males around 18cm. They're my favourite gourami with their beautiful colours and long spiky fins. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
F15hguy Posted September 18, 2012 Report Share Posted September 18, 2012 for your enjoyment.... i've had a few vicious little guys, then again, i've had a lot of peaceful ones.... quote from seriously fish.... Behaviour and Compatibility One of the most peaceful gouramis and an excellent community fish. Males are territorial with one another however and can also be quite hard on the females when they want to breed, so ensure there are adequate hiding places in the aquarium. Do not keep the pearl gourami with aggressive or very vigorous fish or it will become withdrawn. but then again I have watched on shred a couple of platies, then go after a severum (who won btw) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amb44 Posted September 20, 2012 Author Report Share Posted September 20, 2012 hmmm...don't want to overload my tank so may just stick to the dwarves! they seemed to have settled down now, so I think I will stick with getting more plants and hopefully things work out between them. those pearls are stunning though! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amb44 Posted September 20, 2012 Author Report Share Posted September 20, 2012 Well, ignore what i just said. i just found the red one dead, and Killer isn't looking too hot either. Ammonia 0, nitrites 0. any idea what may have happened? the red one looked fine - not like he had been in fight. killer looks beat up but that makes sense. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
F15hguy Posted September 20, 2012 Report Share Posted September 20, 2012 are they skinny looking??? (have a look just behind the head, if it looks sunken they may b=have a parasitic infection) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amb44 Posted September 21, 2012 Author Report Share Posted September 21, 2012 no, the remaining fish doesn't look skinny and i can't remember the other two looking that way either. i don't know if this means anything, but killer had an abrasion on his tail fin after the fight with the other fish. now it is a hole right through the tail! i will be picking up some clove oil shortly as i don't want to prolong his suffering. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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