Hi,

I have four Jewel Cichlids and need to sort out a new tank for them.

I read the care sheet,

"a tank of at lease 3 foot in length for a single specimen or four foot for 2 unperd fish is a minimum plenty of hiding places should be provided as well as floating plants for cover with good filtration and moderate to fast flowing water"

I think it means 150 litres for one fish (on his own?) Does that mean I would need 600 litres for four?

that is 132 gallons. Is this right, as that seems very big?

if that is true I am guessing I would have to rehome two out of the four?

thank you for any advice.

GFG

Hi,


No, though 150 litres is the minimum volume, it's not per fish. For 4 unpaired Jewel's you'd need roughly a 175 litre 4ft tank with well-defined territories and hiding places to defuse any aggression between them and to be ready for future pairing. You'd need to rehome the spares once you got a pair.

HTH

thank you!

I thought 132 G seemed a bit mental.

If I got a 200 l tank nothing else could go in there right? I would have go bigger??

xx

Realistically yes, as the choices for tank mates are rather limited for them: essentially bigger and angrier!

could I fit in a pleco? a bristle nose? maybe....but no smaller fish right?

xx

TBH I wouldn't risk it in a 4ft - when Jewels breed they get VERY nasty.

ok....I shall have a species only tank then.

What subtrate is ideal for them? I have lots of gravel, but I have a feeling they like sand for some reason?

I was going to do plants on bogwood and add hidey holes/caves about the place.

xx

Yes sand is best as they like to dig. Otherwise that sounds good. Plants will need to be on bogwood or they'll just destroy them in no time

http://www.arkpetsonline.co.uk/juwel- ... r11pghaem2h061bq9kun0ctl7

Is this tank big enough for the four of them?

I won't be paying that much for it, but that is the tank I am going for.

Also

why haven't my fish grown? They are about 10 months old and just under an inch, surely they should be bigger now? I feed them once a day is that not enough? (well I guess not, but then how often?)

xx

Hi

That's big enough for a mated pair, but you may have problems with four in there as they grow

As to size, they should have grown a fair bit by now, though they can be slow growers depending on conditions. What size ids the tank they are in?

Feeding with these needs to be frequent smaller meals, 3-4 times a day with plenty of meaty foods. Water quality needs to be very good too, for optimum growth rates.

HTH