My clown Loaches won't come out of hiding :(

Rosey

Hi all,
I know that clown loaches like to hide but mine never come out at all. It is a shame to have such beautiful fish and never see them. So i was wondering....would it be cruel to block or remove their hiding spots so i can see them?
They have been in the tank now for 4 or 5 weeks and my local pet shop said at the time that they will hide but eventually will come out after a few weeks. One sticks its head out every so often but the other i never see at all....so should i remove their "caves" to stop them hiding?
Any info or ideas would be greatly appreciated.

Cheers
Rosey

lorax84

How many do you have? Sometimes increasing numbers (5-6 fish total) makes a fish more secure and encourages them to come out more, as long as you have the room for more fish. I definitely would no remove the cave, it will probably stress the fish out more and that is a bad thing.

ElectricBlueJackDempsey

Its weird because I only have 2 small clown loaches in my 75 gallon tank and they are probably the most active fishes in the tank. Always first to get to the food and never seen them hide. What are your water parameters?

aunt kymmie

+1. It is a numbers thing, no question in my mind. Clowns need at least five of their own species in order to feel absolutely comfortable. I have five and I see them ALL the time. They have tons of driftwood and spend lots of time chasing, playing, up, over and around the driftwood. They also love "stuffing" themselves into the nooks and crannies and I see tails sticking out, sometimes they get their whole bodies in there by backing up and hang their little snouts out, as in peek-a-boo. Great fish if you have the room for them. I think Electric Blue got lucky on his two little active guys.
Taking away their hiding spots would be cruel, in my mind. What kind of caves are they using? You might be able to "shift" them slightly towards the front of the tank so you could see them a little bit more?

Bigguy71

I have 4 of them and 1 is always hiding but I have 2 Questions: 1) What kind of flow do you have in your tank ( power head or just filtration ) becuase in there natural habitat they have flowing water and they like to swim through the current, mine do it all the time. 2) Do you have many plants? If an area is to open they dont want to go in to it. They will always look for something they can hide behind while swimming and to avoid being in bright light.

Byron

I can second much of what has been suggested. You might also have a read of our profile, click on the shaded name to go there: Clown Loach.

Ironically, the more "hiding spots" there are , the more relaxed and "safe" loaches feel and they will (once they are settled, which can take varying periods of time) be out more often. But only if they feel they have a close-by retreat. And, being semi-nocturnal, they do not like overhead light; shade it with floating plants. And definitely a larger group--but you will need a large tank, and they grow fast. All this is explained in the profile.

Byron.

celticchrys

Even if you don't add more clowns, it's helpful to have multiple caves/hidey holes, and plants around the perimeter that overhang the center somewhat. It also helps to have "dither fish." This means having small fearless fish that will cruise around the mid-top of the tank all the time. The clowns see the little fish aren't scared, and are more likely to come out.

I have one Clown Loach(yes, I know, I know). I've had this one for about 12 years. I always feed him at the same time of day, or as soon as I come downstairs in the morning. I also have a few regular times when I usually come sit and watch the aquarium. For example, in the morning while having breakfast. If you make it a habit to sit about 4 feet away from the aquarium after you feed them, and calmly watch, or read, or eat, yourself, you will establish a routine. My clown knows who feeds him, and will come out and bustle around when it's just me(or wiggle his belly at me to beg; he's learned this works with me over the years). He hides from most visitors, but comes out when a friend who is his regular "fish-sitter" if I go out of town comes over. On weekend mornings, when I'm sitting watching the tank for a longer time, he expects that this means an extra treat of some sort.

However, if I move much of the aqua-scape around, all bets are off, and I'm snubbed for a week or so.

It may also help with new clowns like yours, to sit and watch in the evenings, with the aquarium light off, but the room lights on. This is if yours are particularly disposed to evening exploration.

Provide hiding places, dither fish, a routine, and be patient. :)

celticchrys

Here's a video of the morning routine that I referred to above:
YouTube - Breakfast with Little Loach

aunt kymmie

Nice looking loach. So, twelve years you've had him? I see you have a measure up against the bottom of the tank. I do that same thing to measure! What is his length?? My eyes are lousy and I can't make out the number on the tape measure!

willow

he's lovely,looks to be around 5-6 inches