My mom really likes the look of pictus catfish, after doing some research on them it says there not agressive, but they will eat any fish that fits in there mouth. Would flame tetras, danios, cherry barbs, or otos fall in this category? They will all be fully grown when i add the catfish, also it will be in a planted tank so will this help/not help?
Pictus cat with other fish?
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Flame tetras only get to 1.5", cherry barbs get to 2" and the catfish gets to 6" so I would suspect it would fit into the mouth of the catfish once it ages.
Pretty fish though.
Also, you might want to check the bottom of the following site: http://www.aqualandpetsplus.com/Catfish, Pictus.htm. It looks like the catfish tends towards territorial aggression later in life.
Pretty fish though.
Also, you might want to check the bottom of the following site: http://www.aqualandpetsplus.com/Catfish, Pictus.htm. It looks like the catfish tends towards territorial aggression later in life.
I have a pictus catfish and although he isn't fully grown yet (I would say 4" just now) he's certainly not aggressive. From what I've learned, they only become territorial towards their own kind in adulthood, although expect him to pick a cave or area that is "his" but if he's like mine he certainly won't bother the other fish. As far as eating other fish, I have also heard that they will eat anything small enough to go in their mouths, however I had a molly give birth in the same tank as him, and since he had just filled his belly with bloodworm, he wasn't the slightest bit interested in the fry. As long as he's well fed he shouldn't eat your other fish but personally I woulnd't take the risk as it could just be that I have an exceptionally peaceful fish
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Pictus.
I have two pictus cats in my tank. Or I used to. Now I have 1. They had a nice big hollow log where they could swim in circles and not bother the swordtails (both are just under 2") and the platy (about 1").
Everyone got along fine in the tank for a good year! It was an excellent setup for a while. until the catfish got bigger. last week i woke to find that one of the catfish was swimming in circles near the top of the tank... they never do that. never. He was beat up. his whiskers were stubs and his fins were torn. The other catfish was swimming happily in the log. its was clear what had happened.
Once they got big enough, they fought territory. they wanted the log. The pictus that lost, died the next day. He made sure i knew he was suffering too, he made quite the racket, hitting the lid of the tank and splashing about. I was so preoccupied with the suffering catfish that i didnt even notice until today, a week later, that my platy was missing, and i realized i havent seen him for quite some time. I was so worried about how this crazy suffering catfish was affecting the swordtails, that i never saw the platy... i didnt even think of it.
When i bought the catfish, they were no bigger than 2". both of them were reaching 3.5 inches last week, and thats when the trouble started. The tank was pretty much at its maximum capacity.
The platy was tiny, an inch maybe. He was VERY healthy from what i could tell, he was always eating and was always active. I always thought that he was the healthiest out of the bunch. If he did die of natural causes- the two catfish would have taken care of any evidence quickly. but i cant help but think that this aggressive catfish had something to do with it. I'm not sure if i should by a new platy now... I dont think i should get another catfish... Its a 10 gallon tank, and this catfish is aggressive enough.
I have two pictus cats in my tank. Or I used to. Now I have 1. They had a nice big hollow log where they could swim in circles and not bother the swordtails (both are just under 2") and the platy (about 1").
Everyone got along fine in the tank for a good year! It was an excellent setup for a while. until the catfish got bigger. last week i woke to find that one of the catfish was swimming in circles near the top of the tank... they never do that. never. He was beat up. his whiskers were stubs and his fins were torn. The other catfish was swimming happily in the log. its was clear what had happened.
Once they got big enough, they fought territory. they wanted the log. The pictus that lost, died the next day. He made sure i knew he was suffering too, he made quite the racket, hitting the lid of the tank and splashing about. I was so preoccupied with the suffering catfish that i didnt even notice until today, a week later, that my platy was missing, and i realized i havent seen him for quite some time. I was so worried about how this crazy suffering catfish was affecting the swordtails, that i never saw the platy... i didnt even think of it.
When i bought the catfish, they were no bigger than 2". both of them were reaching 3.5 inches last week, and thats when the trouble started. The tank was pretty much at its maximum capacity.
The platy was tiny, an inch maybe. He was VERY healthy from what i could tell, he was always eating and was always active. I always thought that he was the healthiest out of the bunch. If he did die of natural causes- the two catfish would have taken care of any evidence quickly. but i cant help but think that this aggressive catfish had something to do with it. I'm not sure if i should by a new platy now... I dont think i should get another catfish... Its a 10 gallon tank, and this catfish is aggressive enough.
give you catfish a bigger tank!
i have 6pictus in a 5x2x2 (was in a 4x2x2) and had NO probs what so ever
and mine are from 3.5inches up-to about 7 or 8inches.
if your catfish are in a 10G then thats why!
more like a boxing ring than a home :lol: as you have found out, they need room to get away from each other if needed, like it was needed in your tiny tank.
the fish might not be that big but they needs there space :wink:
i have 6pictus in a 5x2x2 (was in a 4x2x2) and had NO probs what so ever
and mine are from 3.5inches up-to about 7 or 8inches.
if your catfish are in a 10G then thats why!
more like a boxing ring than a home :lol: as you have found out, they need room to get away from each other if needed, like it was needed in your tiny tank.
the fish might not be that big but they needs there space :wink:
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update: I ended up moving, when i pulled out the fishtank i found the dried remains of the platy in back. he must have jumped out at some point 
Also, the other cafish's mouth began to look bloody, and he eventually died too. my fish tank is like a horror story!
Also, the other cafish's mouth began to look bloody, and he eventually died too. my fish tank is like a horror story!
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