Loaches Online Forum

Hi, I have recently acquired a clown loach from a friend who didn't want it anymore, it is currently very pale in colour, is this due to it being moved? The background story of this loach is that it was bought with another loach from a pet shop and they were fine until just over a year ago the other one died. She then went and bought another one which was just slightly smaller than this one and the this one then killed it. Now I am wondering if I should get it some other clown loaches to live with as it will be going into a new tank and therefore it won't have time to establish a territory and so there is less chance of a fight, if so can I get slightly smaller ones or would they have to be the same size.
Any advice would be helpful
Thanks

Very unfortunate to have lost two Clown Loaches as they are normally so sturdy. I've not heard of them killing each other outright either though I could understand it if one went downhill over a period.

Anyway,that sounds like a reasonable Plan A. But it is possible to have an antisocial fish. I have. In that event you will need a Plan B.

In my experience it has not mattered what size the Clown Loaches are, they all muck in together. Smaller fish may end up down the pecking order by being pushed around as size matters at feeding time etc. but are not usually picked on.

I have a pale Clown Loach and believe it may have come from a different location (Sumatra) than my others (Borneo).

Also, watch out for whitespot during this stressful time for the fish.

Also clown loaches are best kept in groups - at least a group of 5. So if you are planning to bring more, bring 4 more if you can. Also they need a bigger tank, preferably at least 4 feet long as they are fast swimmers. As they are from tropical country prefer very worm acidic soft water. good luck with your clown loach.