Lonely Loach

[RaveynBleu]

Several years ago my family purchased a 20gallon tank. When we were looking for fish to put in it, an associate at the local pet store reccommended a Clown Loach. S/He must have been relatively unknowledgable though, because I now know that the tank is much too small, and that the loach is a schooling fish.

Our loach has been without other Clown Loach for several years, but shows no signs of aggression to the other fish in the tank (including an unknown species of algae eater). It is about five to six inches in length, and appears quite healthy. But as he's grown, I've become worried about his health due to the small tank and lack of companions. He stays 'grayed out'.

What I would like to know, is if I were to upgrade his tank, what size would I need? A friend of mine reccomended at least a 75gallon (especially because of the depth) for his current size, and to add up to two buddies, eventually needing to upgrade to a 125. At this point I'm unsure if adding more Loaches would help to improve his health and fishy quality of life, or do nothing (since he has been alone for so long).

Please give me some suggestions of what I should do. What size tank? How many more loaches if any? Etc.

Thank you in advance!

Edit: Also, would it be best to host them/it alone in a larger tank, or could other fish go in as well? What types of other tropical fish house best with Clown Loaches?

[Graeme Robson]

http://www.loaches.com/species-index/ch ... cracanthus

[RaveynBleu]

http://www.loaches.com/species-index/ch ... cracanthus

I read this, though it was not very helpful with the situation of a single Clown Loach. Do I add more Clown Loach? Or do I just upgrade his tank and leave it at that? Do I add a whole four more to his tank? If I add four more to a 75 gallon, how soon would I need to upgrade again? Etc.

[shari2]

Yes, do either the 75 and get 4 more or the 125 and get even more . You will be amazed at the difference in his behavior once he has a gang to hang with and some swimming room. And yes, you could add other fish. Most people do have other fish in with their clowns. A group of schooling fish would be nice, and maybe other bottom feeders as well. Make sure you have plenty of hiding places, etc. as I'm sure you've read already. Upgrading from a 20g to something as large as a 75 or 125 gives you loads of options from aquascaping to stocking. It's a fun project.

How many and what kind are the other fish he's with right now?

[RaveynBleu]

Thank you for the information!

We purchased our tank when I was still young, and my mom has chosen recently to not restock the tank (which might be for the best). We have one Black Skirt Tetra, one 'other' Tetra, a Lamp-Eye Tetra, a Betta, and a algae eater of unknown species (I need to get a good picture of him so I can get him identified). So we also have some old lonely tetra's (most of them are about four years old, the loach is closer to five or six years).

Are there any schooling fish in particular that could be added for some mid-high level tank dwellers? I was thinking of when I can get another tank set up and the loaches established, to get a school of Otocinclus... other than that though, I'm a little unsure.

[Emma Turner]

I read this, though it was not very helpful with the situation of a single Clown Loach.

The profile that we created here is one of the best and most informative that you're likely to come across for this species. We've taken care to mention several times how social clown loaches are and that they do best in groups. The part that is highlighted in red "They must be kept in groups. The absolute minimum recommendation is 5, but basically the more the merrier" is helpful and should give you a good idea that keeping one on it's own is not fair. Not only is it cruel to these incredibly social fish, but you will also miss out on seeing a huge amount of wonderful social interactions between these fish yourself. A bigger aquarium and more clown loaches will improve it's health and quality of life.

Emma