What's up with kuhlis these days?

[Cinder]

A few yrs ago, they were pretty scarce.

Can you find nice healthy ones again?

And do they get along if you have some of the botia sp?

[Emma Turner]

Hi Laurie,

You should be able to source several species of kuhli loach fairly easily, such as P. semicincta (or similar), P. oblonga and P. anguillaris for example. Do make sure that the shop has quarantined them prior to sale as unfortunately there are many reports of them coming down with problems soon after shipping. Reputable shops will use trusted suppliers and will keep new arrivals off sale until they have settled in properly and been given careful observation/good feedings.

With regards to keeping with Botia species, I wouldn't personally recommend it as their requirements tend to be quite different. The majority of the Botiine species come from river environments with fast flowing waters, whereas the kuhlis prefer a much calmer environment.

Hope this helps,

Emma