How to make tank more exciting???

Hi I have a 6 ft tank with a partition in the middle. On one side is my 30cm red devil who hast eaten for a month or so, hess sulking since i put the partition ion. On the other side is a jack who went from 4cm to 12 in 3 weeks. However they are getting boring - jack juct sniffs at half his frozen goods, and hides in the log whenever anyones in the roo. I tried a braziliensis the same size as him to pep him up but he just tore it to shreds.

My question what can i do to make it better? Its a bit boring having one tempermental angry biting prick who wont eat feeders but who smashes thermometers and the other being small and viscious but only when I cant see him!!

Arrrggghh!

Archer fish? Remove partition? Any ideas appreciated.

Cheers

[Alan Caboolture]

Oh My Goodness  :(

How wrong can you get???

Take out the divider and keep one or the other

Or rethink fish keeping altogether!!!!!

[aussieguy870]

yep i agree with alan
remove that partition and just keep the jack
he needs the whole tank to himself  :D

[DeagonTheo]

Unfortunately you have turned a six foot tank into two 3 footers, with one fish in each, a backward step and totally boring.
Maybe you need a change of fish altogether, which happens to most hobbiest over time.
You've got a descent tank to work with, just try to imagine how nice it would look, decorated with rocks and logs and smaller fish that get along a bit better.
Theo

Hmmm yes it would look nice planted with a bunch of fish, only problem is I like em tough and dont want africans eh.

As for putting them in the same tank - well its better than having one of them in a really teeny tank with weak filtering - here they get good conditions, and the jack is only 12cm so if I was to get rid of my devil he'd take a year to fill the tank up! Theres also the moral thing here - just throwing away a fish becuase Im bored of him, I think that attitude is more in line with fishkeeping, no offence intended. As for rethinking it - I was thinking some fish that might not get hammered, like a catfish?

Thanks for any constructive ideas!

[ashhhh]

i think the jack is feeling a little 'confined'


the equivalent would be like, say - you being confined to a room the size of toilet

you'd go insane :?

I dont think anyone is listening, the jack is all of 12cm.

How wrong can I get? Try reading properly!

Theres plenty of time for a decision, does anyone know a fish that goes under the radar?

[ashhhh]

you should have researched a little more about the fish you purchased before you purchased them.A mangrove jack will grow to usually more than 1ft long, he will be longing for room to groW and grOW and gROW and GROW. :roll: I f you need more info on them wayne (wrk21) is the man to speak to
by the way, we are al only trying to help you out mate :wink:

no worries, not offended
i should have mentioned i know exactly all about each fish, and am aware of their growth etc, the deilv is about 3 i guess and the jack - well it was the right price, and will be housed accordingly when it gets big enough to warrant it. Is there a way to make jacks less timid? Or are they all shy til they get too big to hide anywhere?

[here fishie fishie]

[quote:650f449e39] should have mentioned i know exactly all about each fish,[/quote:650f449e39]
Really????    :?
[quote:650f449e39]Is there a way to make jacks less timid? Or are they all shy til they get too big to hide anywhere?[/quote:650f449e39] No offence by why ask these questions then?

You have a 30cm red devil in 90cm length of space & you have an active, quick growing native fish in the same adjoining space. What are your future plans for these 2?

To give you an idea,
Display tank, 10.5ft long(Aquariums Alive) with a 30cm Mangrove Jack(with other larger fish) Or another tank(mate) with a same size jack in a 6,2,2 on its own. Point here is both these set ups have active jacks, with great colour & personality.

The guys who posted earlier gave you ideas on what they thought to be right & they pretty much hit the nail on the head.

Frenchy :D

[Konigwolf 13]

Sheesh, lay of the poor guy, asks for some help to make his fish happier and some of you instead of helping just reem him  :roll: .

First up if I'm not mistaken (which I probably am  :roll: ) mangrove jacks like a bit of cover till they outgrow it (moreso if he can see the BIG oscar), then just a bit drift/bog wood in the tank lest damage to the tank occurs. You may want to try something along those lines.

Second from what I know jacks when mature are bracklish (I could be wrong I am far from familiar with them) not a good match when sharing the tank with the oscar, so if brackish is the case then one will(make that [i:ab0abd19bd]may[/i:ab0abd19bd], oscar [i:ab0abd19bd]may[/i:ab0abd19bd] be ok in brakish) have to go.

As for other fish? salmon tail would be great if not for the divider, and while a pleco is nice and armoured I wouldnt exactly recommend a 3' tank for them, though it is possible. I'd recommend doing a bit of research on some of the "larger" fish to see if compatible though there is a size issue  :?

They are my suggestions, but really you shouldn't be keeping either fish  when mature in a 3' tank.

HTH     Andrew


PS Frenchy in the exapmle you give are they juvies or mature fish?

[Dyce]

if you have a 6footer with no divider and just the jack you can get a  Tandanus Catty, just make sure theres enough hiding places for it.

[here fishie fishie]

Andrew,
The size is mentioned above. The one on its own was on its own(anything thrown in for company got destroyed) in a 4,2,2 till it reach about 20cm then he got the upgrade to the 6 footer.

I have seen a Jacks kept with other fish, Barras, Tandanus, Salmontails, Bull Routs, Scats, Cichla.....

Then other jacks that can't be housed with anything. Same for Red Devils, most have little time for other fish & even their owners fingers.

Frenchy :D