Loaches Online Forum

First off, hello from East TN and thank you so much for this wonderful site.

I have a stocking question:

I have a 75 gallon 4' x 18" x 20" Tank that currently houses 7 youngish tiger barbs and a pair (male and female) of Paradise Flames. I would very much like to add some loaches as I have fallin in love with them both in seeing them and reading about them. I have tentatively ordered 6 Botia Dario (Bengal/Queen) from the LFS. Do you in your infinite collective wisdom foresee any problems with this arrangement?

Any and all advice is welcome and again thanks for the site.

Welcome to the list, postal_blue. Glad you joined.
Maybe this will be of use to you: http://www.loaches.com/species-index/botia-dario

From that article:

"They can grow up to six inches in the wild, and perhaps in a large tank, but like most loaches, aquariums may stunt their natural growth.

In the tank, they're mostly bottom grazers. I have mine in a 20 gallon planted tank with a number of silver-tip tetras. I'm using an Aquaclear HOB filter and an extra 301 power-head/canister filter for current. 78F/25C water temps... PH: 6.8, weekly 40% water changes, vacuuming, etc..."

I have five Botia dario that have been in a 75 gallon for over three years and they seem to be doing well. They are only about 4" in length, so maybe their growth has been stunted some.

Be sure and post some pictures when you get your Botia dairo.

Welcome to Loaches Online! The only real Loach site on the web.

I personally would say that a 75 gallon tank should be fine for your Botia Dario. I would ignore that section from the article (tank is too small), I'll remove it later as it must of been overlooked by us Moderators. Enjoy the site and please do have a look around our main site.

Thanks for the responses, I have finalized my order and should have 6 Botia dario resting up from there trip to the LFS next Thursday (LFS keeps em for 1 week to make sure they are in good shape). I am so darned excited I can't stand it. I have been building caves for the little rascals hopefully they will feel at home. I am running 2 marineland 400's and an aqueon 950 so lots of good current flow and plenty of filtration.

I made the mistake of going to the LFS today and checking out the new stock... I made an impulse buy and I am hoping you're not gonna e-slap me. They had a beautiful Stripped Raphael and I simply could not resist the temptation. He is stunning and already of good size probably in the 4 inch range. I know he will get 8+ but I have read in multiple places that he should be ok in my tank. The question is, is everyone gonna get along alright? Have i made a blunder? Any feed back would be welcomed.

I have had a striped and a spotted raphael for many years, and I adore them. The only problem is that you may not see him. Make sure you have hiding spaces for him. I have had mine for 4-5 years, and they are a heafty 6". Big, fat fish although I have no idea what they eat.

I would only worry about him if you have fish small enough for the raphael to eat.

I very much love my Darios. Really nice fish.

In a 75 I would consider getting a few more tigers to spread out their aggression.

I have no idea what paradise flames are, so that may have an impact on the advice.

I am loving the Raphael he certainly hides during the day but when he makes his appearance at night he is very fun to watch. He can really move and he seems to have changed the dynamics of the tank, the barbs have realized that they are not the bosses of the tank and have even lessened there playful pursuit of the Paradise.

As for what a paradise flame is Well Ive seen it called a Paradise Flame Gourami, Blue Paradise, and a couple other names I am not sure if they are just a color morph of the classic paradise fish or what. They are stunning with a vibrant red tail (which the barbs could not resist for the first couple of days.) They have not cause any problems and seem to be content hanging out near the top of the tank for ready access to the air as they are labyrinth fish.

I like the idea of adding a couple more barbs, what would you thought be on adding say 5 green tigers? I have heard of/seen the greens schooling with the standard tigers, but if that would cause problems I would just add a couple more standard tigers.