Stimulating Loaches through Play

[soul-hugger]

Thanks for the interesting converstaion and ideas!

I have noticed it is true that Loaches enjoy almost anything new. It has been awhile since I added anything new. I did notice, as Glostik said, in the old tank my Loaches used to play with the thermometer...didn't break it though! In the new tank the thermometer is LCD.
Andyroo said something about Loaches being less active in winter. I wonder if they can sense the changing seasons, and I'm betting they can! I sure feel lazy in winter! I am not suprised about Arowana playing with a ball. In the wild, they go after round fruits that have fallen in the water, and they even will jump up and take a fruit or an insect from a tree branch. Using a ball for a Loach is an interesting idea.
Wolfram.., I can see your point about keeping your face near the tank for longer periods of time. This way, they can get used to your presence in closer proximity. This would be more like real play. Maybe Loaches would play some of the same games as a very young infant, like peekaboo, if it wouldn't scare them!
Many of you have mentioned food. In a smaller tank, I have noticed you can see the food floating on the surface a lot better. I'm sure that also means they can see everything else better, too. Like when I'm doing maintenance, they used to check out my arm, and now they just hide under the log. I have never tried live foods before, (too scared) and I think that may be a great tool for stimulating natural behaviour. I use frozen food all the time, and having them pull it through a net would be fun for them. I have also seen "worm-feeders." They are cheap, and this would draw them out to the surface.
Current, and decor are both things I'm working on. I had pipes at one point, but they looked ugly and the Loaches didn't use them, so I took them out. I'm planning a whole bunch of changes for this tank, so if it's change they want, it is coming!
Thank-you all for your open-mindedness and willingness to respond to this topic. I think it is a very interesting one, and would welcome any more thoughts you might have!:)

Thank-you
soul-hugger

[Diana]

Fish for a cool water tank:

Rosy Barbs, and quite a few other Barbs are cooler water fish.
Pepper and other Cories- Do a little research, some are warmer water fish.
White Cloud Minnows (might get eaten by larger fish)
Quite a lot of cats will handle water to 72*, and some quite a bit lower.
Spotted Doradid
Blind Cave Tetra, Black Widow Tetra, Buenos Aires Tetra, Neon, . Most other Tetras really are not so good below about 72*, though there are a few. around 72-74*F seems to be the bottom of the range for many.
Some of the African Darter Tetras, a river or stream fish a lot like the smaller Loaches. They perch on rocks or gravel waiting for food to come drifting by. I have several in a 20 long river tank, I do not think they would be good choices here. (American Darters seem to prefer warmer water)
Zebra and Pearl Danios

And yes, I do things to keep the fish happy. I tried the ping pong balls (floating) and no one was interested. (I did not give them paddles). Maybe I should weight the balls down and see who might be interested.

I plant the plants and the fish dig them up. Loaches that burrow dig up the plants from underneath. Then I replant.

An older Clown I had many years ago would dig a hole in the gravel, one pebble at a time, carefully picking up a rock and tossing it aside. The hole never got very big because he would not throw the rocks very far, and by the time the hole was approaching 2" deep the rocks were falling into it, filling it up as fast as he dug.

[Sixwing]

This thread has been a great read. Here's to keeping the critters healthy and happy!

Both of my dojos seem to delight in uprooting stem plants. I've seen them exploring right around the base until, whoops! There goes the plant. The big one also goes weaving through the holes in the driftwood for no reason I can see - maybe there is food in there? Or maybe he's playing. [/i]

[chefkeith]

My first thought was a crossword puzzle.

Clowns are very inquisitive. For me it's important that they can't see their entire swim area from any one spot. This gives them a reason to swim around the tank more often. They'll swim around the island I built just out of curiosity.

[wasserscheu]

... Do you mean that you tap on the glass with a needle near where the food is to indicate where it is? ...

Yes, a very large knitting (or so?) needle has been one of my standart tools for fischkeeping.

... Has anyone experimented with temperature changes? ...

Some people have an electronic device to establish a different temperature at night. I don't (at least on purpose. Some say temp. chanmges may stimulate the immunesystem, waterchanges often look after that. When I still did wc's (now constant flow through system) I did ad the last inch as cold water as came from the tab (but it would not impact the over all temp a lot, but occasionally I got 1°C differences. To stay on the save side I would not want to officially recommend it though)

I have them cool in the winter and room temp im summer. It would be a high effort to cool the water, so July ande August turn out hoter. The large heater has a live of it's own and differences of 1°C are happening by itself and I find that ok. I did not figure yet why the temp. varies (open windows, and heat from tank-lamps are not the reason).

What I forgot to mention, that most fish interact during visual contact, it's like talking through the eyes , often some fish can keep exchanging looks for quite long. When they do, I know I am relaxed enough, and I'm happy then to qualify for fish talk. They scan you very clearly if you are up to something. They are less scared of fast movements, than sneaky behaviour, I find that out repeatadly. It's as if they sense the "alpha-waves"(?) of the brain in regards to a intentation of a possible attack. Kind of skills, like Kung Fu - fighters develope. Once they don't detect any intention, and you are open for them to scan you, you enter their club. In return they ask for spaghetti, which they get very sparingly.

[Diana]

Many fish will chase a laser light.

[soul-hugger]

Hi,

Diana, thanks for the list!! I was thinking of possibly going with another species of Barb for schooling fish. There are already 2 Golden Barbs, soon to be 5 because 3 more are in QT. I like the Odessa Barbs, because they are colourful. I usually tend to choose subtly coloured fish, and I think this tank could use a bit of colour. Do you think Rainbowfish would be OK here? I have been researching them, and they look interesting, and prefer the cooler water. I have seen Rainbowfish sometimes at the LFS, and they have them in Brackish water, though I was told by the staff that you can acclimate them to Fresh. It would be better if I could find some that are already being kept in Fresh Water.

I think in my case it might be a lack of tankmates and decor that is causing them to be lazy. I am working on thi in all respects but it has been taking a long time. Part of the trouble is the area in which I live the selection of things is not very good.

I do have 3 Black Widow Tetras in the 20 G High. Maybe they would be OK if I moved them. The Tetras in the 55 are Long Fin Blushing White Tetras, which I think are basically another form of the Black Widows. They are really neat because you can see their insides, and they have really dark bluish eyes. Only thing is that when they were together, the Whites were showing some mild aggression towards the Black ones by chasing them away from the food. Then again, they are also like that with eachother. They don't seem to school as much as other Tetras.

I have seen the Darter Tetras once in an LFS, too. They were calling them Hummingbird Tetras, and they reminded me of some of the Schistura Loaches. I thought they were neat but I left them because of not knowing anything about them. Another fish I really liked but left for lack of information was the Peacock Gudgeon. Have you ever kept these before? I think they are a lot like Gobies.

I let my Loaches uproot the plants, too. They never seem to damage them when they move them. If I put any plants in either front corner, (their favourite resting places) they are soon to be uprooted. I have been spending a lot of time at The Planted Tank.net, researching how to get my plants growing better. I did find out that it is most likely a lack of light that was causing my stem plants to melt. A lot more plants are in the future for this tank, as well as new substrate. Then I will have to take everything out and start over, which might not be a bad thing.

I have never kept Clowns before, but I can see why many people do. It seems that Loaches do things sometimes just for the sheer fun of it. I'm going to try putting some plastic decorations in and see if they will play with those. They are shaped like seashells, and when I bought my first Loaches, some of these were with them in the tank.

Eye contact can definitely be a good thing. I know my fish make eye contact with me, and they do seem to have a sense of what's going on, epecially when it comes to food! Tapping the tank might be a good thing to try, and it is free! With me it is one thing, but my little girl is 3 and very active. Sometimes she scares them by making fast movements or throwing things near the tank. Even my 80-pound dog is afraid of her!

I have heard of giving fish grains of rice, but spaghetti is all new to me! That is something I will have to see for myself!


Thanks Everyone..,
soul-hugger

[starsplitter7]

I tap on one of my tanks when I feed, because I have a blind glowlight tetra. I am giving him a heads up that food is entering the tank. We have been doing this a month and he is slowly getting the idea. He's so small, I can't handle feed him.

I just picked up a peacock "goby" and he's great. Actually he's a she, and I will buy her a mate. I have read they are social.