Can clown loaches reach full size in under 2 years?

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chefkeith
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Can clown loaches reach full size in under 2 years?

Post by chefkeith » Tue Jan 03, 2006 10:06 pm

Is it possible to raise clown loaches to full size in under 2 years? I keep clowns and I don't believe it's possible.

I ask because there is an old story at another website that somebody use to get full grown clown loaches in under 2 years. It would grow to 8" in one year, and would attain full size in about 2 years.

Supposedly, the clowns were kept in a very large tank, with excellent water conditions, and were enormously feed.


I don't believe the story, but if it were true I'd think that the clowns would of died from something obesity related.

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Martin Thoene
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Post by Martin Thoene » Tue Jan 03, 2006 10:13 pm

Keith, welcome to LOL :)

I don't beleve that's possible, although knowing the growth rates they get in commercial fish production who knows? I would be interested to get a link to that story on the other site though.

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chefkeith
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Post by chefkeith » Tue Jan 03, 2006 10:19 pm

The story originated about 5 years ago from a member at aquariacentral.com. I don’t think the original thread is still archived though.
.
Here is a current thread that mentions the old story-

http://www.aquariacentral.com/forums/sh ... hp?t=65005

shari
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Keith

Post by shari » Wed Jan 04, 2006 12:15 am

I haven't kept clowns that long, maybe three years, but none of mine in a 55g have gotten to 10-12 inches in the three years I've had them.

I'll check out your link...something smells fishy--or maybe it's just pride?

shari
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and

Post by shari » Wed Jan 04, 2006 12:17 am

Do you know what I hate? When you go to a forum site and they won't even let you READ the information without registering :twisted:

I don't feel like lending my presence to sites that won't even let me browse to see if they are worth my time! I have precious little enough of it as it is!

:twisted: :twisted: :twisted: :twisted: :twisted: :twisted: :twisted: :twisted:

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Nikki
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Post by Nikki » Wed Jan 04, 2006 12:53 am

I have 7 clowns in my 90 gal loach tank, they are bigger, but still are under 6". The current theory is since they live to 40+ years, it takes a minimum of a decade for them to reach maturity. I have only ever seen a large one twice, once at my lfs and once at Big Als and they were old.
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Emma Turner
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Post by Emma Turner » Wed Jan 04, 2006 8:09 am

I have had some of my Clowns for over 13 years, and they have always been kept in large aquariums, with frequent water changes and an excellent feeding regime. The largest of these 13-year-olds is a female who is currently about 9" long.
I do also have a couple of whoppers - a 10.5" Clown and an 11.5" Clown, which we rescued from a shop last year, but sadly they never thought to ask the previous owner how old these fish were or what conditions they had been kept in.
The Clowns in our 8ft display tank at work were introduced around 3 years ago at a 3" size. The tank is connected to our softwater system, which receives 2 large water changes per day with RO water. The fish in this tank do get fed very frequently with a huge array of different foods (in fact they probably get fed more often than most as it is easy to walk by this tank with food for other fish and drop a bit in for them too). Anyway, in this intense water change/feeding situation for this display tank, the Clowns have reached around 6-7" in about 3 years.
I know every situation is different, but I am very sceptical about them being able to reach full size in 2 years.

Emma
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celticchrys
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WOW

Post by celticchrys » Wed Jan 04, 2006 12:40 pm

They live 40+ years?!?!? OMG. I knew they'd live quite a while, since my 4/5 year old loaches are 4.5 - 5 inches long, but good grief!

Reading this thread actually makes me wonder if I am feeding my clowns adequately. Should they be larger after 4 or 5 years than 4 or 5 inches? (excluding caudal fin)

mamaschild
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Post by mamaschild » Wed Jan 04, 2006 1:23 pm

Hi there everyone.....like the new forum :)

I've got a 15 year old Clown that's ~10" sans tail. I've only had him for about a year, so can't tell you his growth rate. I do have 5 that I've had for about 3 1/2 years, and the largest is about 5". They were all about 2" when I purchased them. They started in a 40g Breeder (more surface area then regular 40g), but within 6 months, they were just too active and growing, so I upgraded to an 80g. After receiving my big guy and his 3 friends (dont' know their age, but they are ~6"), I upgraded again to a 125g.

They are my favorite fish, and yes, I have plans and the ability to build them a LARGE pond in the future, so they can continue to grow as much as they want :)

With the personal experience I have, I would have to agree....somethings "fishy" about them getting full size in 2 years :?

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chefkeith
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Post by chefkeith » Wed Jan 04, 2006 11:40 pm

Another thought (not mine) is that nearly all clown loaches store bought have had their growth stunted. The stunting is why clowns have slow growth rates in the home aquaria.

Could this be possible?

Mark in Vancouver
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Stunted clowns

Post by Mark in Vancouver » Thu Jan 05, 2006 12:45 am

No, that's not genetically accurate. Clowns have been arriving in all sorts of aquariums over a long period. The complaints and observations have been entirely uniform and consistent.
I am a fan of farmed loaches for export. There is no such thing as a "green" way to export these fish, but avoiding the exploitation of their natural spawning grounds seems very wise. If we can do it in pools instead of the Kapuas headwaters, so much the better.
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Martin Thoene
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Post by Martin Thoene » Thu Jan 05, 2006 8:00 pm

There's been baby Clowns here in Toronto that were bred in the Czech Republic. There is a lot of fish breeding going on there in projects subsidized by the government. Work creation.

Great source for excellent quality Dwarf Cichlids and killies too. The Clowns are probably bred by hormone induction. Maybe even egg and sperm stripping like trout?

Best thing is they are beautiful lirttle fish well acclimatized to aquarium conditions. They're breeding other Botia too.

Martin.
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