my sucker fish is attacking my fish.!!!?

Question

my sucker fish as started to chase my other fish around the tank. why is this? will this stress out my fish.

i have a tank with 5 coldwater fish in it.my sucker fish is chasing 2 of the fish. my sucker fish is smaller than any of my fish.will it stress out the fish and why is it doing this??

Answer 1

most suckermouth catfish are very, very peaceful.....they may chase the odd fish, or at feed time might try to keep an area clear.
latching onto larger fish (discus tend to get this a lot) is quite common (sometimes they do this if there are any skin parasites in the tank....like cleaner fish)
if the other fish are 'allowing' this then they may well be getting a clean and you may need a general tonic in the tank.
it is easy for another fish to avoid this if it wants to, but if the catfish is chasing them round all the time and trying to latch on then there is a problem and he will stress them.
watch your fish and see how they react.
also, i would go along with a previous answer, the catfish pellets are a good food for them and the odd bit off cucumber or lettuce they usually relish....only a small amount, changed daily.

Answer 2

You have the answer about five times. The sucker sucks the goldfish slime which in turn causes the goldfish to weaken and then get sick and then die. It is not an easy thing to take care of fish. You need to read about what all is involved in caring for tropical fish. If you learn how to accomplish it, it is a great hobby. But if you just try and do it like I did without studying the subject, the fish die and the bowl ends up in storage. Good luck.

Answer 3

Sounds like you have whats commonly called a chinese algae eater or gold chinese algae eater, this behaviour is quite common for this fish after they get to a mature size of about 4". Aslo some plecos can become very teritorial and chase and attack other fish that get in their space.

Any time i fish gets chased by another fish it causes stress, how serious it is depends on how sensitive the fish is.

Answer 4

It's very common for various types of sucker fish to do this. The common (chinese) algae it very prone to do this., and gets very aggressive when older. Most other sucker fish will suck on slow moving fish like goldfish. Remember that most of the "algae eater are actually omnivores. You might try throwing a sinking pellet or 2 before lights out. It mat just be it's hungry. Also fresh veggies are good for them, and likely your other fish. Sliced broccoli stems, sliced zucchini, carrots....

Answer 5

Its probably not a sucker fish then!!! Their meant to stay on the sides of your tank! lol x

Answer 6

What kind of "sucker is it" pleco's are peaceful. And if is some kind of Chinese, Siamese algae eater. It will attack other fish that are in the Cyprinids family like sharks.

Answer 7

Sucker fish is an agressive fish.so you reaserch on the net before buying fishes.

Here is a good link to see which fish is compatible with which one...

http://www.timstropicals.com/Compatibility/CompatibilitySearch.asp

Answer 8

Yep, it happens with Chinese algae eaters. And yes, it will stress out your other fish, possibly to the point of death. This is why it is important to research any fish you buy, BEFORE you buy it.

Answer 9

if its larger than your other fish it is probably showing a natural pecking order. how ever this will cause stress to your other fish, make sure they have a small hiding hole and plenty of plants to retreat to. beware: it may end up eating them!

Answer 10

plecos are territorial they will chase any fish out of their areas of the tank.