My sucker fish (algae eater) is really aggressive towards my other fish ( goldfsh). Every time they come down to pick at the rocks he goes wild and chases them plus it looks like he nips at them. I don't want to kill him because he has gorgeous coloring plus it mean. Is there any way I can fix the problem?
2007-11-21 04:35:28 · 17 answers · asked by PeekaBooIhateYou 2 in Pets ➔ Fish
Goldfish are like the dumb bunnies of the fish tank world... it's hard to find other fishes that won't take a nip at their fins, even ones without teeth -- like your suckerfish. Fish will eat anything, and any matter... and unless they are afraid of the fish (which is attached to the fins), they'll nibble, if they can. Gold fish don't swim away quickly, and their reaction time tell you the truth.. is even worse than a bunny.
Truth is -- unless you see holes & parts missing on the goldfish, it really isn't a problem. The sucker just tries to taste anything around, and they dart at the fish to try to see if there's any food/algae on it.. that's all. If your goldfish is bitten, it might be another fish too... that's all part of trying to get a little ecosystem going, in your tank... and that's the name of the game (along with cleaning/caring).
Unfortunately, the only way to fix this - if it fact there's more to it, than simply the sight of a fish moving at another one (it's harmless, and no it's not related to shark!).. is to keep the goldfish separately. Catfish are ok. But, really, it's trial and error (and don't be fearful of talking to people at the aquarium/fish pet shop about this).
2007-11-21 04:37:26 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 1⤋
Goldfish are cold water fish and, whatever your "algae eater" is, it is a warm water fish. They should not be together. If it's a gold Chinese algae eater, then it is likely to be aggressive to other fish. Most plecos are not, but none of them should be in with goldfish. They are probably also not in large enough tank, but that's not the real problem as they shouldn't be together, anyway.
2007-11-21 05:36:08 · answer #2 · answered by aqua 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
You probably have a plecco, and they can be a bit aggressive. As long as he is not actually harming them this is okay. He is just being territorial about his rocks. Fish tend to chase each other around, if you see one fish chasing another to the point of exhaustion, then I suggest either switching tanks or giving the fish away. There is no need to kill a fish, you will find someone to take it for free on a craigslist type site.
2007-11-21 04:38:57 · answer #3 · answered by LifeLove 3 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Ha Ha that's funny... No! There's really not much you can do if the fishy is aggressive. There might be something that someone knows about fish, but I really don't think depending on how stubborn it is, that there is nothing you can do, unless you make him get used to having lots of fish around him. However, it's not a foolproof system, because there is no guarantees that the sucker fish will not kill or harm the other fishes. Good luck. Happy Thanksgiving!
2007-11-21 04:42:14 · answer #4 · answered by TheExpert 3 · 0⤊ 2⤋
If you've got another tank to put the algae eater in, that would probably be a good idea. In addition to the fact that they won't get along, they belong in different temperatures.
Also, goldfish are bottom feeders, so they'll eat the algae in your tank. There isn't any real need for the algae eater.
2007-11-21 18:56:32 · answer #5 · answered by Hawkster 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
There is not much you can do for an aggressive fish. You can't reason with them. I have heard that putting them in a tank with larger, meaner fish for awhile will cure them but how many people keep a tank of large, mean fish around.
How big is your tank by the way? Is it possible that you have overcrowded your tank and need to either reduce the number of fish or get a larger tank?
2007-11-21 04:39:53 · answer #6 · answered by A.Mercer 7 · 0⤊ 1⤋
You wanted to kill him? What kind of person are you? If somebody is mean to you, do you kill em? Now I know why there are so many murderers out there. Oh, somebody just called me an idiot, better get the knife, is that what you think? Anyways, just like people are mean in our world, some fish are just plain mean. He is not part shark (who told you that?!) I'm sorry if that sounded mean, but, I mean, you were gonna kill him? If you really wanna get rid of him, take him to the nearest pet store, dont kill a poor helpless little creature.
2007-11-21 04:42:33 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 1⤋
No a sucker fish is a type of armored catfish
2016-05-24 21:48:03 · answer #8 · answered by lessie 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
He is keeping them away from his territory. How large of a tank do you have?
You can look at doing two things....rearranging the rocks (it confuses them and squashes the aggression for a bit) or you can insert a barrier in there to seperate them (ugly looking, but efficient if need be).
Please dont kill him, you can at least take him to a fish store and they will give you store credit. Killing him is pointless. He didnt ask to be in your artifical enviornment.
2007-11-21 04:42:10 · answer #9 · answered by Phil M 7 · 0⤊ 1⤋
i don't think so but one thing i do know sucker fish are not sharks or even part sharks they can be a bit aggressive but they sure keep the tank clean keep him
2007-11-21 04:41:41 · answer #10 · answered by dptvegas 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋