African dwarf frog nips at tank-mates.

I have a community 5 gallon that previously consisted of a beta, one neon tetra (had 3, 2 died), and one African dwarf. Everyone got along fine and I had no problems. Looking to find new schooling buddies for my tetra, I went down to my local fish store and (as always) came out with more than I needed. Now my new additions are a pleco, two Corry cats, and two new tetras. When I introduced them to the tank, my frog immediately went after the pleco even though he is twice his size. I have noticed that he will repeatedly nip at the fins of the corrys and pleco. He has no history of aggression with past tank-mates. Figuring he was hungry I just fed him. What should I do if this continues? Is he just stresses?

 

Your tank is waaaayyyyy to small for those fish.

Before you go out and buy fish rather do some research because what you are doing is close to animal cruelty!!!!

 

Calm down with the animal cruelty B.S. I have done extensive research as well as talking to and thoroughly questioning the employees at my local fish store regarding my exact set up. They told me it was fine, and if you didn't know, they take care of fish for a living. The fish I have are all quite small, and all occupy different areas of the tank. They have plenty of places to hide if they ever feel stressed or threatened. They are all very passive and peaceful fish. The pleco I have is a clown pleco and will only grow to be 3 to 4 inches and I do plan on upgrading to a 10 gallon before he gets that big. They all get along fine except for the incident mentioned above (which is now resolved by the way). So please ask me some questions and do some research yourself before blindly accusing me of abusing my animals.

 

Ok maybe I came across a little bit strong on the animal cruelty thing. However I dont belive any lfs sales man as they tend to advise you just to make a sale.

I personally wouldn't keep any fish in such a small tank.

Corries are schooling fish so you need a minimum of 6 to keep them happy and 6 need a way bigger tank that you got. And the same goes for the tetras.

 

I have come to know the employees at my fish store quite well. They seem very passionate about their work, and it is clear to me that they genuinely care about the fish over making a quick buck. I realize that my tank is not ideal but it is by no means unhealthy. I just can't justify the cost of a jump to a larger tank at the moment but it will happen in the future. As for the corries, you are correct they are schooling fish but they can also thrive in pairs if the environment permits. And for a 5 gallon, 3 fish is an acceptable ammount of fish for a school. Not 6. If something in my tank does go horrifically wrong (fish all kill each other, die before expected lifespan, etc.) then I will gladly admit that I was wrong, but I honestly think I am perfectly ok for the time being.

 

Ive always wanted an african dwarf frog , correct me if im wrong but arent they bl?

 

Sorry, I don't know what "bl" is.

 

Black listed ( illegal to keep)

 

Oh, well my local fish store stocks tons of them so they are legal in California where I live. You might be thinking of African clawed frogs.

 

They are only bl in SA ,sorry I didnt know you live in California

 

O the good old times " The man at the LFS said...." The frog might be going for the pleco and cories because they also live on the substrate and not the water column like the tetras does. O 3 is far from a school.

 

Come on guys, what on earth happened to the usual friendly reception that we give to new members on the forum. If we went off like this on every person here on the forum who made a mistake, we would all be angry at everyone else. If you don't agree with the person's statements, or the way they do things, at least be civilised in the way you address them
@Trwood12, welcome to the forum. I love the frog by the way, just a pity that we have quite a few interesting fresh water critters on the black list.

 

+1 and welcome here

 

Hi and welcome, would love to see your tank