Zebra Pleco

Howzit everyone

Thought I would share my latest addition with everyone. This is the first time I have bought a freshwater fish and been this nervous about its first night ha ha. Hopefully it is as hardy as all other plecos. Enjoy and any advice on keeping it happy and healthy would be appreciated.

*The dots on him are just sand not ich

 

Nice

 

I love these little guys. Gorgeous

 

I love these fish. They are really beautiful.

 

You lucky fish!:laugh:

Hope it does well,not the cheapest of hobbies when you get involved in plecos.

 

Im soooo Jealous. Really nice fish

 

Awesome fish.

 

great looking fish!!!!

 

Nice ATV.
What did you pay for the little guy?

 

So ATV did it/you survive the night?

 

@nicolaas Just under 2k

@Rob Yes it did, seems to be doing ok just havn't seen it eat yet. He is currently in a tank with corys so I am abit worried that the corys are stealing all the food before he gets any.

To make matters worse I did a water change the day before I bought him and I don't know if it was a bad day for tap water or wat but all of a sudden I had a massive nitrate spike (50ppm) ? The tank is very well planted so I'm hoping the plants will bear most of the brunt. I have done 2 big water changes since then and yesterday it looked like the level had already dropped down to 30 ppm. Is this cause for concern ie. could the temporary spike cause him harm? Also abit worried that the constant temperature changes could be stressing him out. Planning on adding a PH buffer when the water changes are all done just to make sure the water conditions are ideal to encourage his eating.

He also doesn't seem to hide in his cave very much. Most of the time he is hiding under the plants on the edges of the tank. Is this normal?

 

Hi ATV, congrats on your beautiful Zebro pleco, he is an amazing specimen. @Charles keeps Zebra pleco's and from what I have read they do require a lot more attention than your average pleco. He would be able to help and advise you, let's hope he sees your post.

 

Damn that's allot!!
I knew they cost allot but I didn't think it would be that high.

 

Thanks @Macmish. Might just contact him directly for some advice

 

Hi @ATV

I replied on your pm. If you like you can post it here so everyone can read it. Someone else might have same or similar questions. Congrats on your Zebra's. Stress levels are high, I KNOW! Relax and don't panic and DON'T do sudden changes with a Zebra unless it is an emergency like a tank burst or something in that line.

 

Hiding is normal for a Zebra. Charles has it right: don't panic and start changing things! I'm so jealous of you guys who have zebras, hoping to join the club soon!

 

Big thanks to @Charles. Great treasure trove of information and was kind enough to pass some of it on to me.

For all other prospective/current owners of zebra plecos, a quick guide to keeping them healthy and happy courtesy of @Charles

I don't mind at all. Nitrate spikes is not good at all! You say you have lots of plants in there...it should take the grunt of it but still not a good thing, not with Zebra pleco's. Forget about the pH buffer, does more harm than good, a stable pHof 7.8 is better than a fluctuating ph of 6 then 7 then 8 then 6... it WILL KILL your Zebra. Temp another problem, keep it stable at 28*C to 29*C. I do 2 x weekly 20% water changes and that is on a 29.75 turn over rate per hour on filtration, which is over kill I know, but Zebra's are not cheap as you know. Stable water conditions and excellent filtration far outway anything else. Sort this first then the rest. I do 50/50 RO and Tap water mix for my Zebra's. They need super clean clear water, ph of 6 to 8 is fine (not for breeding though), as long as it does not swing to much, swing of 7.0 to 7.5 is fine but not 7.0 to 8.5 for example, the swing is to great and the fish get pH shock and good buy Zebra! Very stressful I know. All in all I found my last two Zebra's to be quite hardy, I lost my first two to who know's what. They must have a blue tinge in their dorsal fin and around the eyes, then you know they are healthy. No RED! Then they are sick, maybe bacterial, usually internal, act fast or good buy zebra. Remove the Corry's, they will eat all the food. Zebra's are very shy and does not compete for food with other fish. Zebra is better of in a species specific tank of their own/own kind. They love to hide, they are nocturnal fish and you will rarely see them eat. Once mine settled, it started to come out for food, but the slightest movement it ducks for hidding in a flash. That is the other thing, they must always move fast, in jerky movements, never slow swimming or else something is wrong. Food, mine likes bloodworms, mysis, tetra bits granulate, brine shrimp and the flakes, marine 2 flakes with garlic and beefheart SV 2000 that I bought from prof Dirk. Becareful with meaty foods when Zebra's are small, they might choke on it. Another likeing is Baby Marrows, believe me or, they still need some vegetable matter, you put a small piece in tonight and remove it the next morning. Test your tap water to see what is the specs on that wrt pH, kH, gH, NO2, NO3, PO4 NH3NH4, then you know how to correct it. Test your Zebra tank once or twice a week for a couple of weeks until you get to know your tank and how it is behaving. Test pH regularly, as long as it is between 6.5 and 7.8 range, it will be fine and test at the same time every time, pH differ during day and night.