FishProfiles.com Message Forums

I have a 29G, currently lightly planted.

The tank is only inhabited by two Bolivian Rams.

Would a Discus and a school of 6 Bosemani Rainbows be pushing it?

I'm mainly worried about the Discus. Is it too big for the tank? I talked to the guy at my LFS and he apparently has a pair of them in his 30G and he said they are doing fine. Although, you can never fully trust these guys...

i wouldnt trust them, I have no personal experience, but I have been told discuss need TALL tanks and lots of swimming space...I wouldnt try it. I have a TALL 26 gallon tank, and fish of similar size may pose a problem with your rams. I have a single ram and it is pretty protective of its lower half of the tank, and I assume a pair would be as protective or more.

a good combo with my ram i found was a beta and some lemon tetras and some cherry barbs. plenty of color and lots to look at in the tank, and fish over all the levels. the reason i chose this load out was because the tetras are big enough that the betta leaves them alone, and the lemons dont nip his fins, and the ram can easily chase them all out of his turf so no serious fighting results.

Rainbow fish get WAY too big for you tank and need alot more swimming room. this is just my opinion, but you may need to rethink this loadout, as it is a huge bioload and none of the fish will be happy.

You will never have a happy solitary discus. Discus generally do better in groups of 5 or more and require 10 gallons per fish when grown.
The guy at the lfs probably has a breeding pair in a 30G with nothing else, which is fine for a pair.

You would probably be better off with a nice school of tetras and maybe a BN cat or some cories.

Good luck

yeah i aggree with dave,or maybe try some clown loaches,they are great and grow slow,and they wont bother you other fish.

Clown loaches will eventually outgrow the tank, so its best not to add them. If you want loaches, there are other types that will better suit your tank.

I agree, its not in the best interest of the fish to keep a single Discus. A breeding pair in a 30g is fine by themselves, but I wouldn't add other fish to the mix.

Also the Bosemani's get too large for your tank.

For a 29g, Dwarf Neon Rainbows (aka Praecox Rainbows) would be a nice addition. They only reach 2 inches, so a school of 6-8 would be fine for your tank. You could add something else to the bottom, like some cories or smaller loaches, if you like. Polka Dot loaches or Dwarf Chain loaches would be nice. You could go with a second school as well, like a school of tetras or rasboras.

*Kristin*

i said clowns besause of how slow they grow,ok they will outgrow it,but that would be a whilebut as said above there are other clowns you can opt for

Thanks for the input guys.

I made a mistake, though. I dont know where it came from, but i do not have Bosemani Rainbows, i have the Dwarf Neon Rainbows.

I guess I will go check out some other fish for the tank and save the discus for when I get a bigger one.

Thanks