Loaches & Discus

[Lee_k]

Hi all,

So the Discus tank is developing and I've been adding more plants as I go. Obviously because I brought plants i got myself "some" free Maylasian trumpet snails.... i'd now say at least 40!! Now i've read that gourami can eat snails - clearly my 4 large pearls are broken (or just enjoying the discus beefheart too much to care!)

I thought about adding a couple of assasin snails to control the population, i honestly dont mind a few snails around I know (especially with MTS) that there good for the plants and general tank cleanup - but i'd like to not look like a infestation! - However I really like loaches but had always avoided due to the discus.

This is where it takes a turn, although alot will recommend clown loaches with discus it seems quite well accepted now that this is a bad mix, they get too large too. I've been reading Chris Ingrams discus manual (vol 2) and he says about some fish to mix/not mix. As such I dropped him a email about his thoughts or what he'd seen mixed with discus that could help. He actually recommended Skunk Boltias as he said there great at controlling snails and get along with discus fine. Guess this is the joy of this hobby as others dont recommend these but i'm certainly not going to question Chris's methods when it comes to discus! Luckily my LFS has some of these in stock too so I could get them today, medicate in a quarantine and have them in the tank in a week or 2. But ideally I only wanted to get like 3, 4 at a push and certainly not 10 of them as there's already 4 or 5 cory's on the bottom! (Ciano Pro Emotions 120)

Anyone got any experience with this fish? Another one my LFS had in stock was the Kubotai Botia, these look like they get almost twice the size of the Skunks however! (Although they are very good looking!). I guess my local pets at home will have yoyo's in (they normally carry them) - and these seem to be one of them fish where lots keep them with discus just fine and others say they chase the discus at night, Chris said in his opinion a yoyo would be too active for a discus tank.

Thanks
Lee

[Staffylover]

I have 3 of the polka dot loaches in my 350l, they are very pretty fish, mine hide away a lot I only see them now and again, they have been very slow growing had them a year would guess they are 2.5 inch now and quite slender in the body, would dwarf chain loaches eat snails? I have these too and they are much smaller also more active and always on display, just a thought

[plankton]

https://www.loaches.com/species-index/botia-kubotai

Yo-yos get to around 8", the polka dots about 5" so they should be ok.
I'd also be wary of skunk loaches, for a 4" fish they are quite grumpy for loaches and tend to want the tank to themselves......they may be ok with bigger fish though.

The only thing I will say is that I would never keep corys and loaches together again. The loaches' frenzy at feeding time means they can catch the bumbling corys' with their opercular spines.......

[Ric]

I've 'used' clown loaches before to deal with snail infestations but these days I will always recommend assassin snails. No trouble, just put in a handful and let them get on with it.

[Lee_k]

Just back from LFS - No polka dots left - they had Skunks but i'm a bit too weary of their agressive reputation with both the discus and gourami.

I could get the zebra (candy) loach - which stay smaller and are good for snails - not sure how they are compared to the polka dot loach in terms of other fish though.

Another was the dwarf chain loach which was in stock.

Decisions, decisions.... so i just came home

Lee

[plankton]

Zebras are great, but I've never kept them with corys. I should imagine they're not too bad though.