rescued plec will need a home

[kimmers318]

This little guy was brought to me at work last night, along with a lone tiger barb. So far ID suggestions are pterygoplichthys gibbiceps, which will get too big for me in the long run, so once he is happy and healthy he will be free to anyone who wants to come and get him/her. The previous owner was my friends son who wasn't taking care of the tank, and the parents aren't up to the challenge, so I was asked to save them, which I of course did! :)
Here are pics....
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h216/kimmers318/cories%20and%20plecos/pleco7.jpg
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h216/kimmers318/cories%20and%20plecos/pleco6.jpg
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h216/kimmers318/cories%20and%20plecos/pleco2.jpg
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h216/kimmers318/cories%20and%20plecos/pleco1.jpg




He/she is 3.5 inches long from tip to tip. The lone tiger barb is also welcome to join anyone who has a group that would like a new friend, otherwise I can foresee a barb community tank arising in the future!
These pics were taken July 4th when BB came home with me

[William]

Yes. That looks like a skinny pterygoplichthys gibbiceps. It needs to get some meat on its bone ;-)

They are very nice plecos, especially when they show their fins. But they do as you say grow very large and can be a bit aggressive.

IF i lived near you i would take it in a heartbeat.

[kimmers318]

Yes, he is a little skinny, and looks a little ragged too, probably from living in poor conditions all of his life. All she fed him was the flake. He will spend some time getting spoiled here before I rehome him. Also, noticed last night when I got home his color is completely different now, hoping that means he is getting settled in nicely, not stressing more. He was cleaning the glass while the lights were still on. I will get more pics when I have more time in the next couple of days....today Dad has 2 appts and I have to work early!

[William]

Good to hear tht he settles in. looking forward to the new pics.

pterygoplichthys gibbiceps is usally active all day long.

[rev]

The honeycomb patternig suggests he is indeed L083. Please offer him raw veges with zuccini & cucumber being favorites. Also protein rich meaty foods as well as prepared foods such as shrimp & spirulina wafers or pellets will be appreciated.
Also frovide him with refuge in the form of hollow logs &/or rock caves.
Glyptoperichtys Gibbiceps has replaced the former name. If he is in 55g or up he will be happy there for some years. Fairly slow growing sp.

[kimmers318]

Well, I talked to the previous owner again last night and made her rethink and try to remember how long she has had this guy.....remembering birthdays and such to get a closer idea to how long she has had him, and it is closer to a year, if not just over. She does know that when she purchased him, she pointed out the exact tank she had (which from the sounds of it is a 20-30 gal, no measurements, just descriptions) and told the staff she did not want a plec that would get too big, and this is what they sold her. I told her you can't always trust the staff at chain stores, but she said he hasn't grown noticeably in the year she had him.
The honeycomb pattern is still visible, but the coloring has gotten much blacker behind the spots , must have been major stress for this poor guy. I have managed to get just a couple of shots this morning because I am covering for 3 girls at work who are out of town, and my father is undergoing radiation and dialysis and is not allowed to drive, so I am VERY busy right now running constantly. I have provided him with hidey holes, and currently have algae wafers, shrimp pellets, spirulina flake and little pellets. Frozen bloodworms occassionally make it to the other tanks after I feed the dwarfpuffers, fresh vegs come when I grocery shop! I guess only time will tell with his/her growth. Once he has gotten healthy he can reside in my 64 until I need to get him another home, or until I find the right home, whichever comes first. Either way, it is still better than what he was living in in the past!
Here are this mornings pics to compare to Tuesday night.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h216/kimmers318/cories%20and%20plecos/plec3.jpg
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h216/kimmers318/cories%20and%20plecos/plec2.jpg

[Sin]

Kimmer..i hope that pleco is doing good. . .my pleco has changed dramatically as well..his patterns are much more vivid and his belly is much lighter , his fins are much darker also hes gained some weight....guess hes doing all right! :4:

[Lady Hobbs]

I am so disappointed. All I get is the dreaded X instead of the pictures.

[Nautilus291]

I get the same thing hobbs... I wanted to see how that guy looked too considering I live only an hour or so from kimmers, If i decided to get a bigger tank:wink2: I could home him.

[kimmers318]

Sorry guys....the dreaded X is because I organized all of my photobucket pics into folders and it broke the links....I will go back and relink them for you after I post this and try to get a pic from today also.

[kimmers318]

Okay...relinked the pics...not sure if I posted the exact same ones but you get to still see what she (not sure of sex) looked like. She is not cooperating right now for a photoshoot even with algae tabs but here is a couple of pics I took late summer and early fall that show how much better she looks. She has grown about an inch and a half and been visited by previous mom who just can't believe how much she has grown. With the new coloring which makes her look completely different another ID has been liposarcus pardalis, which still means BIG plec!!!
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h216/kimmers318/cories%20and%20plecos/bb.jpg
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h216/kimmers318/cories%20and%20plecos/bb2.jpg
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h216/kimmers318/cories%20and%20plecos/bb-1.jpg
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h216/kimmers318/cories%20and%20plecos/bb1.jpg

[Severus]

She looks great. I can tell she loves that zucchini/cucumber!

[kimmers318]

Oh yeah.....zucchini is a big favorite around here with all but the carnivores. The mbuna start picking at it as soon as I put it in the tank fresh!

[Severus]

I tried zucchini the other day with my pleco and he loved. It seems to be a guaranteed favorite with all omnivore/herbivore fish! lol

[bubble_bee]

Just thought I'd let you know that scientific research as proven (relatively) recently that fish emit hormones into the water which determine how fast, or if, they grow. If they're in too small of a tank the hormones will build up, and their growth will be slowed, stopped, or irreversibly stunted. I didn't see if you posted what size tank he is now in, but this may explain why he has been growing so quickly in your tank compared to the lady's that you received him from.

Fish kept in too small of tanks have been compared to anorexics: although they may still live, they will never be fully happy or healthy, and sadly, years will be taken off of their lives. I hope you can find him a nice big tank where he can live out the long, healthy life he deserves!

[cocoa_pleco]

I used to feed my 5 plecos frozen squid... only 1 liked em. But mine LOVED algae wafers. Put 10 wafers in and 2 in my 33g would eat em all in 1 hour

[kimmers318]

Currently BB is in a nice sized 65 gallon....having gone from a 10 gal to a tank with a footprint of 36 X 18 has made a HUGE difference. Growth is slowing down somewhat now, seems to be going at a normal pace now that she has caught herself up, but I don't think the tank will hold her long. We have a 75 gal mbuna, but the rock structures are something I don't want to have her knocking around in at full grown. We already have a 15" pleco in our 90 gal that was also a rescue coming from a 55 that he couldn't even turn around in, he has added 4" since we got him. Unless someone takes her off of my hands I guess when she gets too big I will have to find the room for another large tank in a few years!

[cocoa_pleco]

Sounds cool

[Slinky_Bass]

Wow, so that beautiful pleco is the same scruffy, skinny thing you first posted pics of... it's like two different plecs. Thank goodness theres a 'Kimmers' for every ignorant fish abuser. I'm sure sites like AC also help a fair amount with providing good info to dispel fish ignorance.

On the non-fish related side, I wish you continued strength and fortitude with all your health/family/work trials.

[kimmers318]

Thanks so much SlinkyBass! Things have settled down on the homefront....the demon niece chose to go home with her mother after being with her 4 less than 4 hours.....long story, but she chose to be able to smoke, drink and run around over a loving family unit where drugs don't enter the picture. Her mother made her all kinds of promises that she won't keep and I simply said I won't play the games with her and her mother. If my sister is willing to sign over custody or loses custody I will step back in and take her, but I won't have her here all week "pretending" to follow the rules and going to her mother on the weekends to party it up. So, although I worry about the child I no longer have to deal with it on a day to day basis. My niece realizes that my sister is still doing the drugs now and all she is concerned about is the fact that SHE doesn't get a mother who is paying attention to her, so she cons my mom into doing everything for her. My mom was a big problem when I had my niece always wanting to override me and step in and fix things for the kid so she can have the aggravation as far as I am concerned!

[Slinky_Bass]

It really is crazy and sad what children get themselves into these days, and what parents will let them get into. I remember you mentioning somewhere that she is only 14 right, sheesh, when I was 14 the worst I did was swear when I was with my friends (and even then it was only stuff like damn and bast**rd and sh*t).

Things have changed so much these last ten years, makes me really worry about where we'll be with this generation as parents themselves...