29 gal stocking

[Cichlid*Newbie]

I know this is small for a permanent tank..and i think ill eventually get like a 40-50g..i have 4 african cichlids in there now, two zebras (sex unknown) and a male and female kenyi...they all get along pretty well lately...a few people hav suggested adding a couple more, they have some yellow labs at the lfs...would you add more than the 4 that are currently there????

[Fishguy2727]

Yes, I think you need more for now. I would treat it as a growout tank so that it is fine for now, but would be considered overstocked if they were all full grown in there. Worst case you don't get a bigger tank and need to get rid of a bunch, or all of them. Are you sure you will be able to get a bigger tank in about 4-6 months?

[Cichlid*Newbie]

Well i plan on having a larger one once we buy a house...hopefully in the next few months..but who know. I guess maybe ill leave it as is..they all seem to be fine, the zebras kind of do their own thing and chase each other in circles lol. The female kenyi has claimed a plant as her territory...she stays in there mostly..except for food..the male kenyi kind of tours the whole place.

[RainMan]

Don't plan on getting a bigger tank at some point. Not to say it won't happen. But, 9 times out of 10... it won't.

Are you sure that female is gaurding territory... that could be hiding. Sounds like the male kenyi has claimed the tank as his territory.

You probably need to overstock the tank some more... you're in a pickle with that size. Believe me... I know the feeling. But, you should do it soon, because it gets a lot more expensive to stock a tank cichlids when they get bigger. Their price jumps drastically.

Unfortunately, I can't help you on what you should do with the species you have now. You're gonna have trouble with a pair of possible breeding kenyis... and definitely if you picked a female and male red zebra. Your other option is trade them in and start over. A complete restocking isn't unheard of... ask your lfs if they are willing to do that.

Of course, someone else might be able to jump in and tell you what works with what you have. I would guess... some single male species that look completely different from what you have. Stay away from crabos and auratus. Maybe 4-5 yellow labs?

Oh and make sure you do at least 25% waterchange every week.

[RainMan]

Or keep the kenyi and build off that.... you have some options.

[Cichlid*Newbie]

Yeah,i dont know what to do...i like all the fish now..i dunno maybe the female is hiding...the male kinda claims the tank..haha. If i take them back to walmart (like i did the dempseys i had in there too) they'll kill them as well...they say they could be infected..I could possibly sell them on the local trading post...

Ive noticed when the lights are out on the tank the female kenyi seems to come out a bit more, could the lights or bubbles scare the fish? she doesn't seem to like either of them lol.

Argh..yeah i really like the kenyi's, id most likely keep them, maybe add another female?

Like i said i want a bigger tank and ive been looking..might see if walmart can order one in for me....but then if we're moving into a house, its probably better to wait...how would i move it with out disturbing everything.

[RainMan]

Don't bring them back to Walmart... find a local petstore. Just don't deal with walmart if you can. The fish are so mixed up and diseased... it's terrible. (I've bought fish from there as well.. with mixed results) Definitely a gamble though. Plus the lfs can usually do some trading or store credit with you.

Definitely better to wait if it is going to be soon... moving fish and tanks is not fun. You might as well plan what you have and make the most of it.

I say, Bring the red zebras back... I think you'll be dissapointed in their color as they get older. Especially if they are orange males... they turn a pinkish color. and they get huge and aggressive. Personally, I wasn't too fond of mine.... sorry.

That 55gal tank that walmart sells is a good deal for a complete setup. You won't need anything more than some more substrate to get it running... and no need to upgrade anything until you think of canister filters. Or check the local papers and craigslist... people are always getting out of this hobby or upgrading.