# My Advice: Never keep a lone piranha



## AJerman (Nov 7, 2007)

As I wait for my friend's Ps to breed again, I have a lone red. My advice is to NEVER have a lone piranha. That fish is the biggest waste of my time and money I've ever seen. He hides in his rock cave and never ever comes out unless he's absolutely sure that there is no one in the room and there hasn't been any movement near him for at least 15-30 minutes. I've gotten him at least to where I can feed him (hold the bag in front of his cave where I know he sees it, then knock on the tank when I put it in) and he will come out after about 5 minutes if I'm not around, quickly eat his food, then dart directly back into the cave. What a waste of time and money to keep a 125g tank running for a worthless fish that I never even see.

Once my friend gets some more babies, this guy is going in my friend's tank with the adults where he will likely get eaten, but possibly manage to survive somehow. The sad thing is that I couldn't care less. I never see him so I can't get attached to him, and on the contrary, I've come to dislike him quite a bit for NEVER coming out.

If you want to keep a lone piranha, I'd suggest some other small fish like neons or dannios. That way he'll come out more to try to eat them, or at least you'll have them to look at for a little while. Even then, the last time I added about 4 or 5 danios, he never came out, and ate one of them a night. I hate my worthless fish.


----------



## Nick G (Jul 15, 2007)

i dont know man, i would have to disagree.
assuming ur parameters are perfect, and everything else, it may be that he hasnt been in there long enough.
how long have you had him?

i had a few reds who were awesome solo. 
i had one who chased me around the room, i had another who was slightly skittish, but if i was near the tank he would swim around like crazy.

its all about the individual fish, but i wouldnt discount it totally.


----------



## AJerman (Nov 7, 2007)

Nick g said:


> i dont know man, i would have to disagree.
> assuming ur parameters are perfect, and everything else, it may be that he hasnt been in there long enough.
> how long have you had him?
> 
> ...


Parameters are perfect, tank just finished cycling and he was put in the tank not long ago, but I'd say about a month. Long enough for him to venture out of the confines of his rock even one single time during the entire day. I dunno, maybe he's just an absolutely worthless fish but I'll tell you one thing, I've lost all interest in keeping him at this point. The worst part is, the cave isn't deep, I can see him hiding in the darkness and he just watches me and doesn't move. If by some extremely rare circumstance he is out and I walk up to the tank, he flips out bounces off a few walls, and goes straight to his rock. You'd think I beat him or something.

The sad thing is, if I took the rock out so he didn't have anywhere to hide, he'd go swim to the back corner and sit there all day long.

He's only about 6 months old or so, and I know that juveniles are more skittish, but he's past the point of skittish to just completely reclusive. I'm not exaggerating when I say that I might see him out of his rock once every week or so. Can anyone think of any ideas?


----------



## ronzz (Oct 26, 2004)

THAT IS BECAUSE THEY ARE A SHOALING FISH UMM???????


----------



## Grosse Gurke (Jan 3, 2003)

SVTPiranha said:


> Can anyone think of any ideas?


Give the fish to someone that has a group of fish around that size....and will take proper care of him. To knowingly add him to a tank of fish that will eat him is simply irresponsible.


----------



## Piranha Guru (Nov 24, 2005)

SVTPiranha said:


> He's only about 6 months old or so, and I know that juveniles are more skittish, but he's past the point of skittish to just completely reclusive. I'm not exaggerating when I say that I might see him out of his rock once every week or so. Can anyone think of any ideas?


I would get a serra if you are going to keep a solo fish, but it sounds like you won't have the patience for that either. I'd toss in a bunch of tetras or danios to see if that makes him bolder...if not at least you'll have something to watch until you get more reds.


----------



## Nick G (Jul 15, 2007)

a month is not enough time, imo
do u spend a lot of time on front of the tank?


----------



## AJerman (Nov 7, 2007)

I have the patience for any of them, but this fish has been like this his entire life, in his previous tank, in the current tank, he hides and never moves all day long. I don't WANT to keep a solo fish, it was just all my friend had at the time from his last breeding, so I thought it would be a fun start to help me understand piranhas a little more before I had a bunch.

Bioteach: I agree with you, I'd like to add a few fish he can chase around to see if that will get him out more, but like I said, last time I did that, he just hid until it was pitch black at night, then apparently would eat one, then hide all day the next night when he'd eat one more. It still didn't seem to help his daily behavior.

Nick: You don't think a month is long enough to even see him poke his head out once or twice? I would think that at least a venture out of his rock once in a month he's been in there wouldn't be too crazy, but maybe you're right. The tank is in what is supposed to be my dining room in my apartment (where I instead have a huge fish tank and a dart board), so I'm not RIGHT in front of the tank usually, but it's open to the living room and I purposely made sure the cave opened forward so he can see people walking around all day. Actually, you made me think about it, it's actually so bad that if I get up close to the cave and try to look in, he'll actually shove himself as far back in the corner as he can, actually laying completely flat to completely hide himself as much as possible. It's ridiculous. He's so far past skittish you'd think he got picked on all the time, but he's the only fish in the tank.

One other idea I might explore is setting up a power head at the top and bottom of the tank and turning it on for a little while during the day to force him to either swim or sit in the middle in the open. Obviously I would be limited in how long I left this on so I wouldn't wear him completely out and he can get some still water. That might be the best idea for trying to get him to swim around.

Oh, and please don't give me the guilt trip think about putting him in a tank where he'll likely get eaten. I don't have anyone else to give him to, and I can't add any other babies in with him or he'll eat them. We feed other fish to our piranhas all day long, and it's only irresponsible now because it's a fish YOU like. It's obviously not an ideal choice, but if it's the only one I have, I don't feel horrible about him actually doing something useful with his life.


----------



## Ægir (Jan 21, 2006)

my xingu was like that until i made one change to may tank: took everything out except the gravel and only left hiding spots big enough for small chchlids to hide in... he got over it quick


----------



## Nick G (Jul 15, 2007)

yeah like skunk said, taking everything else out might help.
OR 
you could put more hiding spots so he can hide in multiple places.
and i def think the powerhead is a good idea, just have a resting place and start off with it not on all the time, and gradually up the time until it is on all day.
u got a pic of the tank?


----------



## jacks (Aug 6, 2007)

SVTPiranha said:


> As I wait for my friend's Ps to breed again, I have a lone red. My advice is to NEVER have a lone piranha. That fish is the biggest waste of my time and money I've ever seen. He hides in his rock cave and never ever comes out unless he's absolutely sure that there is no one in the room and there hasn't been any movement near him for at least 15-30 minutes. I've gotten him at least to where I can feed him (hold the bag in front of his cave where I know he sees it, then knock on the tank when I put it in) and he will come out after about 5 minutes if I'm not around, quickly eat his food, then dart directly back into the cave. What a waste of time and money to keep a 125g tank running for a worthless fish that I never even see.
> 
> Once my friend gets some more babies, this guy is going in my friend's tank with the adults where he will likely get eaten, but possibly manage to survive somehow. The sad thing is that I couldn't care less. I never see him so I can't get attached to him, and on the contrary, I've come to dislike him quite a bit for NEVER coming out.
> 
> If you want to keep a lone piranha, I'd suggest some other small fish like neons or dannios. That way he'll come out more to try to eat them, or at least you'll have them to look at for a little while. Even then, the last time I added about 4 or 5 danios, he never came out, and ate one of them a night. I hate my worthless fish.


Mmmm i would totally disagree with you i have a lone rbp and he is always active he will follow me up the tank when i walk in the room he will attack my fingers and hoes pipe when i try to clean the tank etc if you hate your fish so much why dont you just give him to someone for free


----------



## MistaFishPimp05 (Jul 28, 2004)

i've had a lone red that was just the opposite


----------



## AJerman (Nov 7, 2007)

jacks said:


> As I wait for my friend's Ps to breed again, I have a lone red. My advice is to NEVER have a lone piranha. That fish is the biggest waste of my time and money I've ever seen. He hides in his rock cave and never ever comes out unless he's absolutely sure that there is no one in the room and there hasn't been any movement near him for at least 15-30 minutes. I've gotten him at least to where I can feed him (hold the bag in front of his cave where I know he sees it, then knock on the tank when I put it in) and he will come out after about 5 minutes if I'm not around, quickly eat his food, then dart directly back into the cave. What a waste of time and money to keep a 125g tank running for a worthless fish that I never even see.
> 
> Once my friend gets some more babies, this guy is going in my friend's tank with the adults where he will likely get eaten, but possibly manage to survive somehow. The sad thing is that I couldn't care less. I never see him so I can't get attached to him, and on the contrary, I've come to dislike him quite a bit for NEVER coming out.
> 
> If you want to keep a lone piranha, I'd suggest some other small fish like neons or dannios. That way he'll come out more to try to eat them, or at least you'll have them to look at for a little while. Even then, the last time I added about 4 or 5 danios, he never came out, and ate one of them a night. I hate my worthless fish.


Mmmm i would totally disagree with you i have a lone rbp and he is always active he will follow me up the tank when i walk in the room he will attack my fingers and hoes pipe when i try to clean the tank etc if you hate your fish so much why dont you just give him to someone for free
[/quote]
I don't hate him (even if I say I do haha, you know how it goes), I'm just frustrated with him. He doesn't do any of that and never has. Like I said, he completely flips out if I walk up to the tank when he's out of his rock and bangs off every wall in his way as he digs sideways into the gravel to get into the cave from the back. It's just crazy because I've never done ANYTHING to scare him, nor has there ever been another fish that would scare him in there either. He's always been alone or the biggest fish in the tank.

Nick: This is the best pic I have of my tank on my webspace right now: http://www.ajerman.com/fish/tank5.jpg You can see his cave in the rock (he's not in there, it's while it was cycling). I understand the tank is mostly bare so there is less to hide around which would CONTRIBUTE to him not wanting to be out as much, but I don't have bright enough light to grow many plants. I've seen plenty of tanks just as bare that have fish swimming around happily, so I know that's not a catch all excuse for him never coming out. I'll probably add some more later, but I've spent enough on the tank for now and am just enjoying it for a month or two before putting more money into it.


----------



## Nick G (Jul 15, 2007)

yeah i guess i could see it being frustrating, my only advice would be patience, and the powerhead.
and u can add some stuff without it being plants. 
try a few rocks or slate, whatever it is, more than one spot for him to hide
one other thing that i could see helping u is to put some sorta background. my 55 i put posterboard across the back with tape, its ghetto, but it holds up, and looks fine. i think it makes them more comfortable.


----------



## Piranha Guru (Nov 24, 2005)

Maybe a background and some fake plants in the corners at least would make him feel more secure. Perhaps something for him to hide behind instead of inside would make him more apt to venture out and explore as well. IMO all bare tanks do is stress out the fish.


----------



## PygoLover (Mar 22, 2007)

i totally disagree, and i'm disappointed with your words.... piranhas are skittish if they grow with hidding places. none of my piranha had been like u describe them since i removed all the woods and plants. at the beginning, my solo red belly was always afraid of me, hidding anywere he could. after i removed everything from my tank, and in 1 month he was allways facing me, especially when he was hungry. if u use him as a feeder, well you can do whatever you want but u don't deserve any respect and you're not a piranha lover, you just own them cause you want to satisfy your sadistic desires... 
now he's big, you can try taking away all the hidding spots, if u care about him. if nothing changes he's to adult, just respect his behavior and take care of him. if u don't want him, just give him to someone who will treat him the best. if u don't, come to Rome and i'll be happy to grow him or find a good owner, instead of killing him.
Tommy


----------



## Puddjuice (Mar 11, 2004)

I am dealing with a very similar problem as you. I just recently bought an elong and I had no tank decor. It was apparent how stressed he was and I added driftwood and plants. He has still yet to become acquainted with his new home and that is just something time will cure. Honestly there is no set rule on piranha and their tank decor. All fish are different. Some people say no plants, rocks, and wood for the piranha to hide around, some people like hiding places. Personally in my opinion not having hiding places in your tank makes a piranha stressed out and vulnerable to sickness because there is no place for it to feel safe. If I had to give you an honest opinion I would say that when you give the fish more places to hide and feel secure it will help the piranha develop a sense of territory. When a piranha feels comfortable in his home and has a territory to protect his true instincts will show. If a piranha has nothing in it's tank except gravel and 100% open water what does he have to protect or feel comfortable with? In the long run I think no hiding places and decor will just cause your piranha to be very skittish.


----------



## Grosse Gurke (Jan 3, 2003)

SVTPiranha said:


> Oh, and please don't give me the guilt trip think about putting him in a tank where he'll likely get eaten. I don't have anyone else to give him to, and I can't add any other babies in with him or he'll eat them. We feed other fish to our piranhas all day long, and it's only irresponsible now because it's a fish YOU like. It's obviously not an ideal choice, but if it's the only one I have, I don't feel horrible about him actually doing something useful with his life.


Guilt trip....what are you talking about? I dont condone live feeding no matter what the fish. I simply said you should give the fish to someone that wants him.


----------



## AJerman (Nov 7, 2007)

PygoLover said:


> Oh, and please don't give me the guilt trip think about putting him in a tank where he'll likely get eaten. I don't have anyone else to give him to, and I can't add any other babies in with him or he'll eat them. We feed other fish to our piranhas all day long, and it's only irresponsible now because it's a fish YOU like. It's obviously not an ideal choice, but if it's the only one I have, I don't feel horrible about him actually doing something useful with his life.


Guilt trip....what are you talking about? I dont condone live feeding no matter what the fish. I simply said you should give the fish to someone that wants him.
[/quote]
Didn't know you were against live feeding completely. I figured I'd get a lot of "it would be absolutely horrible to feed a piranha to another fish, but i feed my piranha fish all the time and love it" type people replying to the thread. If that's not you then I apologize.

I personally am not against live feedings. It's how life occurs in nature and always has. Also, I don't think most fish have enough thought process to have "had something to live for" or anything like that, but that's completely opinion.

Sorry if I jumped on ya GG.


----------



## Leasure1 (Jul 24, 2006)

/thinks post are way too much to read...lol

/also disagrees about every solo fish being a wussy

/thinks each fish is a product of it's environment


----------



## Nick G (Jul 15, 2007)

im not sure u will get a consensus opn this topic, esp on here.
this is what i did:
i made hiding spots in my tank, and noticed he became a little less skittish (my setup is EXACTLY lke urs, in that the tanks is in the dining room which is open to the living room, ill put a pic up here when i get home from work)
then i slowly took them out to it got to where I wanted it.
im sure everyone has success aquascaping either way, its just a matter of time.


----------



## PygoLover (Mar 22, 2007)

leaving alone could be a solution...try to train him to be less skittish could be another... giving him to someone who can grow him alone or with other one or 2 reds could be a different. why throwing him in a tank full of piranhas?

the experiences i had teached me that Puddjuice it's right, but just in the first period, expecially with serras. they often need a longer time to feel confortable, every time u change they're enviorment. but anyway, by the passing of the time things changes. no hiding places, his territory it's the wole tank. but lights must be very low, pretty dark enviorment will relax them, and peats too. peats, with piranhas make a good difference.


----------



## Nick G (Jul 15, 2007)

peats?


----------



## AJerman (Nov 7, 2007)

Nick g said:


> leaving alone could be a solution...try to train him to be less skittish could be another... giving him to someone who can grow him alone or with other one or 2 reds could be a different. why throwing him in a tank full of piranhas?
> 
> the experiences i had teached me that Puddjuice it's right, but just in the first period, expecially with serras. they often need a longer time to feel confortable, every time u change they're enviorment. but anyway, by the passing of the time things changes. no hiding places, his territory it's the wole tank. but lights must be very low, pretty dark enviorment will relax them, and peats too. peats, with piranhas make a good difference.


Because the only other person around me that has Ps has like 4 adults in a tank. I don't have any other choice.

The light is good though. They are pretty dim (actually only 2x20w I believe, which is very dim for a 125, hence why I can't grow live plants), so that shouldn't bother him at all. Lighting would be the first thing I'd look at if he wouldn't come out of a cave, but I know that's taken care of. (Actually, that's what I thought was the issue in his last temporary tank).

I guess I'll just have to work with him and see what I can do.


----------



## bigredjeep (Jul 12, 2007)

i know where your comming from, but u shouldnt dislike the fish for behaving the way it evolutionary acts. Its in P's (pygos) nature to be in a school of fish, if they arent they are naturally a skittish fish. I had the same issue. i had a solo Rb who would never move, it was to the point where i was gonna return him to the FS, however i got a deal on 2 more RB's and it was amazing how much difference there was with jus 2 more fish. I would say get however many more your tank will allow, i guarantee youll be happy


----------



## Dr. Giggles (Oct 18, 2003)

Maybe he'll be more comfortable in a much smaller tank. I do have to admit that its crazy to have a solitary pygo in a 125G.


----------



## PygoLover (Mar 22, 2007)

we are not talking about his movements. all of us knows that a solo piranha it's a static piranha. there's no competition for food, teritory. every serra's tank or solo piranha it's a static tank. cause if they don't have anyone bothering them they just stand there waiting for the food. in this case, we are talking about his skittishness, and yes, i gess you can work a lot with him. try... i would first of all tryed to remove hidding places, and see his behavior. then i would try peat... there's a really bi difference beteween a tank with peat and a tank without it.
Tommy


----------



## Leasure1 (Jul 24, 2006)

GG has had experiances with fish that do not like bigger tanks....askhim about it.

He also has had super insane crazy solo red belly. His was wild I belive


----------



## AJerman (Nov 7, 2007)

Haha, well his only two choices here are a 125g or a 12g. I figured the 125 would help him out by letting him have more area to swim away from me if he wanted to without having to hide. Maybe I went from one extreme to the other for a solo. Either way, I'm in an apartment so I definitely don't have room for another tank, so he's going to have to get used to it.

I think I'll start tonight by just adding a few small fish in there. I don't feed him live feeders very often, so it will give him something different for his diet, exercise, and hopefully get him swimming around his tank more. Also, the temp right now is... (checks) 80.6 F, so I might bump that up a couple of degrees as well to see if it makes him him moving and acting a little more aggressive.

Thanks for the encouragement guys.


----------



## Nick G (Jul 15, 2007)

ok, so here is the progress of how i got my guy (benjamin Franklin) to become less skittish in terms of sequentially.
and these arent the best pics, i never intended them to be posted, just never erase pics.
this is oct 1st: his first day in this 40 gal tank, alone







this is mid november, and he still kinda hid behind the wood, but i cut pieces of the dw off, so his hiding spots were minimal.







this was later in November, he started to come out of his shell (i was relieved)
actually, looking back at these pics, i think this guy came out of his shell the instant he killed the pleco that was in his tank, right around the time of these pics







this is once the tank was mostly empty, cept for some plants, after that, (once the pleco died, like around thanksgiving) he turned into my boy







this is how i had his tank in my living room, excuse the mess, we were drinkin, but this was my view of him from my couch.







he isnt solo since this past weekend, i put him back into the 55 he used to be in with a few other guys (notably snack attack.. if anyone remembers him, and that debacle). and they are doing awesome that way too.


----------



## Buckman (Jan 10, 2007)

i vote more hiding places will help in the long run, it will be more comfortable and stable when it matures. at about 1 year old he should be like 6-7 inches if i'm not mistaken and he should feel like he owns the tank at that point. my suggestion is plenty of hiding places, a background, and a couple powerheads. and just try to like the fish for what it is, my sanchezi is pretty boring right now but i'm just waiting for the day it comes out of its shell.


----------



## bigredjeep (Jul 12, 2007)

fett529 said:


> i vote more hiding places will help in the long run, it will be more comfortable and stable when it matures. at about 1 year old he should be like 6-7 inches if i'm not mistaken and he should feel like he owns the tank at that point. my suggestion is plenty of hiding places, a background, and a couple powerheads. and just try to like the fish for what it is, my sanchezi is pretty boring right now but i'm just waiting for the day it comes out of its shell.


i vote leave it the way it is and get a few more....thats a nice lookin fish and a nice tank


----------



## skubasteve! (Feb 14, 2007)

Nick g said:


> a month is not enough time, imo
> do u spend a lot of time on front of the tank?


I read some, but didnt want to read all of the responses. I say you take out all decorations and give the fish some more time, 1 month is not nearly enough time for a piranha to adapt to a new tank. It took mine a few years to come out of its shell, but it was worth the wait.


----------



## notaverage (Sep 10, 2005)

just read the first line and NOPE
solitary Ps are GREAT!


----------



## Dawgz (Aug 18, 2005)

ronzz said:


> /thinks post are way too much to read...lol
> 
> */also disagrees about every solo fish being a wussy*
> /thinks each fish is a product of it's environment


DO i have to post my video agian?


----------



## Buckman (Jan 10, 2007)

please do


----------



## Dawgz (Aug 18, 2005)

I strongly believe it has to do with the lighting, the food u give him, how u feed him, how the enviornment is around the tank.

If u have mad noise and movement around the tank, ur gonna end up with a skittish Pygo.

I sit infront of him for most of the durration im in my room, since my computer desk is right on the oppisite side of his tank. So he knows me i guess really well.


----------



## Buckman (Jan 10, 2007)

i think it was the music that mad it that way for sure haha jk awesome fish!


----------



## Nick G (Jul 15, 2007)

thats a really cool fish man.


----------



## Dawgz (Aug 18, 2005)

the baby piraya i had a while back, showed signs of the same thing my caribe does.

i shoulda kept that Piraya too...


----------



## Doktordet (Sep 22, 2006)

See, this is the reason why I am totally hesitant to have a lone p...whether a pygo or serra. Yes, yes, I know, there are people out there with aggressive single p's that are finger chasers and what not. But the fact remains - it depends on the personality of the individual fish. But in my case, looks like I always luck out on those kind of p's. After having 11 p's, I have yet to own a snapping insane finger chasing p. How many p's does it take to own in order for me to stumble upon one???? That's why I prefer a shoal, at least theyre out there. Still skittish as sh*t though. When I feed them (pellets), they tend to spook each other out when they hit the surface to grab at a pellet and then the whole shoal scatters in all directions, chaos follows...its ridiculous.

I would only consider a lone p IF that p was guaranteed not to be skittish based on previous ownership and if it were a 15-inch or more plus-sized rhom/ mannie.


----------



## mikesbales (Aug 13, 2004)

Puddjuice said:


> I am dealing with a very similar problem as you. I just recently bought an elong and I had no tank decor. It was apparent how stressed he was and I added driftwood and plants. He has still yet to become acquainted with his new home and that is just something time will cure. Honestly there is no set rule on piranha and their tank decor. All fish are different. Some people say no plants, rocks, and wood for the piranha to hide around, some people like hiding places. Personally in my opinion not having hiding places in your tank makes a piranha stressed out and vulnerable to sickness because there is no place for it to feel safe. If I had to give you an honest opinion I would say that when you give the fish more places to hide and feel secure it will help the piranha develop a sense of territory. When a piranha feels comfortable in his home and has a territory to protect his true instincts will show. If a piranha has nothing in it's tank except gravel and 100% open water what does he have to protect or feel comfortable with? In the long run I think no hiding places and decor will just cause your piranha to be very skittish.


Be patient, mine was the same way for about 4 or 5 months, but now he can't stop swimming around and chasing my finger and stuff. So just give it some time.


----------



## Lucouk (Sep 29, 2006)

Instead of saying "my advice never keep a lone piranha" why not say... come on guys how can i bring the real "piranha" out of my fish.

For one get rid of that cave/rock and put some plants whatever in for cover. Move the tank to a high trafic area or just blatently spend more time infront of your fish. Instead of leaving the food in there for however long you do until the fish eats it. Try different things and also if it hasnt eaten it after a few minutes take it out!

The fish will learn, its bound to be skittish dont forget even though its a predator, it isnt exacly in the wild with all its buddies and it needs time to get used to its surroundings. Also i think however long you leave the tank light on has alot to do with it. I have mine religiousely 12 on 12 off. Works for me. Even tho i dont have a solo piranha i know of alot of people who have one to grow out a monster and they are superbly active fish. So active infact that i want one myself.

I want a piraya solo tank...... maybe a tern but i cant handle the slow serra's growth rate. Give it time and proper care it will be a monster soon!

Lucas


----------



## KISS (Feb 2, 2007)

"how can i bring the real "piranha" out of my fish."


----------



## Lucouk (Sep 29, 2006)

KISS said:


> "how can i bring the real "piranha" out of my fish."


Do as the man is doing in your aviator, and put your nose inside its mouth haha, that will show you the real piranha


----------



## AJerman (Nov 7, 2007)

Well, to update, I got 10 rosy reds for a buck at the local aquarium place. After putting them into his tank, I went and sat down and he fairly quickly came out and chased them around. I noticed he would give them a chase from one side to the other, then circle around and go back into the cave. He'd stay there for a 30 seconds to a minute, then swim out and chase one again, so he doesn't seem comfortable being out of his rock at all. I tried going to sit next to the side of the tank to watch, but when he poked his head out of the rock and saw me there he went straight back in and didn't come out until I left again. He did eat well though. I saw him catch one and bite it right in half (my roommate's female friend wasn't a huge fan of the head still breathing by itself on the bottom of the tank, haha). At this point I can find 2 of them (they've found a place above the powerhead where he can't get, haha), so he certainly does come out and attack, but only timidly and if he doesn't see anyone around. I wonder if throwing feeders in every so often would help him get out and swim around, but I don't want to get him off his diet of pellets which he eats well.

I guess I'll just keep at it. As long as he sees me all the time, and he does, his rock just makes him feel safe, so maybe he'll eventually get used to the tank.

Oh, and I might have found part of the problem. My roommate has an IQ you can count with your fingers and the other day I caught him with his face right in front of the opening of the rock, knocking on the tank and shining a flashlight into it to see him. I'm gonna smack the hell out of him next time I see him do that.


----------



## Nick G (Jul 15, 2007)

SVTPiranha said:


> Oh, and I might have found part of the problem. My roommate has an IQ you can count with your fingers and the other day *I caught him with his face right in front of the opening of the rock, knocking on the tank and shining a flashlight into it to see him*. I'm gonna smack the hell out of him next time I see him do that.


dude, ill guarantee if he does that on a semi consistent basis, then thats what it is.
i dont like flashlights in my face, ill bet piranhas dont either.
i would sit him down and tell him that if he does that anymore, he is gettin tea bagged by an 80 year old man.


----------



## AJerman (Nov 7, 2007)

Nick g said:


> Oh, and I might have found part of the problem. My roommate has an IQ you can count with your fingers and the other day *I caught him with his face right in front of the opening of the rock, knocking on the tank and shining a flashlight into it to see him*. I'm gonna smack the hell out of him next time I see him do that.


dude, ill guarantee if he does that on a semi consistent basis, then thats what it is.
i dont like flashlights in my face, ill bet piranhas dont either.
*i would sit him down and tell him that if he does that anymore, he is gettin tea bagged by an 80 year old man.*
[/quote]
Hahaha

I don't think he does it often (if ever before), but there was a flashlight on the counter and I guess he thought it was a good idea. Like I said, he's not the brightest bulb.


----------



## kfreeman (Feb 14, 2008)

SVTPiranha said:


> As I wait for my friend's Ps to breed again, I have a lone red. My advice is to NEVER have a lone piranha. That fish is the biggest waste of my time and money I've ever seen. He hides in his rock cave and never ever comes out unless he's absolutely sure that there is no one in the room and there hasn't been any movement near him for at least 15-30 minutes. I've gotten him at least to where I can feed him (hold the bag in front of his cave where I know he sees it, then knock on the tank when I put it in) and he will come out after about 5 minutes if I'm not around, quickly eat his food, then dart directly back into the cave. What a waste of time and money to keep a 125g tank running for a worthless fish that I never even see.
> 
> Once my friend gets some more babies, this guy is going in my friend's tank with the adults where he will likely get eaten, but possibly manage to survive somehow. The sad thing is that I couldn't care less. I never see him so I can't get attached to him, and on the contrary, I've come to dislike him quite a bit for NEVER coming out.
> 
> If you want to keep a lone piranha, I'd suggest some other small fish like neons or dannios. That way he'll come out more to try to eat them, or at least you'll have them to look at for a little while. Even then, the last time I added about 4 or 5 danios, he never came out, and ate one of them a night. I hate my worthless fish.


Let me save you time how large is your red? I have baby reds now.







I have a single red 2'' (out of my 07 fry batch) in a 55 with community fish and runs with them.


----------



## One800Jonny (Oct 13, 2004)

Dude a month? That fish is used to being in a RIVER WITH OTHER PIRANHAS, how is he all of a sudden going to feel comfortable in a tank surrounded by big ass people after only a month? You should never be allowed to own a P.


----------



## ben2957 (Sep 17, 2005)

i have 1 lone piraya and it is bad ass by its self. there are no hiding spots for it and i think that made the fish more willing to accept people in the room. it eats in front of me every time weither its pelets or live food.


----------



## AJerman (Nov 7, 2007)

One800Jonny said:


> Dude a month? That fish is used to being in a RIVER WITH OTHER PIRANHAS, how is he all of a sudden going to feel comfortable in a tank surrounded by big ass people after only a month? You should never be allowed to own a P.


You're an idiot, go play in traffic.

Anyway, to add an update, all of the sudden he seems more responsive to me. I don't know what changed, but I saw him swimming around a little more, but every time I walked by he would dart back into his cave, then last night I went to feed him and go to bed, so I did my usual, shake the bag of food in front of him, drop the food in, then knock on the tank, and by the time I put the food back underneath and reached up to turn off the lights, he was already coming out to eat without caring that I was still standing there.

I thought maybe he didn't see me since I turned off the far light first so it would have been dark where he swam to and light where I was and maybe the light blinded him from seeing me, but this morning I came out to feed him and he was swimming around, and when I went up to feed him, he really didn't seem to mind. He looked like he was maybe a little cautious, but he didn't dart around or go back in his rock.

I don't know what brought on this sudden turn of events, but it was funny, I realized how big he looks now that I actually got to see him close up for once. He might just turn out to be a decent fish after all.


----------



## Nick G (Jul 15, 2007)

well, thats good man, i told you it would come around.


----------



## Buckman (Jan 10, 2007)

One800Jonny said:


> Dude a month? That fish is used to being in a RIVER WITH OTHER PIRANHAS, how is he all of a sudden going to feel comfortable in a tank surrounded by big ass people after only a month? You should never be allowed to own a P.


most reds arent collected from the wild...


----------



## beercandan (Nov 3, 2004)

Nick g said:


> Oh, and I might have found part of the problem. My roommate has an IQ you can count with your fingers and the other day *I caught him with his face right in front of the opening of the rock, knocking on the tank and shining a flashlight into it to see him*. I'm gonna smack the hell out of him next time I see him do that.


dude, ill guarantee if he does that on a semi consistent basis, then thats what it is.
i dont like flashlights in my face, ill bet piranhas dont either.
i would sit him down and tell him that if he does that anymore, he is gettin *TEA BAGGED by an 80 YEAR OLD MAN*.
[/quote]
GG they ragging on you


----------



## Grosse Gurke (Jan 3, 2003)

beercandan said:


> Oh, and I might
> i would sit him down and tell him that if he does that anymore, he is gettin *TEA BAGGED by an 80 YEAR OLD MAN*.


GG they ragging on you
[/quote]
Better the bagger...then the baggie


----------



## Nick G (Jul 15, 2007)




----------



## LS1FDRx7 (Mar 6, 2007)

SVTPiranha said:


> As I wait for my friend's Ps to breed again, I have a lone red. My advice is to NEVER have a lone piranha. That fish is the biggest waste of my time and money I've ever seen. He hides in his rock cave and never ever comes out unless he's absolutely sure that there is no one in the room and there hasn't been any movement near him for at least 15-30 minutes. I've gotten him at least to where I can feed him (hold the bag in front of his cave where I know he sees it, then knock on the tank when I put it in) and he will come out after about 5 minutes if I'm not around, quickly eat his food, then dart directly back into the cave. What a waste of time and money to keep a 125g tank running for a worthless fish that I never even see.
> 
> Once my friend gets some more babies, this guy is going in my friend's tank with the adults where he will likely get eaten, but possibly manage to survive somehow. The sad thing is that I couldn't care less. I never see him so I can't get attached to him, and on the contrary, I've come to dislike him quite a bit for NEVER coming out.
> 
> If you want to keep a lone piranha, I'd suggest some other small fish like neons or dannios. That way he'll come out more to try to eat them, or at least you'll have them to look at for a little while. Even then, the last time I added about 4 or 5 danios, he never came out, and ate one of them a night. I hate my worthless fish.


I just had to comment on this. It's not true. I kept my piranha by himself since he was small. Always active and never sitting in spot! I provided him with a big tank also so I don't think it's a waste of time! Eats infront of me, Eats alot too! Not shy at all!

Photos speak for itself! And here's a video of him just enjoying his everyday life!


----------



## AJerman (Nov 7, 2007)

Well, I'm going to give it to his youth and the fact that he's only been in the tank for a short amount of time, but it doesn't entirely change my opinion that I still think that at least a couple would be better than a solo, but hopefully he'll get better.

If you see my mentally handicapped thread you'll see that he's probably scarred again for a while. He got himself stuck and thought it was all my fault. He hid as far back into his rock as he could get after I freed him. Oh well.


----------



## nomoneyx (Feb 14, 2007)

I have had my xingu rhom for almost a year now and it is just barley stating to come out of hiding while I am in the room. It is still really skittish but it will swim out from behind the drift wood and check things out now as long as no one is standing right in front of the tank. Great fish though, really colorful in natural sunlight.


----------



## michelleb (Nov 25, 2007)

I've had a lone piranha for almost 17 years now. He's never been skittish and even runs up to the front of the tank when I feed him. He's always been very interactive, with me, and loves to follow my cat when she walks by. I've had him since I was 13 years old, he's been around longer then any of my other pets, been through 4 different moves and I wouldn't give him up for the world!


----------



## rolly_169 (Jul 23, 2007)

michelleb said:


> I've had a lone piranha for almost 17 years now. He's never been skittish and even runs up to the front of the tank when I feed him. He's always been very interactive, with me, and loves to follow my cat when she walks by. I've had him since I was 13 years old, he's been around longer then any of my other pets, been through 4 different moves and I wouldn't give him up for the world!


how big is your redbelly?


----------



## Nick G (Jul 15, 2007)

michelleb said:


> I've had a lone piranha for almost 17 years now. He's never been skittish and even runs up to the front of the tank when I feed him. He's always been very interactive, with me, and loves to follow my cat when she walks by. I've had him since I was 13 years old, he's been around longer then any of my other pets, been through 4 different moves and I wouldn't give him up for the world!


thats awesome man, congrats. 
i hope i am in the same situation in 15 years.


----------



## michelleb (Nov 25, 2007)

Riley said:


> I've had a lone piranha for almost 17 years now. He's never been skittish and even runs up to the front of the tank when I feed him. He's always been very interactive, with me, and loves to follow my cat when she walks by. I've had him since I was 13 years old, he's been around longer then any of my other pets, been through 4 different moves and I wouldn't give him up for the world!


how big is your redbelly?
[/quote]

He's about 8 1/2 inches, not too big for his age really, here's a pic.


----------



## notaverage (Sep 10, 2005)

wow showing the age too...haha
Good for you!
I hope to bee there someday. my spilo is only 3-4 years old.



LS1FDRx7 said:


> As I wait for my friend's Ps to breed again, I have a lone red. My advice is to NEVER have a lone piranha. That fish is the biggest waste of my time and money I've ever seen. He hides in his rock cave and never ever comes out unless he's absolutely sure that there is no one in the room and there hasn't been any movement near him for at least 15-30 minutes. I've gotten him at least to where I can feed him (hold the bag in front of his cave where I know he sees it, then knock on the tank when I put it in) and he will come out after about 5 minutes if I'm not around, quickly eat his food, then dart directly back into the cave. What a waste of time and money to keep a 125g tank running for a worthless fish that I never even see.
> 
> Once my friend gets some more babies, this guy is going in my friend's tank with the adults where he will likely get eaten, but possibly manage to survive somehow. The sad thing is that I couldn't care less. I never see him so I can't get attached to him, and on the contrary, I've come to dislike him quite a bit for NEVER coming out.
> 
> If you want to keep a lone piranha, I'd suggest some other small fish like neons or dannios. That way he'll come out more to try to eat them, or at least you'll have them to look at for a little while. Even then, the last time I added about 4 or 5 danios, he never came out, and ate one of them a night. I hate my worthless fish.


I just had to comment on this. It's not true. I kept my piranha by himself since he was small. Always active and never sitting in spot! I provided him with a big tank also so I don't think it's a waste of time! Eats infront of me, Eats alot too! Not shy at all!

Photos speak for itself! And here's a video of him just enjoying his everyday life!

View attachment 162765






[/quote]

Whats in the tank with him????


----------



## weister42 (Apr 30, 2006)

Oh come on can you really resist Fluffy










That's my friend's piranha for about 5 years now, pretty entertaining and does all kinds of fish stuff.


----------



## One800Jonny (Oct 13, 2004)

SVTPiranha said:


> Oh come on can you really resist Fluffy
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Fluffy probably hates life right now, P's like places to hide. He aint happy in there at all.


----------



## kona69 (Apr 13, 2007)

One800Jonny said:


> Oh come on can you really resist Fluffy
> 
> That's my friend's piranha for about 5 years now, pretty entertaining and does all kinds of fish stuff.


Fluffy probably hates life right now, P's like places to hide. He aint happy in there at all.
[/quote]

he looks good to me. my solo doesnt have a big hiding space but he never uses it he always watching me up against the glass.


----------



## notaverage (Sep 10, 2005)

Probably doesnt like the cubs either.


----------

