# why are my red bellied p's so afraid



## KENNYBLAST2005 (Apr 9, 2009)

hey guys wsup? i got a couple red bellied p's that are about 4-5 inches. why are they so freakin scared of everything? i bought his whole set up and all we did was move it to my house. its been about a month and the rocks and plants are in the same place. we never moved anything.


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## massabsamurai (Mar 12, 2009)

The red bellies are often skittish and won't come outta their shell quickly (sometimes months/years). Give it some time and let em settle in. They are awesome fishes and Patience is the key here. Welcome to P-fury btw.


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## DiPpY eGgS (Mar 6, 2005)

Hi and










To Piranha-Fury!

Piranhas are skittish by nature, because they come from a place where there are lots of predators who feed on them daily. Pygos (red bellies) often do better in numbers.

Also, they need to have enough space, a good diet, very good water quality, and ample hiding spots to be at home in an aquarium.

A large weekly water change (50% IMO) and bi-weekly cleaning of the mechanical filtration is crucial, because they are messy eaters which causes nitrates to build in the water.
Nitrates in an aquarium should never be over 20ppm. Do you have a nitrAte test kit?

A good diet is also needed, and any leftover food needs to be removed ASAP. Many people feed their p's pieces of white colored fish fillets, shrimp, and other things. You can find all of that info on the site.

Good luck with your new hobby and if you need any help, there are lots of knowledgeable people here to help out.


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## upgradepc (Jan 30, 2009)

my reds are 5-6" and have had them for 4 months since they were quarter sized. as they have gotten bigger they have become a little less skittish, when i walk near there tank they will all hide together, but come right back out when i walk away. just give them driftwood, plants, decor so they can hide when they need to. you will be let down if you think they are blood thirsty killers all the time. mine lounge around all day occasionally swimming here and there.


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## sandman503 (Feb 10, 2009)

i had my Ps in my room for like 2 years or so. 4 or 5 months ago i moved them to my living room in a bigger tank and in the last 2 weeks they are starting to really come out. they no longer hide when i walk up to the tank. i think its because i moved them to an area of my apartment that sees a bunch of action (people walking by). they have gotten used to us. one of them even challenged my gravel vac last time i cleaned my tank.


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## MyFishHaveFury (Jul 27, 2008)

if it helps you try this......its not my idea but i remember someone else saying to do this and i tried it and it works for me....feed them pellets in small amounts for awhile not one or 2 big meals a day..try tossing in some pellets 3-5 times a day when ever you walk by....after doing this mine go nuts when ever someone walks by they want pellets so they never hide


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## KENNYBLAST2005 (Apr 9, 2009)

MyFishHaveFury said:


> if it helps you try this......its not my idea but i remember someone else saying to do this and i tried it and it works for me....feed them pellets in small amounts for awhile not one or 2 big meals a day..try tossing in some pellets 3-5 times a day when ever you walk by....after doing this mine go nuts when ever someone walks by they want pellets so they never hide


thanx. i will definately try that


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## upgradepc (Jan 30, 2009)

thats gonna be a big mess.


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## Ibanez247 (Nov 9, 2006)

Just like any other animal they fear things that are much larger than them. Whens the last time you jsut walked up to a squirrel or something? IT just takes time and doing the pellet thing works. I feed mine a little a lot. I tend to feed every other day but on feeding days I will feed them several times only putting in a few pellets. Enough so they all get a few. A larger tanks seems to help as well. Seems they know they have the room to swim away and dont freak out so much or at least as bad. Mine are to the point I can put my face right up to the glass and they will swim right over face to face. Also dont make any quick movements. IF your standing close to the tank, even a good distance, and you make a sudden motion to or even away from the tank they can freak out. More so if your close but just be casual and it should help from keeping them from always hiding.


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## DR. Philip M. Jabra (Mar 20, 2009)

Hello,

I see that you are having, what many people who keep piranhas have...A very shy species, although some are out there and are very aggressive and responsive...most are reserved and like to retire in a place where very little movement happens..

One big thought you should keep in mind is, the more you try to prod them out of there hiding spots the longer you will have to wait for them to naturally come out...
It really is best to leave them be and enjoy the environment you provided them and enjoy the patients of waiting for them to act naturally in an unnatural environment.


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## MyFishHaveFury (Jul 27, 2008)

upgradepc said:


> thats gonna be a big mess.


 how is that going to be a big mess? you feed them the same amount just more often.my 210 gal tank stays clean all the time


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## upgradepc (Jan 30, 2009)

well a 210 is a different story. not much will mess with your water quality. its a mess for me because im still training my guys to eat the massivore pellets. only 1 will eat them and usually spit them out and then i have to do a cleanup. im slowly introducing pellets here and there.


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## KENNYBLAST2005 (Apr 9, 2009)

i feed them mostly pellets and talapia. i just really started with talapia and they freakin love it. when they were smaller my friend i bought 
them from would feed them beefhearts and pellets and they ate right in front of us. now they never eat in front of me. they run everytime i walk in the room. no hiding places, just plants. trying to break thier skittishness. they will eat a feeder seconds after it hits the water. but he only gave them feeders once a month. hope my rhome doesnt act that way when i get him


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## KENNYBLAST2005 (Apr 9, 2009)

THE RZA said:


> i feed them mostly pellets and talapia. i just really started with talapia and they freakin love it. when they were smaller my friend i bought
> them from would feed them beefhearts and pellets and they ate right in front of us. now they never eat in front of me. they run everytime i walk in the room. no hiding places, just plants. trying to break thier skittishness. they will eat a feeder seconds after it hits the water. but he only gave them feeders once a month. hope my rhome doesnt act that way when i get him


i just bought a large piece of driftwood for them. darn thing cost me $38. after i let is soak in the bucket for a couple days i'll try it out. i want them to be happy.

$38 bucks for a freakin piece of wood close to a foot and a half. i couldve bought a few 2x4's and built a dog house or something..lol
i shouldve claimed the fish, my hampster and my 16yr old on my taxes.


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## upgradepc (Jan 30, 2009)

does the driftwood have slate screwed to it? i bought a 50 dollar peice of driftwood came home and put it in and it just floated. common sense would say driftwood floats but when your paying alot of money for wood you would think it sinks. i called them and they said it would take 3-6 months to sink. so i returned it and got a little smaller peice that had the rock screwed to it and it still needed 2 big rocks and sand to hold it down


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## ruger345 (Jul 8, 2006)

upgradepc said:


> well a 210 is a different story. not much will mess with your water quality. its a mess for me because im still training my guys to eat the massivore pellets. only 1 will eat them and usually spit them out and then i have to do a cleanup. im slowly introducing pellets here and there.


To be honest with you, I wouldnt even feed them the pellets. Thats just me. I've found it to be cheaper and better for them to feed all raw. I started mine on Flakes and blood worms. then went over to shrimp, fillet fish, and REAL beef heart (not as messy).


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## SeedlessOne (Nov 21, 2006)

ruger345 said:


> well a 210 is a different story. not much will mess with your water quality. its a mess for me because im still training my guys to eat the massivore pellets. only 1 will eat them and usually spit them out and then i have to do a cleanup. im slowly introducing pellets here and there.


To be honest with you, I wouldnt even feed them the pellets. Thats just me. I've found it to be cheaper and better for them to feed all raw. I started mine on Flakes and blood worms. then went over to shrimp, fillet fish, and REAL beef heart (not as messy).
[/quote]

How can you say not to feed pellets....but then go on to suggest beefheart?? And how could feeding pellets not be cheaper than fish,shrimp,etc??

Pellets are what you want to go with if your fish accept them.


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## lovemyreds (Feb 18, 2009)

pellets are the way to go.my guys love them have to say the cichlid bio gold pellets where hard to find locally.thank god for the internet.


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## sandman503 (Feb 10, 2009)

upgradepc said:


> does the driftwood have slate screwed to it? i bought a 50 dollar peice of driftwood came home and put it in and it just floated. common sense would say driftwood floats but when your paying alot of money for wood you would think it sinks. i called them and they said it would take 3-6 months to sink. so i returned it and got a little smaller peice that had the rock screwed to it and it still needed 2 big rocks and sand to hold it down


all 3 of my tanks have driftwood in them, i have never experienced a 3-6 month sink time. it usually takes less than a week and maybe 1 month to be fully soaked.


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