# royal pleco



## CoolD (Apr 16, 2003)

i read somewhere that when a pleco is on the glass and if u see his stomach go inwards a little bit that means he is not earting enough, is this true?
also this royal pleco i have is about 4.5 inches and cost me quite a bit for a fish, and if i keep feeding in cucumber or zucini the damn thing wont eat the algae on the glass, but i am worried that if i dont put vegetables in that the algae wont be enought for him.
anyone have any advice?


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## Innes (Jan 13, 2003)

the hollow stomich is not always indicating the fish is underfed as they are sometimes just thin, but it is a fairly good indicator - how hollow is it, how old is it and when did you get it?
was it bigger when you first got it?

they need some kind of meat - I think, and also lettuce & spinnich.
Royal plecos are more omnivourous than most plecos, and as far as I am aware they need some meat in their diet - unlike most plecos that do quite well even if you don't give them special food

heres a handy link to a Royal pleco links page


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## Judazzz (Jan 13, 2003)

Many fancy pleco's don't eat algae at all... I guess this is yet another species that doesn't.
If you want to get rid of algae on the glass, get a couple of oto's (dwarf sucker fish): they remain small, are cheap, and can clean a large tank in just one night...


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## pcrose (Mar 9, 2003)

Your pleco is beautiful.


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## Innes (Jan 13, 2003)

Judazzz said:


> Many fancy pleco's don't eat algae at all... I guess this is yet another species that doesn't.
> If you want to get rid of algae on the glass, get a couple of oto's (dwarf sucker fish): they remain small, are cheap, and can clean a large tank in just one night...


IMO the best way to get algea off the glass is using one of those magnet things - adding any kind of fish is not really going to clean the tank as they all produce waste and none are all that effective - IMO

and I think Judazzz is refering to an octocinclis (sp)



pcrose said:


> Your pleco is beautiful.


If you mean that pic I posted - its not mine, I just copied it from a site to show what a royal pleco looks like


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## pcrose (Mar 9, 2003)

yes but if he has a royal pleco then it would look a lot like that.


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## icepick36m (Feb 19, 2003)

That is a nice looking pleco!


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## Innes (Jan 13, 2003)

I thought this pic is poor, it does not show of this fish to its full potential - look for a bright pic with bristles on the plecos cheeks and then you may see the true beauty of this fish


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## unxchange (Mar 4, 2003)

Like already stated, many fancy Plecos will not eat algae off your glass. Judazz is right, a great way to get rid of algae in your tank is to get either a otocinclis (sp) or a Chinese Algae Eater... Chinese algae eater stay small and are quite fast and can avoid being eaten. Innes is also right about the magnet thing to clean the glass, but there are places where the magnet cannot reach, for example, the gravel or algae on the rock/decor.

If you see the stomach is sunkend in there is a good chance that it is either not healthy or not eating well. Try some bottom dweller sinking wafers, cucumber is good also.


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## thePACK (Jan 3, 2003)

i have a royal pleco in with my p's and i don't feed him sqat..he fend for himself eatting leftoverfrom beefheart to shrimp.


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## Judazzz (Jan 13, 2003)

thePACK said:


> i have a royal pleco in with my p's and i don't feed him sqat..he fend for himself eatting leftoverfrom beefheart to shrimp.


I did the same to my sailfin pleco that is in my piranha tank, and he did fine. But if you want him to grow like a mofo, feed him some additional catfish pellets as well: since I started feeding him a steady diet of pellets (and his usual piranha leftovers) he went through a real growth spurt: he grew three times as much in the last three months (since I started his diet), than in the nine months before.

Just a tip to get your pleco growing faster.... :smile:


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## RhomZilla (Feb 12, 2003)

Judazzz said:


> thePACK said:
> 
> 
> > i have a royal pleco in with my p's and i don't feed him sqat..he fend for himself eatting leftoverfrom beefheart to shrimp.
> ...


 Would this method apply to other Plecos as well??


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## thePACK (Jan 3, 2003)

Judazzz said:


> thePACK said:
> 
> 
> > i have a royal pleco in with my p's and i don't feed him sqat..he fend for himself eatting leftoverfrom beefheart to shrimp.
> ...


 thanks judazz.







.will try, the little bugger i have is about 4-5 inches from head to tail..


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## Innes (Jan 13, 2003)

unxchange said:


> a Chinese Algae Eater... Chinese algae eater stay small and are quite fast and can avoid being eaten.


they are good when small, but when larger they eat less algea (in fact they are totally useless at cleaning the tank) and also they get terratorial and aggressive.
also some individuals get a taste for the slime on the sides of flat sided fish like silver dollers, gouramies and angelfish - I see no reason why not piranhas also although I have never seen these being kept with piranhas



the PACK said:


> i have a royal pleco in with my p's and i don't feed him sqat..he fend for himself eatting leftoverfrom beefheart to shrimp.


Like I said before Royal plecos need some kind of flesh in their diet - so this might explain its sucsess with piranhas, but with non-piranhas there would be less flesh as scraps for it.
also you should suppliment its diet with algea wafers and lettuce & spinich


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## thePACK (Jan 3, 2003)

Innes said:


> unxchange said:
> 
> 
> > a Chinese Algae Eater... Chinese algae eater stay small and are quite fast and can avoid being eaten.
> ...


 wow,thanks innes i did not know that...


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## CoolD (Apr 16, 2003)

wow, that was a lot of responses, thanks for all the info!
his stomach doesnt go in too much, just a little bit and i will feed him cucumbers and he seems to like sucking on the feeders heads








i didnt get him exc;lusively for removing algae, but it would have been nice as a bonus.
it is a very good looking fish and the picture of it in this post does not do it justice. i will post some pictures up of it tomorrow. that way i can show off my tank too


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## thePACK (Jan 3, 2003)

cool..coold your avater is funny..i like it..spidey dancing..haha


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## Innes (Jan 13, 2003)

the Pack said:


> cool..coold your avater is funny..i like it..spidey dancing..haha


I also like it











CoolD said:


> it is a very good looking fish and the picture of it in this post does not do it justice


What did I say?


> I thought this pic is poor, it does not show of this fish to its full potential - look for a bright pic with bristles on the plecos cheeks and then you may see the true beauty of this fish





CoolD said:


> i will post some pictures up of it tomorrow. that way i can show off my tank too


I am looking forward to it, if it is not in this post please PM me a link to the page Thanks


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## Judazzz (Jan 13, 2003)

RhomZilla said:


> Judazzz said:
> 
> 
> > thePACK said:
> ...


 I guess so: once established, all pleco's seem to have an insatiable appetite...
Just give it a try.


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## CoolD (Apr 16, 2003)

here is a pic as promised


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## Judazzz (Jan 13, 2003)

Man, that's one sweet looking pleco


















I wish they sold more fancy pleco's in my hometown: all I've seen were 1,5" gold nuggets for a staggering 50 bucks







:sad:


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## CoolD (Apr 16, 2003)

thanks judazz!!


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## thePACK (Jan 3, 2003)

really nice lines on you royal


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## Innes (Jan 13, 2003)

you got a nice pleco there


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## wallago2111 (Mar 15, 2003)

The addition of driftwood is important for the health of your fish as they use the cellulose to support the flora of their digestive system.


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## Innes (Jan 13, 2003)

wallago2111 said:


> The addition of driftwood is important for the health of your fish as they use the cellulose to support the flora of their digestive system.


 I think I have also heard that before - good info


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## piranha45 (Apr 8, 2003)

i hear that driftwood lowers pH slightly as well... is this true?


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## Innes (Jan 13, 2003)

piranha45 said:


> i hear that driftwood lowers pH slightly as well... is this true?


 so I hear, but not noticably (I know that from experience)


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## thePACK (Jan 3, 2003)

wallago2111 said:


> The addition of driftwood is important for the health of your fish as they use the cellulose to support the flora of their digestive system.










..so true ...


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