The last two RTCs died. They stopped eating ~2 weeks ago. Were breathing quite heavily and made jerky sudden movements often. Treatment with the usual gram-positive antibacterial meds - nitrofurazone and furazolidone - didn't change anything. Neither did my usual anti-parasite combo of metronidazole...

HH, are you saying you were able to count them from those pictures? Just making sure I read your post right as affirmative and not a citation of the general ID clue.

Are you sure you got a true multipunctata? What people think is that, usually ends up being or so I gather from reading on this forum, not from personal experience. Don't know if this changes Mats and Birger's answers.

Yes, Dave's links say it all. Young ones tolerate fresh water far better than older ones. I've seen them "appearing" well and happy in many freshwater tanks at LFSs. But just like the Cat-eLog says, one will need to start adding salt soon and start adding it progressively more and more. Th...

You mentioned elsewhere that yours is already big. How big? Usually, starting from ~3" TL, these guys will show a quick growth, perhaps reaching ~8" TL in the first year, YMMV. After that, it will take a few years to put on the remaining several inches and they will grow much more in bulk ...

Apart from that - medicines for animals may not be as pure as needed for humans. I'd second that. It has been postulated many times that the same medicines made in many second and third world countries show inferior results to their counterparts produced in the first world countries (all for human ...

Hey Jim, bad news I'm afraid. Little Jimmy decided to leave us today. I have little idea why. He had started off really well in FL, enjoying his pellets to the max. Then, he's hit some rougher times refusing various kinds of food and sluggishly accepting others but still grew well. For the last 1.5 ...

I didn't and still don't think much of what I said. It was just my opinion, just like yours and anyone else's and that opinion was directed at the topic, not your words whatsoever. I am truly sorry, Alex, that you appear to take it the wrong (IMO) way. If you need it deciphered: " If I were Ped...

Pedantically speaking, SidGuppy is correct. But it is also known that majority of imported fishes adapt just fine to the majority of the water types found in the US.

I wouldn't squabble over the majority definition, e.g., 51% or 99% or something in between.

Interesting story behind that fish. Goddess' messenger... Would it be worth a try to write to them to ask for a better/bigger pic for a Cat-eLog? Or dispatch some of our Japanese members on a highly special mission :) (anyone from out there reading this??) ?? I mean if that albino form is that rare....

Welcome, Bigamefish! Have you taken a look at what Mats provided? If you read that, this will eliminate a need for a written lecture. I second what Rob says above. They are a typical smallish-to-mid-size pim catfish with a typical behavior and requirements. They are awfully cute and more rare than o...

Another hard one, Ben. Give you a bump. I'd not dare to chime in.

I have had very diversified communities of mostly catfish. My synos, including euptera, never bothered any other fish but I never kept small fish with them, meaning they were all between 3"-4" to 9"-10" TL (total length). See these pics - maybe you you will spot something that yo...

IME, notoriously difficult to ID. Ben, please see this thread, possibly of help - http://www.planetcatfish.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=13&t=34596&hilit=+pimelodella. Many look alikes in that family. See also the links in my posts (especially my second post) there and HH's (Silurus') linked sit...

Any updates to your situation?

I would not advise to add more bioload to your filter. You may or may not be able to have a couple of foot-or-so-long bullheads in your tank. One has to use highly porous, high-surface-area ceramic rings/cylinders/rocks (not sponge) in your 110 filter and keep a close eye on the ammonia in the water...

the rule of thumb is: if a tank mate fits in a catfish's mouth, the catfish will attempt to eat it... even if well fed, one day it will go for it... even when they cannot swallow their prey, they are often able to swallow a part of their prey's body and start digesting a prey that's still alive (som...

right, I keep forgetting that availability is also a strong limiting factor that helps narrow down the hits by an order of magnitude, that is when you come up with 100 fish you like, you may only be able to get 10 locally and affordably... but availability can be hard to ascertain (visit LFSs by foo...

Welcome, Joe! Wish I could help you too but your question is too generic. I'd suggest browsing the Cat-eLog. Find a fish with the right max size and then click on the "near, nearer, same size" link on the fish data base sheet, right next the max size - it will reorganize the whole Cat-eLog...

I got my first ZZ, the one that's now 14", about a 1.5 years ago at, perhaps, 3". He's spent time in a few of my tanks, 120 gal, 150 gal, etc. (in Rochester, NY) with a large number of various tank mates - walagos, oxydoras, IDSs, RTCs, TSNs, leiariuses, mystuses, smallish and small pims, ...

Well, there was no need for boasting!

Joking... How big are they at Michael's? But you could nudge our legendary Mr. Bryce, if you know him that well, to add to this thread, if there is anything he wills to share.

Hey, thanks again. When I said fish chunks, I literally meant it - cut up whole fishes. When they eat shrimp, they appear to digest it faster and easier but I am not made of money to feed them shrimp. They do get plenty of roughage to sweep their tummies clean as should be. S: Of course, a close fri...

Good logical thinking. But Cat-eLog lists Temperature for RTCs at 21.0-26.0°C or 69.8-78.8°F. Now, these guys did spend 1/2 year in a pond outside at average temps of ~85 F where they grew from 2" to the current 10"-14". What you say, makes me wonder if their digestive systems are hav...

fwiw, i bought one, same 4", in Hartford, CT, for $10. in one year it only put on a couple of inches. indeed, saw it only once in all my LFS endeavors along the US east coast.

I received 5 other synos from the same source with positive ID and this was the only question mark. I, for one, am finding myself curious if your other 5 are really genuine. Not because I like to cause trouble. I don't. Not that is should cause any kind of trouble. I just like to learn about this t...

Hi Clown Crown. Welcome to PlanetCatfish. Although Birger is a real syno expert (who'd never admit to that) and I am not, I too think it is a hybrid. IMHO, no genuine syno has such a pattern in their dorsal and caudal. With all the synodontis species out there, I hate to just label it hybrid. Very s...

Victor, what are the water parameters in the tank with the RTC(s) you are talking about? NH3 0 NO2 0 NO3 20 ppm pH 6.5 Temp 75 F Hardness low, no # fresh liquid API test kit Rob, Thanks much. I see similarities, so these things do happen to others. Albeit, mine never got swollen, just looked like t...

Yep. The most common one. In the US anyways.

Second attempt.