Red Belly Piranhas

Question
Hi Nicole

I was thinking about purchasing a few (3)Red Belly Piranhas and I wondered what you thoughts were with regards to what type and size of tank I may need.  Also, Is there anything I should be careful of with the care and maintenance for them?  Any expertise or light you can shed would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

Answer
Good evening Jay, thank you for your question.

There are many online resources of merit that I can help you find. I do not have any personal experience with keeping piranhas, but just skimming these sites I can tell you:

* They can't be kept with other fish. Obviously!

* The number you are interested in keeping would need a minimum of a 55 gallon tank, 75 gallons being optimal. One piranha per 20 gallons would be my rule of thumb.

* They prefer live foods but frozen and processed foods will add much needed variety. In my opinion, live foods are not really necessary to maintain a healthy piranha tank.

If you are interested in feeding feeder fish, don't use goldfish, use rosy red minnows. Don't get rosies from the store and put them directly in your piranha's mouth. Pick out the healtiest specimens and quarantine them for a week in a separate tank. Add aquarium salt to the water according to the instructions on the package (dissolve it in warm drinking water) to boost their immune system. Feed them the most nutritious foods you can. High quality flakes like those made by Omega One (check the ingredients, avoid filler such as meal) and frozen mysis shrimp would be my choices.

Here's more on these feeder fish:
http://www.fishinthe.net/html/section-viewarticle-55.html

Thawed mussels, prawns, shrimp and cut up pieces of fish for human consumption will be accepted with relish, too. The staple diet should consist of a meaty pellet. Again, check the ingredients! Flake food will be accepted by youngsters.

Keep their water clean by changing 30% of the water twice a week. Piranhas are the messiest eaters of all time - they outdo goldfish! I recommend a canister filter and a hang on the back power filter, but 2 Emperor filters at opposite sides are a popular choice for filtering piranha tanks.

Now, the rest is up to you, Jay. Read these sites and learn as much as you can before you acquire these fish:

http://badmanstropicalfish.com/profiles/profile7.html
http://www.piranha-info.com/default.php?lang=en&id=page_2
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/FWSubWebIndex/piranhafaqs1.htm

Also, I recommend you check out this forum, specifically for owners of piranhas. You'll find lots of ideas and advice!

http://www.piranha-fury.com/

Just remember, Google is your friend when researching about pet fish! Good luck to you.

Nicole