Fresh Water Fish Selection?

Question
QUESTION: hey Karen I wanted to add some unique fresh water fish to my tank... im just getting bored with everything you see in the pet store where i live.. I currently have 1 blood parrot, 2 African Cichilds, 1 Rainbow Shark, 2 white cichilds, 1 dwarf Gourami... thats what I have in my tank so far?? what kind of unique fish can I put in there? ive been searching online for a fish index or something that shows pictures and information but I cannot find one??? do you know of one? Also in freshwater should I use a little bit of aquarium salt when I do water changes like once every couple months put a little salt it??? get back to me when you can thanks alot

Daniel

ANSWER: Hi Daniel,
Hmm... A unique fish to add to your current collection of a blood parrot, 2 african cichlids, 1 rainbow shark, 2 white cichlids and 1 dwarf gourami.

What size tank do you have?

Aquarium salt is definitely not necessary to have to use all the time. It is best reserved for times when fish are sick. Also just a note, you should probably be doing water changes a little more often than every couple of months (if I heard right.) Toxins would build up far too much after a couple of months. Its much healthier for fish to have a partial water change every week.

There -might- be an issue in the future with your african cichlids depending upon the species, for aggression and territorial problems. Some species are milder and more tolerant than others.

One gorgeous fish that comes to mind as something 'different' is the Gold Severum. It's a medium sized cichlid which comes both in a allover gold variety and a olive/green with dark stripes. The gold variety is absolutely gorgeous when well-cared for and they seem to be more docile than the wild green severum.

How about some of the dazzling Rainbowfish species out there? You'd probably have to special order them and they often start out dull when young, but as they grow older they sport brilliant colors.

Maybe Clown loaches would be interesting as well. You might want to check them out too.

Liveaquaria.com can give you some ideas on many different fish species and should help you make a better selection. Check it out! :-)

This page offers many colorful and interesting species with info about them-

http://liveaquaria.com/product/aquarium-fish-supplies.cfm?c=830

Hope this helps!
Karen~

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: hey karen sorry if i typed that wrong I do water changes every 2 weeks ... i have a 30 gallon tank.. thanks for all the information... ive had clown loaches before and they didn't turn out so good? hard to keep?

Answer
Oh I see!
Two weeks makes it much better! ;-) But still, as always, the more water changes the better!

Clown loaches can be a bit delicate at first. They often arrive sickly and very stressed in petstores. And if your aquarium had built up pollutants, they just don't have the strength to handle it when first added to your tank. They don't tolerate high nitrates very well so that's something you must keep in check. Never mind ammonia and nitrite.
Not to say clown loaches are terrible fish. They are amazing creatures, you just have to try your best to start with good stock and insure your tank environment is healthy for them with them being in their fragile state when you first bring them home.

Hope this helps!
Karen~