parrott fish behavior

Question
I recently bought 2 parott fish beautiful in their  orange color. I have a couple of Questions. 1. Do I need to take  away  2 of the 3 items in my tank (30 gal) to get them to come out more? ALSO  2.Do they kinda lean to their side when resting?And,  3.will they eat off the bottom of the tank? They, see me coming and they hide So I put food  in front of the place they are at but they will not come and grab it. I think I am putting to much food in the tank or it seems that way.They are eating a small pellet type food. I wish they would stop hiding so much so I could enjoy them more to watch.4. Is there anything I should be alert about  when it come to their appearence?my local pet store says 1 will dominate the tank by bumping and nipping at the other till they settle.Is this correct?
Thank you for your time. I really do need the help.
Debbie

Answer
Hi Debbie,
Your Parrot fishes behavior is quite normal for fish recently added to the tank. One thing that is often required when keeping parrot fish is the need for "dither fish" which is simply a school of fish that is bold in their behavior and makes the parrot fish feel more confident. A school of danios or barbs swimming out in the open usually encourage shy fish to come out when they see that "the little fish are unafraid"

*A school typically consists of about 6 fish depending upon the size of the species*

*Silver Dollars
*Black Skirt Tetras (Black Widow)
*Giant Danios
*Congo Tetras
*All other danio species
*Rosy barbs
*Gold barbs
*Other small peaceful and active fish that aren't shy themselves would work.

Having dither fish usually solves these sorta problems. But remember to give your parrots some time to get adjusted of course. And always make sure the water quality is good with regular testing and partial water changes done on at least a weekly or better yet twice weekly basis.

Best wishes and I really hope this helps!
Karen~