Catfish that eat...everything?

[dfreas]

About four or five months ago I collected four very small (less than an
inch) baby catfish from a local pond and put them in a planted ten
gallon tank I had sitting around. After researching a bit about them I
figured out they were brown bullhead cats and will get about a foot
long in the wild - smaller than I expected but still fairly large.

So after they got big enough to not be harrassed by my cichlids (and
they had been in my tanks long enough for me to be confident they
weren't carrying anything nasty) I threw them into my big tank. They
had great fun and doubled in size in no time. Then their mouths got
bigger than some of their tank mates...

They ate all of my guppies (no big loss there, I was going to donate
them to the petshop anyway) then my last remaining tiger barb that
hadn't been eaten by the severums, then two african dwarf frogs,
several snails etc. I traded all of the remaining cichilds to the LFS
for store credit and turned my big tank into a catfish only tank.

So now I'm wondering just how far the "they eat anything" phrase might
go. I'm used to doing lots of water changes after owning a host of
destructive cichlids that were plant intolerant so I overfeed a lot so
they'll grow fast. Anyway I was looking at them today and wondering if
they can eat stuff like catfood (like friskies for instance) that I can
buy in bulk for a tenth of the price of fish food. I already know
they'll eat every kind of fish food that exists, any kind of creature
that will fit in their mouth, chicken, tuna, and earthworms.

I've noticed these guys are far more hardy than just about anything I
could buy in the petstore, and I suspect that if I don't find some bulk
amounts of food and start overfeeding soon then the biggest cat is
going to turn on his sibblings and I will have one very large cat
instead of four.

Thoughts?
-Daniel

[NetMax]

"dfreas" > wrote in message
oups.com...
> About four or five months ago I collected four very small (less than an
> inch) baby catfish from a local pond and put them in a planted ten
> gallon tank I had sitting around. After researching a bit about them I
> figured out they were brown bullhead cats and will get about a foot
> long in the wild - smaller than I expected but still fairly large.
>
> So after they got big enough to not be harrassed by my cichlids (and
> they had been in my tanks long enough for me to be confident they
> weren't carrying anything nasty) I threw them into my big tank. They
> had great fun and doubled in size in no time. Then their mouths got
> bigger than some of their tank mates...
>
> They ate all of my guppies (no big loss there, I was going to donate
> them to the petshop anyway) then my last remaining tiger barb that
> hadn't been eaten by the severums, then two african dwarf frogs,
> several snails etc. I traded all of the remaining cichilds to the LFS
> for store credit and turned my big tank into a catfish only tank.
>
> So now I'm wondering just how far the "they eat anything" phrase might
> go. I'm used to doing lots of water changes after owning a host of
> destructive cichlids that were plant intolerant so I overfeed a lot so
> they'll grow fast. Anyway I was looking at them today and wondering if
> they can eat stuff like catfood (like friskies for instance) that I can
> buy in bulk for a tenth of the price of fish food. I already know
> they'll eat every kind of fish food that exists, any kind of creature
> that will fit in their mouth, chicken, tuna, and earthworms.
>
> I've noticed these guys are far more hardy than just about anything I
> could buy in the petstore, and I suspect that if I don't find some bulk
> amounts of food and start overfeeding soon then the biggest cat is
> going to turn on his sibblings and I will have one very large cat
> instead of four.
>
> Thoughts?
> -Daniel

Purina carries a line of fish chow.
http://www.showchow.com/aqua/index_aqua.html
You can also look into pond foods, or even make your own. Otherwise low
fat foods such as chicken, turkey, fish etc will work as well, but the
volumes of whatever you give are going to tax your filter system.
--
www.NetMax.tk

[Margolis]

bullheads make great aquarium fish. I had one I named mr. fatso. He got
about 12" long and his body got to be about 4" high at the belly. I raised
him in a 135 with other community fish from a size of about 1" he only ate
one of his companions. A cichlid that was almost as big as he was that
would not stop harrassing him. He got fed up one night and took care of the
problem for me ;op I had many other fish that were a lot smaller and which
would fit in his mouth easily, like all of the cory's that were in the tank,
he never bothered any of them. He would even come up and skim flake off the
surface of the tank when I put it in for the smaller guys. I fed frozen
beefheart, krill, and live goldfish. I tried purina catfish chow, but it
was too messy in the tank. I don't really think you should have a problem
since they are all growing up together.

--

Margolis
http://web.archive.org/web/20030215212142/http://www.agqx.org/faqs/AGQ2FAQ.htm
http://www.unrealtower.org/faq

[John D. Goulden]

I also enjoy raising native cats (mostly flatheads and bullheads found in
central Oklahoma) in my tanks. They're fine when small but once they get to
an inch or so the other fish need to watch out. I think you did the right
thing by going to a cat-only tank, because there are lots of other reasons
that cats and tropicals don't mix. Tropicals are warm water fish and cats do
better in cool water. Tropicals like a bit of salt in the water (I know this
is a contentious issue but I do it) and cats can't tolerate much salt, if
any. With this in mind I usually run four kinds of tank:

Heated, with salt - tropicals (mostly bettas, guppies, and swordtails)
Heated, no salt - tropical cats like corys and plecos, and sometimes snails
Not heated, with salt - goldfish
Not heated, no salt - native cats and other native fish

All of the native cats I've had are nocturnal (or get that way after they
are older) and hide during the day so they're not much fun to watch. I
usually give them a rock pile or brick pile and they are quite content to
stay in there until lights out. However they must be terrifying night
stalkers, considering on how my tank populations (especially guppy fry)
would be reduced by the next morning back when I kept native cats and
tropicals together. They will eat literally anything and I give them
everything from tropical flakes to leftovers from dinner to commercial
catfish meal. They are seldom tame enough to come out and eat when I feed
them but the food all disappears and they do get bigger. They tend to stay
together and as long as one isn't a LOT smaller than the others they
probably won't prey on each other, but I do have one vanish without a trace
every now and then. Commercial cat food and dog food often has chemical
additives that I wouldn't want in a tank, but a twenty-pound bag of catfish
meal from the local feed store is only a few dollars and will last forever.
My goldfish like it too, but there's another fish that will eat pretty much
anything you throw into the tank.

--
John Goulden


> About four or five months ago I collected four very small (less than an
> inch) baby catfish from a local pond and put them in a planted ten
> gallon tank I had sitting around. After researching a bit about them I
> figured out they were brown bullhead cats and will get about a foot
> long in the wild - smaller than I expected but still fairly large.
>
> So after they got big enough to not be harrassed by my cichlids (and
> they had been in my tanks long enough for me to be confident they
> weren't carrying anything nasty) I threw them into my big tank. They
> had great fun and doubled in size in no time. Then their mouths got
> bigger than some of their tank mates...
>
> They ate all of my guppies (no big loss there, I was going to donate
> them to the petshop anyway) then my last remaining tiger barb that
> hadn't been eaten by the severums, then two african dwarf frogs,
> several snails etc. I traded all of the remaining cichilds to the LFS
> for store credit and turned my big tank into a catfish only tank.
>
> So now I'm wondering just how far the "they eat anything" phrase might
> go. I'm used to doing lots of water changes after owning a host of
> destructive cichlids that were plant intolerant so I overfeed a lot so
> they'll grow fast. Anyway I was looking at them today and wondering if
> they can eat stuff like catfood (like friskies for instance) that I can
> buy in bulk for a tenth of the price of fish food. I already know
> they'll eat every kind of fish food that exists, any kind of creature
> that will fit in their mouth, chicken, tuna, and earthworms.
>
> I've noticed these guys are far more hardy than just about anything I
> could buy in the petstore, and I suspect that if I don't find some bulk
> amounts of food and start overfeeding soon then the biggest cat is
> going to turn on his sibblings and I will have one very large cat
> instead of four.
>
> Thoughts?
> -Daniel
>

[dfreas]

Thanks for the replies. I hadn't even thought of the catfish not being
tropical...it was summer time when I collected them and the outside
water temp was within a degree or two of my tropical tanks so I just
put them right in and never gave it a second though. Now that I think
about it though it doesn't make sense to be keeping them in a heated
tank - the heater is coming off tonight.

Also I went to the LFS and checked out the pond section *sooo* much
cheaper food there! I can get a five pound bag of fish chow for $3. So
thanks for that too.

-Daniel

[sophie]

In message om>,
dfreas > writes
>Thanks for the replies. I hadn't even thought of the catfish not being
>tropical...it was summer time when I collected them and the outside
>water temp was within a degree or two of my tropical tanks so I just
>put them right in and never gave it a second though. Now that I think
>about it though it doesn't make sense to be keeping them in a heated
>tank - the heater is coming off tonight.

I think it might better to take the temp down a degree a day?
--
sophie

[dfreas]

Nah, ambient temp in the room is 72 and they were only at 76. They'll
be fine - besides, they're local catfish - I could hit them with a
stick and they'd still be fine. Um, not that I would or anything....no
flames necessary

-Daniel

[sophie]

In message om>,
dfreas > writes
>Nah, ambient temp in the room is 72 and they were only at 76. They'll
>be fine - besides, they're local catfish - I could hit them with a
>stick and they'd still be fine. Um, not that I would or anything....no
>flames necessary

you're not grilling them, then? ;-)
>
>-Daniel
>

--
sophie

[yuck]

Folks on farms regularly keep bulls in water troughs for safekeeping
until dinner day. Apparently they manage just fine...