# German blue rams and zebra danios



## musho3210 (Dec 28, 2006)

I would love to own a couple of german blue rams in my 20 gallon, i currently have 7 zebra danios, i have 2 coconut caves, a large overhang cave, lots of fake plants and one live real java moss patch. Could i fit around 2 blue rams?

I am a begginer and these might not fit me, if not, are there any other ram like fish for my tank?


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## Lupin (Aug 2, 2006)

Blue rams should be fine. Make sure there is no nitrites and ammonia as blue rams are sensitive to water conditions. Otherwise, try Bolivian rams.


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## musho3210 (Dec 28, 2006)

ok, well i have nitrites but im still cycling and im trying to plan ahead on what fish i should get next. Since you said bolivian rams seem more hardy, i will probably get them.

I am trying to lower my ph a bit the safe way (im using coconut shells and will soon try Co2 if nessicary, my plants will like the extra CO2 anyway) So currently its around 7.4-7.6 in the tank with a 7.7 tap water ph. The hardness is 100 ppm so i think this is considered soft.


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## Lonewolfblue (Jan 16, 2007)

Yes, Bolivian Rams are more hardy. If you do decide on the GBR's, wait about 6 months before getting them, as you not only want a cycled tank, but one that's matured as well. The tank will be fairly mature in 6 months. And do realize that the Bolivians will get to about 3-3.5 inches each, smaller for the female. My adult male is about 3.5" and the female is just under 3".


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## musho3210 (Dec 28, 2006)

oh, i finished cycling, today to be more precise, but my tank isnt mature yet, i might stick with bolivians, now i need to start studying, i'll get 1 male and 1 female in hopes of reproducing :wink:


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## musho3210 (Dec 28, 2006)

last question, will rams eat my shrimp?? the shrimp are ghost shrimp btw???


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## Lonewolfblue (Jan 16, 2007)

Possibly, yes. And definitely the baby ghost shrimp. 

Also, Bolivians are much harder to sex. So be prepared to get 2 of the same sex, as you can't always tell the difference when young. GBR's are easy to sex. And Bolivian babies are easier to raise, where GBR's are very tough to raise, as they die with any small change to your tank.


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## musho3210 (Dec 28, 2006)

i dont mind them eating the babies, my ghost shrimp seem to have gotten bigger so will they fit in the rams mouth? i would hav to say there about... 1.5-cm long, i could take them out and place them in my .5 gallon empty fish bowl and wait for them to grow before returning them to my main tank, or if the bowl isnt big enough, i could use my 10 gallon quarantine tank. THere are also tons and tons of hiding spots


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## Lupin (Aug 2, 2006)

musho3210 said:


> last question, will rams eat my shrimp?? the shrimp are ghost shrimp btw???


May depend. I have both rams and neither of them ate my ghost shrimps. But ghost shrimps are far too big for the blue rams' small mouth compared to the bolivians.


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## Lonewolfblue (Jan 16, 2007)

Blue said:


> musho3210 said:
> 
> 
> > last question, will rams eat my shrimp?? the shrimp are ghost shrimp btw???
> ...


Completely agree. And if the Bolivians are young when you get them, then if they are raised with ghost shrimp in the tank, they will be less likely to eat them when they are bigger. Java moss makes for great hiding places for the shrimp too.


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## musho3210 (Dec 28, 2006)

great, perfect, i have a large clump of java moss in my tank and a whole lot of fake plants and a small little cave like thing that only shrimp can fit in since the opening is so small, i should be alright, if i ever see my rams chasing it, i will remove the shrimp until they get bigger 

So bolivian rams it is, anyone got good information on them? Food, water params, temperature, you know, the basics.

Im glad they eat baby shrimp though, id hate to have too many shrimp since they are so hard to catch!!

ouch, bad news, i got a large algae type growth, it is brown, thats all i can say, it is growing on my ornaments, my wall, and my fake plants, i got a large growth near the side of the wall, i'll take a picture of it once i get a camera. It is brown (the color of poop) and it grows in spots, any help?


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## Lonewolfblue (Jan 16, 2007)

musho3210 said:


> great, perfect, i have a large clump of java moss in my tank and a whole lot of fake plants and a small little cave like thing that only shrimp can fit in since the opening is so small, i should be alright, if i ever see my rams chasing it, i will remove the shrimp until they get bigger
> 
> So bolivian rams it is, anyone got good information on them? Food, water params, temperature, you know, the basics.
> 
> Im glad they eat baby shrimp though, id hate to have too many shrimp since they are so hard to catch!!


Temp:78-81
Food: Cichlid flake food, brine shrimp (frozen), bloodworms will help initiate breeding (frozen), vegi wafers, vegi flake, zucchini, peas, and more. I do the bloodworms as treats, maybe once a week. And I do vegi's as a snack, quite often, daily or every other day. Shrimp pellets are great with them too.

For coloring, if you go up to 81 degrees, you will get better coloring when they mature.

Water parameters: Stable. Don't worry about ph, as long as it's stable, they will be just fine. Don't use any ph adjusters.

Don't worry too much about the brown algae. It's diatoms, and are normal in a new tank. They will go away on their own. Or get a group of otos, they love diatoms, and will clean it all up.


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## musho3210 (Dec 28, 2006)

i edited that post explaining an algae growth. On the guide that blue wrote it says my algae is common in a new tank, which makes sence since my tank is new, but it also says it grows in low lighting, my algae is growing near my light sorces. I have an external 11 watt input 60 watt output compact flouresant light that sits right next to my java moss, i turn it on ever other day, and a 15 watt flouresant light that is on the hood.


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