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Could I have a few of the pretty Apistogramma viejita dwarfs with those Rams?

In a 55g dwarf tank with lots of cover, etc.
Are their temperaments, and "needs" compatible (similar?)

55g tank especielly planted is plenty of space for ONE pair of apistos and a pair of rams. This of course is without hearing about filtration and other inhabitants. So this opinion may change.

Sin in Style,
Right now only a bristlenose pleco and 2 Bala Sharks share the tank.

I plan on having a bunch of neons(10?)....and a few dither fish too. My tank is well layed out with lots of cover, clay pots and good size are in middle for free swimming/feeding.

I run 2 Marineland Emperor 400 dual bio-wheel filters at the same time continuously. The tank water refilters completely about every 7 minutes. I'm fastidious about checking and partially changing water for quality. I have a home softwater filter, so I'm OK on that and watch things closely....down "overfeed", and no and then go every other day between feedings. I have a 250W good quality heater that keeps water temp. close to 78.5 constantly.

How does all that sound, please? (regarding other neons and a few dither fish?

(BTW....I'm also looking around for a used 125 gallon tank to be set up the same/oversized support equipement, but much larger for my somewhat larger fish...and "more room"

Aside from the bala sharks, think they get to be like 4ft or some foolishness. The bristle pleco gets to be like 6 inches if i remember right which is fine for that tank. The neons are tiny and wont hardly dent the bio load with 2 emperors going. With alot of plants it might be nice to double that neon number for looks. Sounds like you want it to remain under stocked which is nice. Neons look suprisingly nice in large schools.

I would suggest to you, to at least have caves on each end of the tank and none in the middle. This will give each pair their own territories. Apisto males can sometime become very aggressive and territorial. However, their spawning sites are rather small areas, so by cleverly placing caves on each side of the 55 gal tank, you should have no problems at all with these two pairs individual territories.

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There is always a bigger fish...

ACIDRAIN,
That's exactly how both my 55g tanks are setup.
Cool, thanks!

Sin in Style,
Bala Sharks get to a little over one foot long in captivity....4ft would make them an Awesome game fish in the wild, though, if true.

And twice the neons would be cool.
thanks
(a cichlid expert at a local fish outlet: http://www.aquatektropical.com/ told me I could even have 3 small/medium Discus in the tank too (after Bala Sharks move to the "Large Tank". I've seen some INCREDABLY colorful,stunning Discus. Some they have from a breeder in Holland (check their website)or this: http://twofishguyz.com/shop/index.cfm?Action=ViewCategory&Category=61

I asked about neon being "lunch" for discus and he said no, rarely unless large.

Then the Discus would also move to the "Large Tank" when they get 6 inches....If I can afford the large tank. Along with other fish that get large from my other "community 55g (like 5 Clown Loaches, Eartheating cichlids, pictus cats, etc.)

Do you guys agree about all that, please let me know?

dS

The worse plans there are in the fish keeping hobby, are those plans about getting a larger tank in the future. You should never buy more fish with plans of getting another tank down the road. But instead, wait till you get the tank, then buy the fish.

This is for many reasons. The main reason is, you don't know what will be your situation when it comes time to move the larger fish to a larger tank. What if for some reason, you cannot afford a larger tank? Then you are stuck with these fish you like, that are too large for the environment they are in. And all the tank problems start happening out of control. Also, fish do better, especially fish that are harder to keep, when they are raised in the same tank they will stay in once they are raised. In other words, get the large tank, and place the small sized larger fish in it. Let them grow up in the tank that will be their home forever. Trust me, with FW fish this does not take long. For instance, 5-6 discus at 2-3 diameter size, will be 6+ inches within a year or close to it. Larger sized mature fish get stressed out much much more than smaller fish when they are caught and transfered to other tanks. Some never fully recover from the change. Thus your beautiful show fish in the smaller tank, may continue to hide all the time once placed in the bigger tank. As well, there are many other problems that can occur with them being changed over down the road. It is best just to wait to get the tank, then get the fish that will live in it forever, instead of raising them in one tank and moving them later. Stress is the number 1 killer of aquarium fish. Because when they are stressed, their immune system becomes lowered, and they are highly subseptable to infections and diseases at these times. As well, they may stop eating, etc.

Bala Sharks get to a little over one foot long in captivity....

Balas are not a good fish to keep in an aquarium. Unless it is 50+ feet long. They are too highly active of a fish and require much much swimming room. Look at the little ones you have now. Don't they jet all over that 4 foot tank they are in? Now, make them over a foot long. Or 100 times their size and mass that they are now, and yet you will only be moving them to a 6 foot tank. There is no common sense in this thought. Fish stores and fish sellers often change things around to meet their needs so they can sell these and other fish. As well, many fish keepers (not hobbyists, as hobbyists always do what is best for the fish, not what is best for themselves. The difference between hobbyists and the common fishkeeper), many fish keepers use the same excuses to justify keeping some fish that should never be kept in a standard aquarium. You know the old saying; "Well the people at the fish store said it. So it's true". The bala shark is but one of many major, major controversial subjects among fish enthusiasts and hobbyists. Balas should be kept in nothing less than a 50 or 60 foot long tank. As they get very large, and are high speed swimmers and sprinters. Even at a foot long, the bala would require at least 15-20 foot long tank to be able to sprint swim. A foot long bala even in a 6 foot tank, will more often just sit in one end of the tank and be misserable, as it has no real room for swimming.

But not to worry, as they will soon be on the banned from shipping list, and off the market for sales. As they have hit the redlist and are now endangered, and even classified as extinct in several of the rivers that they originally come from. And they have not ever been bred in captivity, so you won't see them in lfs or aquariums much longer. Thank God!

As a hobbyist and fish enthusiast, I am against taking any fish out of their original environment for pure pleasure of the keeper, if it can/does cause an impact on that environment and/or possible harm to the continuation of that species of fish. Unless for purposes of scientific study and/or especially breeding.

Sorry if some of this sounds harsh, but it is how I feel about many things.

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There is always a bigger fish...

Another fish i would love to see banned from shipping is channel catfish. these things get beyond the capabilities of every fishkeeper short of a swimming pool in his wall. seriously i never understood why such fish make it on a shelf. Its like selling horses in the city. just doesnt make sense.

Agree 100% with Marc. A pair of the above would be fine. Good to see some people properly planning these things here.
James

Mez,
Were you referring to adding a couple(or 3, as was recommended)of small Discus to my cichlid tank(or the Apistogramma viejita), please?

daddyseal, My real life name is Marc.

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There is always a bigger fish...

Marc,
OK.
I have made a few mistakes in my hobby and love for fish keeping. As a free and scuba diver both most of my life since a kid, I am happiest underwater....and swimming with the fishes on both coastal warm waters, as well as Hawaii and Keys.

I leave my fish alone and just watch for days at a time. They are not stressed, even the "mistakenly purchased" Balas are mellow. I only feed about every 2 or 3 days....as I think it keeps them healthy as they are in the wild(not getting food everyday single day).

I'll pass on the Discus idea until I get my big tank set up and cycled.

But, which "couple of fish" were you and James referring to, please.

The Apistos

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There is always a bigger fish...

OK,
What type of really most colorful dither fish would you recommend, also?

Don

Cardinal tetras...some may disagree but i love them. Natural too.

Great,
That's what I'd like too.
A whole "herd" of them....HaHa!
I love them too!

thanks