FishProfiles.com Message Forums

I currently have one female jack dempsey in a 55 gallon, i was wondering what else i could add..my dempsey is already about 7inches with really good color? Any ideas? O and the big Male just past away today

Apart from trying to find another male Dempsey to pair her with, in a 55 you're more or less stuck with keeping her on her own.

I suspect that if you tried keeping anything else in there, she'd turn it into a jigsaw puzzle in minutes. Dempseys have a habit of doing this, principally because their territorial requirements are pretty expansive and their willingness to dispatch "intruders" is considerable.

Eventually the 55 won't be big enough if you do decide to pair her off with another male. A 90 would be nearer the mark. If you decide just to keep her on her own as a lone 'pet fish' and train her to do things such as take earthworms from your fingers, then the 55 might suffice, though a 75 would be better.


Panda Catfish fan and keeper/breeder since Christmas 2002

just a thought do u maybe think you should try to find out how the other 1 died b4 you add more fish..if its a parasite it could be passed on to the new comer,or your water parameters mite be wrong,just a idea.if its just plain old age that he died from ok fine,but if it is a water parameter problem that killed him,it must of been bad to knock off a big dempsey,these guys are very hardy fish