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hey guys,i got given a really nice featherfin catfish,so i just had a some questions..
1,will these guys eat lettuce...
2,will the lettuce put out my water parameters if left in the tank overnite..
3,also i got given a large pleco,a rtbs,and a clown loach,is it normall for a rtbs and clown loach to be best buddys,they do everthing together,eat,sleep,swim,play chasings,its really cool to watch,also,the rtbs acts like a kind of body gaurd to the clown loach.ive never had a clown or a rtbs of this size(both quite large),so i hadnt seen this b4...i alway kept my clowns in schools too,but this clown seems very happy with his black shark buddy...
yeah so is this normall...

If the Featherfin is in the same tank as the other two fish you've mentioned, I wouldn't worry unduly about the Featherfin not eating lettuce, because the RTBS will soon make short work of it.

I've never heard of an RTBS and a Clown Loach pairing up like that before, but it just goes to show that fishes are as individual as us humans. And, there have been stranger partnerships in the aquarium world before today! However, given that both fishes have at least a partly overlapping range in the wild if memory serves, and share certain interesting habits (a love of sleeping in odd postures giving their owners a fright the first time they see this being a common one), then perhaps they are more compatible in the right setting than previously realised. In any case, the Clown Loach will reach a size where it is more than capable of looking after itself alongside the RTBS if the tank is spacious enough, and if it's already a large specimen then I wouldn't worry unduly if you happen to have an RTBS and a Clown Loach that have formed an amicable relationship, though I'd shoot movie footage of this quick if I were you and post it on YouTube, because you'll surprise quite a few people with it!

Returning to the Featherfin - my understanding is that the wild diet of this fish is primarily animal matter based, and that it won't necessarily be that tempted by lettuce unless it's seriously hungry and needs something to eat. You're more likely to see the Featherfin helping itself to live earthworms than lettuce, though it will eat the occasional vegetable morsel or two, so it might nibble at the lettuce. You're more likely to be successful with alfalfa pellets than lettuce with the Featherfin, though, as this is a food that's been documented as welcomed by this fish courtesy of dear old Braz Walker and his now somewhat venerable fishkeeping books from the 1970s. Your Featherfin will occasionally graze algae as well, but only occasionally, and will probably ignore it if you provide it with a nice varied diet of Cichlid pellets, earthworms, Catfish pellets and big algae tablets!

Oh, that Featherfin will, if given enough space, become a magnificent 12 inch fish in due course, and what's more, it'll become a show stopper if it grows its dorsal filaments without them being damaged by any fin nippers. In an exceptional specimen, the trailing dorsal filaments can extend past the tail fin, and a specimen with a full set of trailing filaments in tip top condition is an absolute blast of a show fish, one that would probably win you some nice silverware at a fish show!

As for leaving the lettuce overnight, that's not too problematic if the aquarium is a large one and has a decent filtration system. Especially if the aquarium is housing the Clown Loach/RTBS combo as well, in which case the RTBS will almost certainly solve your problem by eating the lettuce for you unless you put ridiculous amounts in ...

Oh, given that you've acquired a large Plec as well, cucumber is worth a try. In fact, if you pay a visit to the Planet Catfish website, they sell a little gadget that they call "Screwcumber", which is a sort of corkscrew device you attach to pieces of cucumber to feed to Plecs.

EDIT : More on Screwcumber here!

Panda Catfish fan and keeper/breeder since Christmas 2002

great, thanx cal.so far they seem fine,and the feather fin is already easy 9 inches,he is already a very nice fish,with ALL his fins in tackt,infact he takes very good care of himself,he not scared of any tankmates,and goes nuts for bloodworms,and yes the rtbs and cl love each other,i seen them both feeding on the lettuce last nite after lights out,it was quite a site,plus the BIG pleco,he was nugging them out the way so he can have a go at the lettuce too!yes it is weird,the rtbs and cl schooling,the cls ive had b4,schooled with each other and tigers barbs,and the rtbs i had,well he was a loner,happy to be on his own,i mite get some footage of this.....i was going to find a home for the large clown loach,but when i seen how fond of each other they are,i had plenty of room,so im just going to keep them in together,they seem very happy,and there colours are truley glowing.....
now,this is the first time ive had a cl or a rtbs OF THIS SIZE,both are larger rather tham smaller,what other vegies can i give these two fish to keep em healthy and FULL,they already get a slew of pellets,worms,bloodworms,lettuce,etc,etc.plenty of varity...some1 said that cls get really cranky with age and size,but my guy seems very freindly,active,HUNGREY!,i think thats why the rtbs is the bodygaurd..sort of