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At one of the lfs they had a fish called a dwarf loach. They labeled it the smallest loach on earth. Has anyone seen this fish and what are your experiences with them.

i think it is also called a brown loach! in a book i read it said they hide alot! and need a lot of caves and such!

These are not the smallest loaches at all....they actually get 4-5"...If your looking for a small loach, then you are looking for a Chain Loach.....about 2"

Thanks for the info. I have been seaching around and am confused. One site called the chain loach the same as the dwarf loach. They look to be a little tricky to keep so I may wait to establish the tank longer.

what size tank do you have?
Majority of Loaches are schooling loaches and need about 6.
So, you need to becareful with the size tank you have and which you choose....Others benefit in getting rid of snails as well if you have a snail problem, and others wont touch them......

chain loaches, or botia sidthumunki, have a potential size of alot bigger than 2". i think there was a wild specimin that was around 8"

True, but I think In an aquarium a pigmy Chain Loach should be rather small, dont you think ? If we are looking for the smalles Loach for a small tank...And do you agree that the dwarf loach being the smallest is not true? what would you suggest then, if you were looking for a small loach ?

This is a good post regarding botia sidthimunki.

Loaches like company of their own kind, they're not necessarily what's described as 'schooling' fish.

Here's a pic of my 3 sids I bought last week. Very nice, active fish...apparently they are also good snail eaters.
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There is water at the bottom of the ocean

wow those are some very nice fish thersa i want some of those

if i were looking for a small loach that will eat snails, i would go for a zebra loach (4" therwise, i would go for the kuhili loach

Originally when I wanted info on Botia Sidthimunki, reports were that they grew only 2 inches. Now, I see reports of 4 to 5 inches, so I'm not really sure. Botia Sidthimunki is sometimes called the Chain loach, sometimes Dwarf Loach, and sometimes Monkey Loach. The do not breed in captivity, although some enterprises are breeding them through hormone injection per my understanding. They are endangered/threatened in the wild http://www.redlist.org/

There is a similar loach that gets confused with Botia Sidthimunki and it is Botia Nigrolineatas.

I have 5 and am soon to get 3 more. I love my Sids -- they are very active and curious.
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