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I just bought a clown loach tonight he was lonely and I have been watching him at petsmart for a while. So I finally decided to bring him home. Well he is missing! I can not find him anywhere! I have pulled the tank away from the wall to see if maybe he was able to jump out I pulled all my hiding places. <br>My question is this can they dig and hide like an eal does?<br>My tank is only a 30gal tank so he couldnt have went to far. <br><br><br>Thanks a worried fish mom who thinks she killed her clowny that she has been admiring at the pet store for months now.

Loaches in general are really good hiders, especially when they're stressed as yours is. If it is small like most pet store clown loaches (an inch is about average), then it probably has a lot of hiding places to choose from. Did you check the base and leaves of all of your plants (if you have any), and did you look inside all of your decorations? Loaches can cram themselves into tight spaces, so make sure you check every hole and tunnel for the fish.

If all else fails, check the filter. It is possible that your fish got in there, if you have a hang on back (HOB) or undergravel filter. I've heard about fish getting under the plate on undergravel systems a lot, so that's a possibility if you have that type of filter.

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And when he gets to Heaven, to Saint Peter he will tell: "One more Marine reporting, Sir! I've served my time in Hell."

Thanks, We pulled the filter, I have 2 plants and they have been pulled as well. I pulled my decorations and did not see him, My redtail came popping out and so did my pleco.
I am wondering if he is really up in their hiding really really well, should I just let it go or should I pull the decorations again.
Geez and to think I was gonna ad more hiding spots tomorrow, but they are soaking before I put em in the tank. I am afraid I will never see him.(thats okay I dont need to see him all the time, I just hope he is in there and okay.) I will have to go get one more clown to keep him company and I asked the pet store should they be kept in groups and the guy said noo. I knew I should have read up on them first.

The poor fish is probably freaked out by now, maybe let it have some rest. You did everything you could, so just wait until tomorrow (assuming you're at nighttime now) and see if it decides to come out. I can't think of anywhere it could be but in one of the decorations, since you said that you looked around the floor area well. Again, clown loaches can make themselves vanish when they want to.

Kudos for doing some research on the fish. Yes, they do like to be kept in groups, but also remember that they get very large. They're slow growers, but they can eventually hit around a foot in length. That's something to keep in mind.

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And when he gets to Heaven, to Saint Peter he will tell: "One more Marine reporting, Sir! I've served my time in Hell."

I found him he was in the decoration and he is wedged really really good, he wont die in there will he? My fiance is insisting he is dead because we took the decoration out of the water and he is not moving.
Please respond
I really feel bad I have scared the poor boy, and killed him.

lynseyk

SB certainly said it he would be well and truly stressed out. You did not say how big he was. My four very small oned used to hide it a small crack/gap between two rocks it took me ages to find them.

Also it will depend how long he was out of the water.

They can be very timid when first introduced into a tank, they also they prefer to be in groups.

Keith

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aww....is still in the decoration?well..i dont think it will die if its taken out for a short while...i did that to my yoyo loach once...he is fine now..anyway good luck!

he is fine everyone. This morning he was swimming with the rest of my fish. I am new to the fish world, I am enjoying it and am glad I found this site.

Thanks again for your help.

It's better to take the decoration out, or else he might get stuck again.


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Nah, it probably wasn't stuck. The loach was really frightened because of the move from store tank to home, so it just wanted to hide. It may hide in the future on other stressful occasions (such as water changes), until it gets more used to you.

I forgot my manners last night, welcome to Fish Profiles!

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And when he gets to Heaven, to Saint Peter he will tell: "One more Marine reporting, Sir! I've served my time in Hell."

I agree that it probably was not stuck, when mine were stressed they would wedge themselves into the tightest spots immaginable... but were always able to get out.

I am glad your clown loach is okay... they like to be in schools but they get really big so you have to have a large tank. Good luck!

thanks guys I appreciate it again.
Sirbooks its okay I will forgive ya!!

I am so glad to know that your clown is doing good now. I have 17 of them (tank sprung a leak, had to leave fish in a bucket, 3 died of stress... long story, got 2 more).

I remember my first two clowns hiding with the tiny zebra loaches. They were all so small, that they cld fish under a small shell and for days I didnt know where they disappeared in the night. Your fellow seems to have taken a fancy to the decoration and I think u shld leave it in there. Get him a few mates soon, he should come out more often, and some dither fish in the tank would help too.

Happy Clowns keeping!!!

When my clowns were babies I lost one for about 24hrs. I was looking everywhere for him and was getting very worried. Then he just swam out of a cave inside a piece of driftwood I didn't even know was in there all fine and dandy. They like finding places to sleep where they dont need to move. Mine sleep in all sorts of places. Enjoy your clown loaches they are wonerful, very charismatic fish.