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as long as you have good water quality (average ph and hardness) german blue rams will do. they are available at petsmart or petco. they are also very colorful.

bolivian rams will do also but I'm not sure if they would be sold at petsmart or petco (depends upon individual store. however, they are hardier.

they are both fairly easy to breed as long as you find a pair, keep them in a species tank, and provide the proper food for the fry.

okay cool i to be able to sex them when i buy them. is this possible? Also what algae eater will be good with them? i figure a few otto's would be eaten in a later time.

Try to find some bolivian rams. You will thank yourself. Blue rams are notoriously difficult. They can be very fussy about water quality and can be hard to find good specimens. I would never think about buying blue rams at a chain store. Also most rams are sold small and are very difficult to sex. The best method is to buy 6 and then let 2 pair off then return the rest. Why does it have to be petsmart are there no lfs where you live.

Last edited by greenmonkey51 at 13-Jul-2005 22:56

well if you are breeding them ottos or snails r pretty much the only choices you have because most other algae eaters such as plecos would eat eggs and fry. I dont think the ottos should bother them.

As long as you have some hiding places for the ottos to hide from the rams they should be fine. the rams would probably only be aggressive to them if they came near the fry or the fry came near them. And the ottos wouldnt be eaten. rams only reach a maximum length of 3"

I dont know if you would be able to sex them in the store. depends how happy they are. If the rams (german) feel comfortable their colors will really show. The females would have red or pink bellies and the males would not. There are also other ways to sex them based on their fins but I'm not too sure about those.

I have a 12 gallom... cannot buy 6 of them... only 2 and they need to be extra hardy to ensure life.. and i need to sex them... those are a must

I have petsmart and a love a pet near me thats all

bolivian rams are hardier but also harder to sex. Have you thought about buying an established pair at http://aquabid.com

What Cichlid for a 12 gallon.. Plus i need to be able to get them at petsmart... I am wanting to breed them and are they hardy? Thank you guys

easiest kind and avaible at petsmart? I need the smallest kidn thx

nope never would do that... must be locally... i guess im screwed =(

any other suggestions guys?

if you cant let them choose their own pairs you could still go with the rams. if you can sex them in the store theres a pretty good chance they will pair up. also you could watch the fish in the tank at the store for awhile and see if they swim together or stay close. if they r male and female pretty good chance they r a pair.

and if you dont want to/cant breed rams theres always other fish to breed.

Last edited by Ethan14 at 13-Jul-2005 23:13

i will do that..

what other fish to breed...

no liverbearers and no danios or anything no tetras must be a big fish...

Where are you located. Why do you have to get them from petsmart.

i live in oklahoma (broken arrow) and i only have a love a pet and petsmart

killifish would be cool to breed. you would have to buy them online though

I really feel depressed since i cannot get bolivian rams or blue ram... are there any super super hard fish like betta's? I just want something kinda like a perch or something that i can breed.. any more suggestions?