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i brought 3 small ZDs and the 1&2 day i got them they didnt do much chasing just alittle they basically sticked together. But today as i woke up they have not stop chasing each other they will alternate on each fish. I havent nothices and damage fins but should i be worried? I dont have another tank to seperate them and aslo i want my cycle to finish. The biggest on really does the most bullying he chases everybody. Its funny the little one will charge towards him and then they realize how big he is then heads the other way. The top of the tank belongs to him it seems. Let me know what yall think. Oh yeah im using NIC to speed up the proccess I dont know how much it will speed it up so can i add more since im using nic? I really want them to be comfortable and school

I am doing the same thing you are. I have zebra danios to cycle my tank and they chase each other around quite a bit. It's pretty normal. Unfortunately, some of mine are sick . Some are shy and like to hide and the others chase each other, like you said alternating fish. I don't think you should be to worried because they are just playing around.

The chasing is entirely normal, however I've seen it turn ugly a few times. If they are different sizes they can sometimes pick on the smaller ones to the point where they smaller ones stay in the plants and starve to death. Of course I've also seen smaller ones pick on the bigger ones .

Pay close attention to them, if you're planning on keeping them (rather then exchanging them back to the lfs try adding a few more to the school, and give them some hiding spots, just make sure that they're eating.

^_^

I have some tetras who are currently doing the same thing. They haven't done any damage to each other, but have nipped my betta and one of my cories. I've heard that the fish are just figuring out their social structure, who will be dominant, and so on. I wouldn't worry too much.

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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."

If more were to be added, they'd probably do it less, but in most cases, nothing bad will come of the "game". Since it's just the three of them doing it so far, everything'll probably be okay, but like books said, they can have a tendency to try to play the "game" with some fish that aren't as fast and have larger fins. Keep an eye on the three to make sure they're not getting more violent, and if you intend on keeping them in the long run, add at least three more to the school...

PM/email/msg me if you have any questions/comments regarding me or my knowledge or if you want me to read a thread.

Im in my cycling stage and i do plan on keeping them can i still add 3 more? I am using NIC with it to boost it

Depends on the size of the tank. If it's larger than 10 gallons and it doesn't have any other fish in it, then you can add 3 more without a problem...

PM/email/msg me if you have any questions/comments regarding me or my knowledge or if you want me to read a thread.

Yeah, my danios do this is as well. I have 3 different types in the tank now. When I had a smaller amount of them, they would chase... chase chase chase... specially make sure you have more then one female to a male so that the poor female doesn't always get hounded if you plan on keeping these guys.

I now have like um.. *counts* 11 danios total and they all coexist just find, active swimmers, occasional chasing. No one particular fish ever gets picked on however.
They are Shoaling fish, not schooling fish. So they just need enough going on around them to keep them busy.

I have this same problem right now with my 3 platies in my cycling tank. I have 2 Females and 1 male. The one male has relentlessly been chasing just one of the females for the past few days. She hides in plants, caves, on the top of the tank...anywhere she can till he hunts her down. He nips at her, but I haven't seen any damaged fins. He doesn't pick on the other female hardly at all. All 3 fish are roughly the same size (females being slightly larger). I am not planning on getting more platies (as I have 15+ frys now too). But will be getting some tetras and cories right after I get my gouramis. I was wondering if this behavior was part of the mating process (being completely new to the fish hobby, and I don't watch animal planet ) is it?

With the platies, while you don't want more fry, I think the addition of one more female would make it appear less troublesome. Some livebearers have to be kept at a ratio of 3/1 F/M due to how much the males want to mate...

Danios are schooling fish that work best in larger groups. The more you can get into a tank, the more comfortable they'll feel and the less they'll actually school. To see their schooling behavior at its tightest, you'd actually need something in the tank stressing them and making them feel uncomfortable. Otherwise, there's no reason for them to school...

PM/email/msg me if you have any questions/comments regarding me or my knowledge or if you want me to read a thread.

Actually from what I have read/learned and witnessed myself Zebra Danios are not schooling fish, but actually schoaling fish. There is a bit of a difference.

I'd just like to add my endorsement to what others have said... more fish = happier fish (whether it's called schooling or shoaling ).

Also brtaylor mentioned that the chasing behaviour was more noticeable in the morning. Danios will often spawn in the morning so they will be doing more chasing around then.

Keep a close eye on all your fish. If they are all looking healthy (well fed, no nipped fins etc) then the chasing is probably harmless. But do be aware that even if it's normal mating behaviour, if there is only one female she can get exhauted and more e to other illness. So increase the zebra herd to avoid this.