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I really love red-tailed sharks. I think they are beautiful fish and are very enjoyable to watch. I'm kinda disappointed because i had one for several weeks, and then all of a sudden it died, for no apparent reason. i then got another one which died within a couple of days. I must say, i am new to the hobby and am not a great fish owner yet, but i have heard that sharks are difficult to keep. Is there any way i can keep a red-tailed shark, or should i just wait until i am more experienced?

Welcome to FP.

Can you tell us what size tank you are keeping your fish in?

What other fish do you have in the tank?

How long has the tank been setup and are you aware of the cycling process that all new tanks go through?
[link=click here to read about cycling]http://www.fishprofiles.net/faq/begin-cycling.asp" style="COLOR: #004040[/link]

Do you have any testkits? If you could give us some results for ammonia, nitrite, nitrate and pH it would help us work out what is happening to the tank. If you dont have the test kits yourself most lfs's will test a sample of water for you. Make sure to ask for numbers from them though, as quite often they will say its 'fine' when really it isnt.


If you can provide us with as much information as you can we should be able to help you.

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Before you criticize someone walk a mile in their shoes. That way you're a mile away and you have their shoes.

i have a twenty gallon tank and it has been cycled. i know that 20 gallons is probably small for a shark, but i don't know how much that matters. my ph is fairly high (around 8 or so). My nitrate has never been above 10 or so, nitrite is 0. i have had ammonia in my tank recently, but i'm working on getting that taken care of. i believe the ammonia was 0 when i had the sharks. i have three blueberry tetras (which chase each other around but don't bother the other fish), a few platys, two false julli corys, and an angel (which i did not have at the same time as the sharks). the temp is usually around 76 degrees. the tank has been set up for about two months.

it's not uncommon for RTBS' to die off "like flies".
Because they're so popular, they're bred on a large scale. Due to inbreeding, you get all sorts of "weak brothers" that are being sold.
Usually, RTBS are quite hardy fish that are easy to keep.
Perhaps you should try to get your RTBS from another store; chances are they get them from another breeder and sell stronger individuals.

I recently bought an RTBS for my new 100 gal. tank.
So far it's in a 15 gal. for observation and it's doing great.
See that you pick out the one with the best color and the worst "attitude" towards his tankmates; that's bound to be the strongest one.

On a side note to tinfoil's advice (which I agree with) I dont think a RTBS should be in a 20g tank. I really think you are at your stocking limit now. If anything I would put a couple more cories into the tank to keep the other two company.

Did you have the RTBS from setup of the tank? If so maybe it became ill through the cycling process and never managed to pick itself up again.

I would wait until you have a larger tank before putting a RTBS in your tank.

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Before you criticize someone walk a mile in their shoes. That way you're a mile away and you have their shoes.

20 gal. is too small for RTBS & for sure, now you're really stocked. Maybe you can add some more Corydoras, if you keep up with regular water changes.


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