Happy New Year. My Clown Loaches are now 29 years of age.

[FINWIN]

What has happened over the past year with my Clown Loaches? Not much but as usual they have benefitted from my constant careful attention. As always I have found some small ways of improving things. In 2022 they needed a replacement 300W heater and 58W T8 light tube, I improved the venturi on the powerheads to maximise oxygenation, they are enjoying the addition of occasional Frozen Cooked Mussels and Fluval Bug Bites to their diet, I am now cleaning the ornaments with hydrogen peroxide rather than glutaraldehyde and I have begun scraping the algae from the back and sides of the glass as well as the front because the fur-like algae was shedding into the water column which didn't look good.

All of them seem healthy. The largest, Anthia, has lost some weight (which may be a sign of old age) but is still very dominant and I fully expect them all to reach 30 years of age this time next year. It doesn't seem long since I was aiming for 20 year old Clown Loaches.

View attachment 1510009

Anthia is trying to keep her girlish shape. She's showing the others "Walk this waaay!"

 

[Redshark1]

I'm another clown loach fan, they tick every single box for me. Once you get them past that vulnerable stage when they are tiny, and as long as you have a good sized pack, then they are extremely rewarding.

I'm years off yet seeing mine develop into the specimens that Redshark1 has, but I'm loving the journey so far.

Well that's another big thing you reminded me about. That is they get more valuable each year that passes. I never expected I'd have lifespan competition from my pets. When I bought them I was told 10 years for Clown Loaches.

 

[TwoTankAmin]

Nice clowns.

I lost my oldest and biggest over the winter. It was with me for about 21 years, and was 4 inches when given to me as a gift. My clowns are my favorite fish.

 

[Simonas]

Oh this is fantastic I love these kind of threads.

Clown loach are ace fish I have 8 at about 6" and would love more .

Redshark.. how many do you have and how long have you had them for ? The 29 years? Amazing

 

[Redshark1]

Oh this is fantastic I love these kind of threads.

Clown loach are ace fish I have 8 at about 6" and would love more .

Redshark.. how many do you have and how long have you had them for ? The 29 years? Amazing

Thanks Simonas. I got my six Clown Loaches in January 1995 and they are yearlings when purchased.

Although I knew I wanted Clown Loaches nobody knew anything about them. They were issued to new aquarists as single fish in order to control snails along with an algae eating fish that the shop said was essential to clean the tank for you.

The books were vague and people in the shops were anything but expert. Among the things I was told was that they needed a 3ft tank and could live ten years.

I knew I wanted a big tank and a group of them but I didn't know anybody else who kept them pre-internet.

Here in Leeds, Yorkshire, England a 4 foot tank is considered big as houses are small and don't have much space. People told me my plans for a six foot tank were overkill. BUT I had seen a mature Clown Loach of 8 inches in a huge display tank so had an idea of what they should grow into.

Nowadays people commonly have bigger tanks than mine with big filters, sumps etc. and displays of large groups of Clown Loaches so in future there should also be lots of old Clown Loaches like mine. But for now it is a rare thing to have Clown Loaches of 29 and hopefully next year 30 years of age.

 

[sokolis]

Thanks for the sharing details, this is such a cool thread.

 

[Keepers]

How big?

 

[Redshark1]

How big?

Largest is 29cms that's 11.5 inches.

 

[Simonas]

Thanks Simonas. I got my six Clown Loaches in January 1995 and they are yearlings when purchased.

Although I knew I wanted Clown Loaches nobody knew anything about them. They were issued to new aquarists as single fish in order to control snails along with an algae eating fish that the shop said was essential to clean the tank for you.

The books were vague and people in the shops were anything but expert. Among the things I was told was that they needed a 3ft tank and could live ten years.

I knew I wanted a big tank and a group of them but I didn't know anybody else who kept them pre-internet.

Here in Leeds, Yorkshire, England a 4 foot tank is considered big as houses are small and don't have much space. People told me my plans for a six foot tank were overkill. BUT I had seen a mature Clown Loach of 8 inches in a huge display tank so had an idea of what they should grow into.

Nowadays people commonly have bigger tanks than mine with big filters, sumps etc. and displays of large groups of Clown Loaches so in future there should also be lots of old Clown Loaches like mine. But for now it is a rare thing to have Clown Loaches of 29 and hopefully next year 30 years of age.

Love the background to your fish. I'm just down the road in Wirral sounds like we got in to fish at a similar time I couldnt imagine having my fish from 1995 that is mindbendingly ace.

 

[Redshark1]

I bought some fish in 1995 and kept the same fish in the same way for year after year after year after year...

Interest was sustained when I bought more tanks, learned how to grow plants, bred various fish then started looking after a couple of tanks at school too.

Then I suddenly realised that I had fish that were older than most people have and my fish were of interest to others as well as myself.

This ensured I didn't take them for granted and made me want to care for them better each year.

Once 20 years were passed the focus became 30 years. The target is January 2024.

I also live my aquarist life vicariously through monsterfishkeepers.com. Being on here is a little bit like having access to all the fish the world has to offer in a massive aquarium facility next door. Its amazing.