Bolivian Ram is getting beat up!

[GreenMan]

I have a fairly new tank of about 2 weeks and have 4 young Bolivian Rams. I don't know their sexes because they are all under 1.5 inch but one of them is being severely rejected by the others with constant bullying (not strong enough word), keeping food away and and constantly trying to 'get out' of the tank by swimming into the glass. Otherwise, the fish seems healthy.

What should I do, try to find a home for it (anyone?) or get more rams? I don't yet have a hospital tank to put her into. My tank is a planted 45 gallon high with a small school of corys and tetras.

 

[VickiK]

Awww. That's the saddest thing i've ever heard. I'm not much help. But I'm sympathetic.

Cory says that the more rams the less aggression because it kind of amortizes out over the lot of them. I have five balloon rams - one is the tank boss - but the rest pretty much "put up with him". No damage is ever incurred by anyone. He is a little poop though! He has the biggest cave and the biggest attitude. lol

 

[GreenMan]

If you saw this poor fish you'd cry, really. She is SO unhappy. Do you think that mixing other dwarf cichlids with the rams would reduce aggression as well or must they be Bolivians? I was thinking a few apistogramma would work...

 

[VickiK]

i don't need to see it, @GreenMan, I'm already crying. lol I'm the most pathetic fish person in this forum. If we're going to anthropomorphize an animal - sign me up.

Can you move her to another tank???? When my giant crazy Calico Angels were fighting like crazy, I moved one out into the only other tank I had at the time; a 10 gallon with some Endlers. When I put her/him back in there, they seemed to get along better. Like they missed each other maybe? I don't know.

 

[Betty]

If you don't have a spare tank, do you have any extra rocks or decorations that you can temporarily add to make hiding places and break up territories?

What are the dimensions of the floor of the tank? The Bolivians I used to keep stayed at the bottom of the tank and that might be something to think about when adding more fish. If they all like to be on the bottom, that could cause fighting for territory if there isn't a big enough area.

 

[GreenMan]

Betty- the tank is 36" x 12" and I already have it heavily divided with several clusters of rocks, some quite tall and a large piece of wood in the middle of the tank, there are tons of places for her to hide but ALL three of the other rams are very aggressive toward her.

She goes into one side of the tank and get's slammed, then goes to the other side, get's slammed, then goes to the top and there is another ram waiting just above one of the larger rocks, she gets slammed. This happens hour after hour all day long. She is exhausted, trying to swim through the glass whenever she can let her guard down. She's not eating because the others never let her get close to the bottom of the tank.

I'm afraid if this continues she'll die. I really need to get a hospital tank but that's not going to happen soon enough so I feel the best thing to do is rehome her ASAP. Anyone interested?

 

[GreenMan]

Another question is for those who've had dwarf cichlids in the past is can just 3 rams get along or should I approach this problem by getting a few more? Aside from this aggression issue I happen to really like the rams, they're compelling fish to watch and quite stunning as well so don't want to get rid of the rams by any means. My partner tells me to let nature 'take it's course' but in nature this poor little fish would swim away, far away and can't, so that's NOT nature.

It wasn't my intention to create some sort of fish gladiator forum. This is the down side to fish keeping I'm afraid.

 

[Betty]

I remember having the same sort of problems with mine. I ended up with one pair in the 30 gallon tank and even then the male was aggressive towards the female. I don't have any experience keeping several together. Hopefully someone here has.

Do you have a breeder box/net to put it in for protection until you rehome or add more? It's not ideal, but better than being chased and bullied. You can add a little plant or lightweight decor to help it feel a little more secure.

 

[VickiK]

Another question is for those who've had dwarf cichlids in the past is can just 3 rams get along or should I approach this problem by getting a few more? Aside from this aggression issue I happen to really like the rams, they're compelling fish to watch and quite stunning as well so don't want to get rid of the rams by any means. My partner tells me to let nature 'take it's course' but in nature this poor little fish would swim away, far away and can't, so that's NOT nature.

It wasn't my intention to create some sort of fish gladiator forum. This is the down side to fish keeping I'm afraid.

Well I've got 5 Balloon Cichlids. There's plenty of hiding places in the 55g tank they're living in. There's one tank boss but otherwise they get along fine. I like Betty's breeder box idea - for now. Poor fishie. I'm with you, dude. I wouldn't be able to take it.

 

[dwarfpike]

There is a good likelyhood that the same thing will happen once you get down to three. Three to four cichlids, even dwarves, aren't usually a good number because they will establish a hierarchy and there aren't enough fish to spread out the aggression. Six to eight is usually the recommended, though your tank size kind of precludes this. Once a pair forms, that size would be fine though.

Most people think dwarf cichlids act differently than their larger brethren, but most have the same attitudes and behaviors, just on a smaller scale. To give you an idea, the smaller blue rams have been known to take over fully half a 90 gallon aquarium when breeding.

 

[sir_keith]

It's a cichlid thing, dwarf or otherwise. Once you've tried all the obvious things- like rearranging the tank and trying to make more territories- the only real option is to spread the aggression around, and the only real way to do that is by adding more conspecifics. Adding other dwarf species won't help. Good luck!

 

[VickiK]

@GreenMan - how goes the cichlid "situation"?

 

[ZeusAlmightyShortLegs]

Well if you need to rehome im down to take that ram off your hands my bolivian is a little lonely sine the other one passed with sickness from the LFS.

 

[GreenMan]

Sorry for the lack of an update. Lot's has happened since my first post. After a few days of this dramatic fighting, during a dinner party, those two fish had a clutch of eggs. I really misread their actions and apparently they were just going through a mating thing. They really should be called Klingon Rams instead!

Anyway, those eggs hatched and disappeared after a few days. I lucked out with a 'natural' harem from the four rams I bought at the LFS, each of the three females has had eggs and right now, mom #1 is guarding her second batch of fry. I've had four clutches so far. Like my husband put it, the male ram is going to live a short but very fulfilled life!

Rams are interesting creatures in that they ALWAYS seem to be fighting and bickering with each other. I'm no longer disturbed by this behavior because it's obviously how they like to be. Nobody has ever gotten hurt and it fills their days!

 

[sir_keith]

Sorry for the lack of an update. Lot's has happened since my first post. After a few days of this dramatic fighting, during a dinner party, those two fish had a clutch of eggs. I really misread their actions and apparently they were just going through a mating thing. They really should be called Klingon Rams instead!

Anyway, those eggs hatched and disappeared after a few days. I lucked out with a 'natural' harem from the four rams I bought at the LFS, each of the three females has had eggs and right now, mom #1 is guarding her second batch of fry. I've had four clutches so far. Like my husband put it, the male ram is going to live a short but very fulfilled life!

Rams are interesting creatures in that they ALWAYS seem to be fighting and bickering with each other. I'm no longer disturbed by this behavior because it's obviously how they like to be. Nobody has ever gotten hurt and it fills their days!

This is why cichlids are so popular in the hobby: they're interesting! Let me know if you ever have any fry for sale; I kept alti's years ago and have always liked them. And congrats on all the spawnings; you're obviously doing something right!

 

[VickiK]

Sorry for the lack of an update. Lot's has happened since my first post. After a few days of this dramatic fighting, during a dinner party, those two fish had a clutch of eggs. I really misread their actions and apparently they were just going through a mating thing. They really should be called Klingon Rams instead!

Anyway, those eggs hatched and disappeared after a few days. I lucked out with a 'natural' harem from the four rams I bought at the LFS, each of the three females has had eggs and right now, mom #1 is guarding her second batch of fry. I've had four clutches so far. Like my husband put it, the male ram is going to live a short but very fulfilled life!

Rams are interesting creatures in that they ALWAYS seem to be fighting and bickering with each other. I'm no longer disturbed by this behavior because it's obviously how they like to be. Nobody has ever gotten hurt and it fills their days!

Wow. How awesome is that. I love it!!

 

[GreenMan]

This is why cichlids are so popular in the hobby: they're interesting! Let me know if you ever have any fry for sale; I kept alti's years ago and have always liked them. And congrats on all the spawnings; you're obviously doing something right!

I'll let you know. I'm planning to setup a grow-out tank and will try to raise the fry. Stay tuned.