any gar keepers out there?

L

latazyo

Grisled
Sep 17, 2002
387
0
0
alright, my buddy just bought a gar and we were told it would get to be 30" long and that he'll eat anything that'll fit in his mouth

my friend is VERY excited to have this cool fish in his tank

reason for the post:

I've been in the hobby for a while now, adn I know that IN MOST CASES a relatively expensive fish (40 dollars) that is interesting and that gets big can have some hefty care requirements

I really like this fish and so does my friend and I want to make sure he cares for it right so that it gets to be full sized and healthy

is there anything you guys can suggest to keep the gar happy or else any websites or book syou can refer me to explaining gar care?

thanks in advance
 
It would help a LOT to identify what kind of gar it is. My guess is that it is a spotted gar.

1st and formost: do everything possible to get the gar off of live foods in the form of feeders. It can be extremely difficult to do, but the earlier you do it the easier.

aka: don't feed the gar feeders at the beginning for hte sake of getting it to eat. Fish can go 2+ weeks without eating. Get it onto cichlid pellets. Then you can branch off onto worms and stuff like that.

I also read that gars need to gulp air once in a while. So leave a bit of space at hte top of the tank for it to do that and try to ensure that there are no places that the gar will get stuck.

I have no personal experience with gars, just knowledge i've picked up on boards. I'll try to find some sites for you...
 
I have a Florida Gar. Have had him/her for about 5 weeks now. He has grown rapidly in that time and is about 9 inches now. I still try to feed him live river shrimp once or twice a week and also keep frozen shrimp and krill. Can't get him to take pellet as of yet, but I think he would if I didn't spoil him with live food. He is an awful swimmer, lol, can swim straight ok, but when he wants to turn round it can be quite amusing!! I have found a few of my other fish have at some point had flesh wounds!!! but they soon learn to stay away from him. In general though he is not as mean as he looks, just attacks on instinct. A very clever fish and the most interactive with myself that I have ever had. I have not put anything special in my tank for him, no plants or anything, but he seems perfectly happy playing with my algae scraper!!!
 
With my gar, I was able to accidently get him off live foods. I dont know when or how it happened, but when I fed the rest of the fish cichlid pellets he got some too. Granted, he had a tough time with it, and still does.
I'm in a hurry now, but try giving him live foods once a week or so, but a lot depends on the fish you have. If I give my fish 20 minnows, the gar may only get 5 before the rest are consumed by others. Whatever
 
I had a Hujeta Needle Gar. Very nice to watch. I fed him feeder as treat but he would also eat cichlid and shrimp pellets as they were sinking. This is not my pic, but it's the same species.

Also, lock your tank down. Twice mine jumped out and I saved him, but oneday he got out when I wasn't home. :( I used plastic door screen to cover all openings after that. Looking forward to getting another one someday.

gar.bmp


If the pic doesn't appear, right click the "X" and "Show Picture".
 
Originally posted by SteveInEssex
I have a Florida Gar. !!!
Click to expand...
Over the pond, and down here in Florida, gar are not popular - especially for fishermen. There are plenty of them in the lakes and rivers. It's nice to hear some keep them.

How big is your aquarium?
 
alright, so the advice is to lock teh tank down to prevent jumping

try to feed him dry food instead of feeders

and

make sure there is no tank decor that would make him get stuck?

excellent!

and the one he has is kind of white and black blotchy or spotty
 
If its at all possible, provide them with some tall plants that reach near the surface. Less importantly, you may provide them with one or two more buddies, but only if the tank can support it.
Also, I usually give my Gar feeders at least once a week. I don't think he would be very happy if I only gave him cichlid pellets, so I would say that while you want him to eat cichlid pellets, (and make sure you get mini or baby sizes,) you don't want to completly take him away from his natural food source, which are other fish. Plus, your friend probably has some other fish that will eat feeders. My Tin Foil Barbs eat them, even though they are 'herbavorous.' Doesn't seem to bother them.
 
hey what is up i have two gars one is a neeldle nose gar and another is just a gar that is what is said when i bought it but tying to figuure out what it is. but any way, both of mine gars eat feeders for there main food and they eat about 12 a week: rosy reds and gold fish. I keep my gars in a 55 right now with alot of other fish and they have no problem getting along with them they are with tiger barbs some botias and africana ghost knife and a black ghost knife and they never fight or struggle for food. my tank is pretty well plated and has one big tall rock. what i have noticed bout my gars is that the only time the fight is when they are wanting to be in the line with the return of my felter they love to be in front of it, i think they think it is a curent and they swim against it. i just bought a 75 for all four fish just have to get some more things to set it up. one good web site i have found is www.predatoryfish.com they answer any Q u have and have some stuff about them well if u got any more Q's email me later david
 
alright, we've identified the gar, apparently it is an "alligator gar" as quoted by the salesman at the pet store

anyways, he's kind of sticking to the very top of the tank, is this normal for a gar, or maybe while he's getting used to shis new home?
 
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