bolivian rams and german blue's living together

almostaskater62

almostaskater62

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Jul 10, 2007
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are these two types of rams compatible? i want a german blue really bad, so i'm gonna get one in two weeks, but i figured i might as well get a bolivian one too, as i read they're beautiful and interesting (though not as beautifula s the german one)
so can these two live together?
and can they live with rasboras, an oto, a panda corey and perhaps 1 or 2 dwarf honey gouramis?

thanks
 
PPMN said:
Bolivian rams get kinda big for a 20 gal. Maybe stick with two blue's instead. Just my opinion.
Click to expand...

HUH??

Bolivian Rams are only slightly larger than Blue Rams and you can keep a pair in a 20.
the male bolivian can reach slightly larger than 3" but that is the exception more than the rule..they do get to 3" easily tho. GBR's are not as large..but they can make up for it with attitude.
bolivians IME are not as agressive as GBR's but cichlids being cichlids..they can all have attitude.

however, you should consider a larger tank when going with more than one pair of rams..you should consider a 30 G and structure to keep bottom delling pairs in..keep lots of structure.
also consider that the two may have slightly different needs..tho they can both be kept in the same tank..bolivians usually prefer slightly cooler water than blue rams 78-82 with GBR's preferring water 80-84.
 
i could always keep the temperature at like 80, that would satisfy both, i need to get my heater sussed, to get it to a good temp, right now it's anywhere between 78 and 80. i was thinking, i dont know whether to get 1 or 2 GBRs, i dont want them to breed, because they get uber aggressive, and there's no way i could hatch them let alone raise them, so i either want 1, or 2 of the same sex, which might be tricky. anyway, so you think i could have 1 of each? that would satisfy me. they will only be with tetras and rasboras, no gouramis anymore, so that shouldn't be a problem. however now 3 shrimp also reside in the tank (2 ghost, 1 "japanese algae eating shrimp" (amano?)), and they obviously are bottom dwellers, and from what i hear as are GBRs, is that a problem?
i was gonna get 1 more rasbora, and probly 1 more orange von rio flame tetra as well,but if it came to getting 1 of each cichlid i would leave it as 3 each and only get the two cichlids and that would be it

i could always just leave the bolivian and get 2 GBRs, it seems more fun to have one of each though....

thanks
 
is it not good to have 1 of either? as in, do both of them only liek to be kept in pairs? i just read the profile for bolivian rams on liveaquaria.
thanks, that was in addition to the previous post
 
one more thing, i've asked this question a bunch, and i think most people said it would work, but i have a (prettttty stable, never seen it fluctuate) pH of about 7.1. if i acclimate the ram over literally like 5 hours, and don't let it jump, would he be able to live in this?
thanks
 
I would NOT put a pair of blue and bolivian rams in a 20g, unless it is a 20g LONG - this tank has a 30 inch foot. You might try one of each, but I don't think they will be happy without more of their kind. Your best bet is to get a pair of one or the other. Don't worry about babies, they will get eaten, or the eggs will get eaten. If you are worried about aggression when spawning, the bolivians are more mellow.

The temps really need to be warm for the blues, even 80 is too cool. I'm keeping several pair of spawning bolivians in 76-78 degree water and they look great and are doing fine. If you go with a pair of bolivians you'll have a bit of trouble finding the sexes so you'll have to be ready to exchange one until you get a female.

Because their water requirements are much more easy going than the blues', it is easier to find dither fish for them, or to mix them into more of a community setting. I'm phasing out all my blues and going to all bolivian and rainbow tanks... I really like these guys better

Cathy
 
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