Hello all! Just a quick question here. I have a 10 gallon with 1 female betta and 2 snails. I really want an Upside Down Catfish but a Petsmart employee told me that they sting people. Will one hurt my fish? Thanks!
Upside Down Catfish
- Thread starter Steffanie23
- Start date
I have several of these. Synodontis nigriventris.
They don't sting as far as I know, but they do get a bit large for a 10 gallon.
The ones I have (from PetSmart) started out as 1" long fish. Fast forward two years, and they're approaching 3". I believe they top out at around 4"
I suppose you could keep one in a 10 gallon, but they are happier in groups of at least 3-4.
They don't sting as far as I know, but they do get a bit large for a 10 gallon.
The ones I have (from PetSmart) started out as 1" long fish. Fast forward two years, and they're approaching 3". I believe they top out at around 4"
I suppose you could keep one in a 10 gallon, but they are happier in groups of at least 3-4.
thats if it is actually Synodontis nigriventris. there are alot of synos sold as upside down cats and/or miss identified in pet stores. (my Synodontis eupterus was labeled as an upside down cat)
tigi78840
AC Members
They have barbs at the end of their fins, so I read when I had mine, and their fins are very sharp. I don't think the fins of barbs would hurt the tankmates, unless it is a bigger fish, trying to eat it, or accidentally rubs its body across the fin. I believe thre fins are basically serrated, and they DO get caught through the net holes very easily, and are VERY hard to get out without either pulling their fins off or cutting yourself trying to free them, so it is advised to catch them in a cup or jar rather than a net. I didn't believe it because it didn't happen to mine when they netted him at the store, but it happened to me at home ....VERY stressfull for the poor fish, AND the human! The spotted cats, though, do have a small amount of poison on their barbs, and I don't know of the affects on fish, but I heard it can swell your cut pretty nastily (if that's even a word, lol) if youre unlucky enough to get cut by them. (not life threatening to humans, though, just painful), Hope this helps. There's info all over the internet , too.
tanker
Josh Holloway--Be mine!!!
The upside down catfish has more of a chance of stinging you then other fish. If the other fishes cannot attemp to swallow it, this cannot happen.
I'm a little confused about what you just said. If they can't attempt to swallow another fish they can't sting?
It's not so much they sting you, you get "finned" by their barb and it can sting like heck. I don't know if it works on tropicals or not, but when I get finned by a catfish when I'm out fishing, I rub the area where I was finned on the belly of said fish and it would take the stinging away. I rarely get finned now since I learned how to handle them better when angling, but it still works when it happens.
Synodontis catfish, like most catfish, have very strong bone spines in their dorsal and pectoral fins. They're a defense, mainly against being eaten by larger fish, though I had an ornate bicher that chowed down several small (~1.5") eupterus w/out any problems in spite of their spines. Catfish don't use the spines to attack other fish, though if they're crowded too closely the other fish may get jabbed.
S, nigriventris is the common upside-down catfish, and the one species that actually spends most of its time swimming upside-down. They are social fish, best kept in groups, and the more of them you have the more often you'll see them. A single one kept in a 10 gallon tank wouldn't be comfortable; dwarf Corydoras or Akysis catfish are better suited to such a small tank.
S, nigriventris is the common upside-down catfish, and the one species that actually spends most of its time swimming upside-down. They are social fish, best kept in groups, and the more of them you have the more often you'll see them. A single one kept in a 10 gallon tank wouldn't be comfortable; dwarf Corydoras or Akysis catfish are better suited to such a small tank.