[Dogstar]

Ok so my 29 gallon tank is almost ready for the final fish and I really want to make the right choice. I like the look and personality of the German Blue Rams but I'm a bit worried my 7.8 PH and water hardness will be too much for them. So I'm thinking that Bolivian Rams might be a better choice. I've read people say these fish should be kept in groups but I don't think more than a pair could go into my 29 gallon. Do you think its better to get a third and be slightly over stocked or stick with a pair and hope they are opposite sex?
Currently tank has 10 Rasbora, 11 Neon Tetra, 6 Kuhli Loaches, 5 Nerite Snails, and 15-20 RCS (I know these will be food eventually).

 

[patfat]

right when you drop those bolivian's in they will go right after the shrimp!! I have one in my tank it eats any type of shrimp except for amano shrimp he leaves those alone and my amano shrimp just freely rome around lol. also he will go and chase your loaches too! I had two in my tank and my ram ripped them to shreds..honestly with what you have in the tank adding two will push it in my opinion but three will be really pushing it over.. honestly when your at the store see which ones are hanging out together and try to get those...ive had two in my tank and they fought like crazy until I had to take one back..now my ram and eb acara go at it when I add ghost shrimp to the tank for a special feeding treat!! lol..I got GB Rams in with the balovian and acara and they do fine and have survived the last few months no problem..not sure what my water hardness is but I live in fresno CA using city water so I don't think its all that great..but you got to remember most if not all the fish now a days are grown in personal big grower tanks living in different types of water..not coming directly from the streams, rivers, lakes, ect. so it changes the game...plus all fish are different with different personalities so what ever you get will not act the same as mine do...Personally I would just go with the GBR's but why not try and see how it goes the worst that's going to happen is fish fight or fish die

 

[sohankpatel]

Shrimp are done for with Bolivian rams. I had 5, but 3 simply stopped eating and wasted away, it was pretty strange. The 2 I have left are amazing fish, they look nice and are very peaceful. I have corys, otos, neon tetras, and pristella tetras, and the bolivian rams have no issue with them coming into their territory. It is when the other ram goes into their territory then they get mean. However, don't count on opposite sex stopping aggression, I have a male and female, and while they tolerate each other, they do have a territorial dispute every 3-4 days. You should be fine with 2., Just keep an eye on them to make sure one is not getting beaten up, and that one is not significantly bigger.

 

[BrynnaCC]

+1 on them eating all your RCS. My pair gets along great with my kuhlis, neon tetras and rasboras. Mine are a mated pair but they still get into frequent disputes. It's just their way.

 

[Dogstar]

Hmmm ok. Thanks everyone. I didn't even think of the Kuhlis being in any danger. Maybe I will try the GBRs and hope that I get lucky and they are able to tolerate my water. Looks like germanbluerams.com doesn't have any inventory right now so I'll check my local LFS for healthy looking fish.

 

[Nordic]

Kuhlis are very good swimmers, as you will find out when you try to net them again.

 

[solchitlins]

German blue rams need high temps,
Bolivian rams are a bit more forgiving.
Sexing is easy to guess but can be misleading too.

Both are somewhat difficult to keep in my opinion, I have never been able to keep either alive for very long. Like someone said, they just stop eating.

I would suggest waiting untill tank is well established.

 

[patfat]

i dont know about the whole not eating part...my Bolivian ram eats flakes fine and when ever i give treats of ghost shrimp for the tank to eat he usually gets them some times i snag one and cut it in half and hold it in front of him and drop so he grabs it...the same with my GBR's...i mean they are all in the same tank with the heat at 78-80 degrees and they all live fine and dandy..no deaths or fighting