yoyo loach

I never had luck with loaches and short carpeting plants. They were always in it, digging them up.

Yeah I have the same problem with my loaches. I sort of just gave up.

Do you have hiding spots for your loaches? I found that giving them their own space kept them happy.

Also if you had only one it might be easier as they probably chase each other alot, or at least they may as they get older. My yoyo has calmed down in her age, she's about 5 years old now (since I got her) and she is calm and hangs out in her cave.

kara

I know that my clown loaches like to dig, so I'm assuming that the yoyos are the same. I'm not sure if they sense that there maybe some kind of food in the area or what. My clowns used to dig holes, which appears to look like a contest of which can dig the deepest hole or maybe which can mike the highest pile of gravel.

even after the HC and Hair Grass are established,
most Loaches and Botia will regularly disturb them.
that's why people with delicate foreground plants
get Corys and Ottos. I have six 3cm long Botias in
my tank, and see plantlets floating every few days
from them regularly drilling down into my substrate.
I don't like it, but I put up with them in hopes they
will help control my snail fry population, dislodge
plant debris, and cause they are so darn cute

spypet said:

even after the HC and Hair Grass are established,
most Loaches and Botia will regularly disturb them.
that's why people with delicate foreground plants
get Corys and Ottos. I have six 3cm long Botias in
my tank, and see plantlets floating every few days
from them regularly drilling down into my substrate.
I don't like it, but I put up with them in hopes they
will help control my snail fry population, dislodge
plant debris, and cause they are so darn cute

Click to expand...

i have 6 yoyos in my tank and I experience alot of what you are saying. I am trying to get HC established in this tank and and for the first week I kept coming home to half of it floating at the top of the tank. I have since used plant anchors to keep it in place until it takes root in the hope that they loaches will not be able to uproot them once it fills in. I must say that I am a little disheartened to hear that this might not work.

Of course even with this being said i will not remove the loaches from my tank , because they are some of my favorite fish. I think you decision comes down to the question of how much you like your loaches. Are you willing to change your scape to make them happy and or fix the problems they cause? IF yes then I would leave them in. If no then I would remove them.

Thanks a lot guys. Yea, I'm gonna have to take them out then... I really like them, but I like my plants better =). That must be why I always see some HC floating as well. Such a shame though, they've grown from about 1" to about 3" now. Hope I can find a good home for them... But even before that, I gotta catch them first! Those guys are so difficult to catch, especially with all the plants and caves and things in the tank =(.

Anyways, thanks again!

I remember someone saying that one of their larger clowns was able to rip a java fern from driftwood that was well established on it for years! I've got various loaches and so far they have not disturbed any of my plants, though I have never tried carpeting plants. If you like loaches, zebra loaches (botia striata) are smaller and calmer and a bit more plant friendly.

i have a 20 gallon planted tank, but with no carpet plants. there is a micro sword of some sort in it, and an anacharis, corkscrew val, a ludwigia repens, some other red plant, java moss and petite anubias. i have a few trumpet snails now but i'm scared crapless that they will take over. would a yoyo loach be a good idea to control the population while letting the snails do the beneficial things they do do (aerate substrate whatnot)?
they would be with an oto, an amano shrimp, 2 ghost shrimp, 3 rasboras, 3 orange von rio tetras, and 1 or 2 german blue rams (haven't decided as to quantity)

thanks a bunch

A loach will likely eat your shrimp and will totally eliminate any sign of snails.

aw, i like the shrimp...too bad

Hey,
I agree with pittiepride. I have 9 yo-yos and I feed them ghost shrimp.
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