# Will adding 1 male Bolivian Ram bother the kuhlie loaches and ottos?



## manami (Feb 4, 2012)

I like them, but I don't want to disturb the peace my kuhlies and ottos have at the bottom. My temp. always stays between 74-78 or 76-79-80ish.

Any experience with those roommates? My tank is a 40g.


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## NickAu (Sep 28, 2015)

The ram may see the Kuhlis as a snack because they look like little worms.
I am trying to hand feed mine, its still early days, but I am having some success.
I love my Kuhlis too much I wouldn't risk it.
Luckily my Betta finds them amusing she loves swimming with them and staring at them.


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## MikeG14 (May 31, 2014)

The Kuhli's will be fine with the Rams. They are mainly bottom feeders and are not predatory at all. You may see a occasional show of territoriality out of the Ram, but their bark is much worse that their bite. Meaning, they'll chase or nudge but won't pursue. 

If you take a look at how a Bolivian Rams mouth is formed, it really isn't suited to eat other fish. They are designed to pick food out of the substrate, preferably sand or very fine gravel. After all, their scientific name _Mikrogeophagus_ "means small earth eater" in Greek.


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## manami (Feb 4, 2012)

Ok. I can always wait till my kuhlies grow a little bigger...just in case! Of the 6 kuhlies only two are more little.

It's just that I don't see many bolivian Rams that often at the petshops. Only two times and the first one I saw it months ago. But back then I didn't have my tank prepared. And the bolivian I saw at petco it was looking at me! XD and I moved my finger close to him (it was male) and it was not scared! And the employer was like "do you want that?" XD. But the reason I didn't get it was that there were two bolivian Rams in that tank and one or them was being really mean to the other. And while I was looking at other fish and went back to look at the Bolivians, one of them was already bought. And I'm not sure if the person bought the bully one or the victim = /.

I'm going to petco this week to get two swordtail platies and some amano shrimps and MAAAYBEEE if they have more bolivian Rams in stock...we will see XD.


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## MikeG14 (May 31, 2014)

Bolivian Rams would fit into your tank perfectly Manami. They have such a great personality and are the perfect Cichlid for a beginner. They always come to the glass when I come home from work. They won't swim into a cave but will use a terracotta pot if both ends are opened up.

You may see some con-specific aggression if you add another one down the road. My guys are at each other all the time but they never do any damage, just some hurt feelings


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## manami (Feb 4, 2012)

Ok. Thank you!


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## manami (Feb 4, 2012)

I got a bolivian ram! But I think I got a female? O_O

I choose the one with the healthy belly (other rams had a not so round underbelly...like hiding the belly fat) and I was sure it was a male, but later after looking at the ram closely it has a button under the belly. Does that mean it's a female? It doesn't have a pink belly like the GBR. But I don't mind of it's a female. She's pretty and shy!

Should I get her a male if it's a female? 

Here's a pic.


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## manami (Feb 4, 2012)

Sorry! Double post by accident.


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## MikeG14 (May 31, 2014)

He's beautiful, I'm so excited for you!

I think it's a male. If you look where the ovipositor is on a female, it should be larger & rounder. It will be long & pointy in a male. Which is what I'm seeing in your pictures. Bolivian rams are like one of the hardest cichlids to sex. I wound up with two males and I spent over a half an hour selecting what I thought was a pair. 

I've only been able to identify one female in the stores. I was 100% certain because she was laying eggs at the time.

Give him some time and he will color up nicely. He will also start to grow these neat little red streamers from the end of his dorsal and tips of his caudal fin.

You picked a good one Manami, best of luck with him!


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## MikeG14 (May 31, 2014)

To be honest Manami, I still can't be 100% sure when it comes to sexing Bolivian rams. Here is a picture of one of my males from a few months ago, compare your new fish to it. Your fish does seem to have a rounded head which is said to be a female trait in Bolivian rams. Circled in yellow is the male urogenital opening.


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## manami (Feb 4, 2012)

Well my ram is chasing at his own reflection at the back of the tank and sometimes it flares. Do females do that too?


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## MikeG14 (May 31, 2014)

He just needs some time to get settled in. You'll see all kinds of behavior from cichlids of both sexes that you may not be used to. They flare their gills, shimmy & slap their tails. Sometimes they even flash against the substrate out of frustration when they are being territorial. You'll also notice rapid color changes depending on their mood. 

My rams took about 2 weeks to fully settle in to their new home. Be patient with him.


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## manami (Feb 4, 2012)

Ok. Thank you so much for your time and help! = )


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## fishkeeping (Jan 31, 2015)

Bolivian rams are so cute! I have one named Lenny and when I first got him, he was waay smaller than he is now. Now I don't know if all rams do this, but as he got older, the ends of his dorsal and caudal fin extended and the edges became a nice shade of pink. I also have kuhli loaches and even now, he doesn't bother them. Good luck with your tank!


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## manami (Feb 4, 2012)

Thank you! He's eating well now, and he hasn't bothered anyone. Only the male platies, but that's because they sometimes bother him.


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## MikeG14 (May 31, 2014)

fishkeeping said:


> Now I don't know if all rams do this, but as he got older, the ends of his dorsal and caudal fin extended and the edges became a nice shade of pink.


It's more common in mature males but with Bolivian rams anything is possible.

I had a rummynose that mistook a caudal streamer on one of my rams for a bloodworm and chomped it off. It fully regenerated itself in about a month and grew back beautifully.


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