Clown Advice Please

It is my understanding that the cleaner shrimp (fire shrimp, coral banded and skunk) have the white antenna as an advertisement. It says "don't eat me! I will help you!".
My trigger ate most of my peppermints, and he hangs out with my skunk cleaner all day.
 
Yeah I read they were cleaning an Eels head so I figured they were ok to put in with it.

I am just mad their are no vegetarian Eels so they can be kept with fish.

I was going to get this Eel like fish but they get only 13" long so maybe they would be ok later when the fish get bigger.

I am not happy to get rid of the Eel and my 10Gal tank is not big enough.

My brother has a 50Gal I could get but I do not have the equipment to keep a second tank not the desire to take care of another tank.
 
If you noticed, they almost never eat the fish that were introduce BEFORE them. That is why people who want eels introduce them to the tank LAST.

No one has said you cant keep an eel with other fish, you just should add them last so they dont decide to lunch on your other fish.

Also, most fish that are suppose to eat inverts like shrimp will not eat cleaner shrimp. This is because the big white antennas signal to them that they will perform a function highly desirable to the fish - rid them of parasites, hence why they dont get eaten.
 
Yeah but even so I am not going to just get another one after I get more fish.

I wouldn't mind it if it stayed smaller but I don't really want a 20" fat Eel in the tank later on. If I can one day have a Trigger Tank I would put the Eel in there if I could.

I just want some nice fish and some nice corals and be done with it.

I have to have more fish and in the end no matter if they are Clowns or (put in name) I have to ditch the Eel.

One store said they will take it free, the other said(where I got it) they will take it and then the owner has to check it out and they will give me 1/2 credit.

I also asked my brother to ask his friend if he wants to buy it. If I only spoke Eel I would make a deal with him/her.

There has to be someone with a big Eel and small fish that has no problems but I am not going to try to be the one giving $30 meals or more depending on it's appetite.

Part of me is saying, ehh it won't eat them yet/ever and the other is saying are you crazy don't take a chance.

Hey I got an idea. I'll take the Eel out for a week and put him back in after the Clowns are in there a week. Just kidding.
 
[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P48nDpeble8&NR=1]YouTube - School of Clownfish (Fish: False Percula)[/ame]
 
Alright, the guy in the first video is an idiot.
Snowflakes can't see very well...
And my trigger would do the same thing when the feeding stick hit the water... and the eel tried to drag him under the rocks.
 
I doubt it but it would be cool if it did. I really don't want ot deal with it when it gets big anyway. I mean yes if it was ok but not like this.

Even if it didn't eat the fish for 6 months it may later on as it grows and then I will be seriously pissed off I didn't stop it now.
 
Yeah. I don't want to have 2 tanks just for the Eel to stay. I am more into the crabs and stuff like coral. Well fish is a given so I would rather have a few extra fish in my tank.

It would stay if not for the eating of the fish but again i would rather have the extra fish.
 
It sounds like you are very torn about this. If you are so torn, then give it a shot. Buy the fish, and see if they get eaten. If they do, then that is your responsibility, your money wasted, and the eel is officially your problem to deal with. If they don't, then everyone lives happily ever after! :)
 
I have been trying to catch it for like 3 hours but right now is my best chance. I have a long smart water bottle with squid in the bottom. He keeps looking at it from different angles but hasn't gone in yet.
 
Well no luck catching the Eel.

It was sniffing the bottle end but never went in. I know he is hungry and he managed to snag one piece of squid from me.

He won't swim up to the top to eat, he wants me to lower it to him. He was swimming up to the top in the back because he was sort of hunting the young Porcelain crabs but it was funny they were hugging the orange sponge on the other side not moving because they saw him.

I almost snagged him with grabbers but he is too fast and was not dumb enough to just get in the middle of them.

I thought of gluing a stick with squid to my shop vac and then turning it on when he is right on it and vac it out and then take him and put him in a Rubbermaid thing to go to the store.

Not sure this will work though.
 
I havent read all 6 pages or whatever but from what I read I cant believe you would get rid of your eel when he was there first. I think its unfair that he gets the boot because you dont want him anymore.

Didnt you research about them before you bought it?
 
Yes and so you think I should just not buy anymore fish because he was bought first. Many people have to get rid of stuff. That is like saying its wrong to get rid of a fish when it outgrows the tank. I can keep him but it will eventually be too big for even the fish that were in the tank before him.

So yeah I don't feel bad but I want to keep him and don't have another tank for him.
 
phastroh, I'm stuck with a eel that's got a 110 gallon tank all to himself. I'm also mentally stuck with him, he's not going anywhere... Amber, I think if your going to get really in to keeping fish you can't get so mentally attached to everything. Very bad things can happen. A fish can die for some dumb reason, one of your favorite fish can turn into a monster and starts killing everything and you have to get rid of it. I suppose I don't have much room to talk because I practically had a nervous breakdown when one of my snails killed it's self on a powerhead recently...
 
Sir Alex said:
phastroh, I'm stuck with a eel that's got a 110 gallon tank all to himself. I'm also mentally stuck with him, he's not going anywhere... Amber, I think if your going to get really in to keeping fish you can't get so mentally attached to everything. Very bad things can happen. A fish can die for some dumb reason, one of your favorite fish can turn into a monster and starts killing everything and you have to get rid of it. I suppose I don't have much room to talk because I practically had a nervous breakdown when one of my snails killed it's self on a powerhead recently...
Click to expand...


LOL poor snail.

I just think its the fish keepers responsibility to research everything about an animal before you buy it so you know what to expect. I wouldnt even buy a snail or crab without making sure its going to work in the tank that I want first. Not everything gets along and if you know you want a particular fish you need to make sure you only buy other creatures that will get along with it.

I wouldnt go out and buy a dog that kills cats and then get rid of my cat because the dog wants to kill it. I would make sure they got along ok first before commiting to the dog. Guess most people just get stuff give it a try and then dump the one they dont want anymore, its just messed up.
 
Did you not read the article I linked. They don't eat fish as their main diet. They eat fish sometimes and while some people never have a problem some do. Its not like I am killing it I want to take it to a store. I tried to sell it to another reefed as well.

The dog/cat reference was a bit extreme don't you think. While I can respect your opinion I do not agree with it in this case because the chance it will eat the fish is not 100% so it wasn't as if I bought it thinking nothing of it until people on this forum said well be careful so I am.

I can't see letting it get so big it eats everything and if you want to blame me fine but just know that not all research points to not havng them with fish and removing it is my decision if I do eventually.
 

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