Red Tail Cat

Diablo · #1 (**permalink**) 02-29-2004, 07:54 AM

anyone else tried to keep these? I tried 3 and each one died in about a week after purchase. And they are not to cheap. All my other fish were fine. And these would get real slow moving, and eventually die. They only Idea that i was given, is that i would feed them goldfish, so i would dump a dozon in there for him. Well i heard that godfish urine was toxic. Anyone have any ideas. I would like to figure this out, because i love this fish, and would love to keep one.

Diablo · #2 (**permalink**) 02-29-2004, 08:14 PM

anyone?

RoYaL_619 · #3 (**permalink**) 02-29-2004, 09:47 PM

cool lookin catfish what kind is ive been looking to buy some and thats the prettiest by far.

RoYaL_619 · #4 (**permalink**) 02-29-2004, 09:50 PM

can they eat guppies instead of goldfish, i hate using goldfish because their dirty and poop costantly but i dont have any catfish yet so im not sure if they can eat guppies .

telefrag · #5 (**permalink**) 02-29-2004, 10:43 PM

I would avoid feeding them goldfish at all costs... I had one that I got as a baby back in the early 90's and had it until 95 when it just got way too big for a 75 gal tank.

I never fed it live fish, but I did give him shrimp of different types when he was younger (ghost shrimp)

I mainly used sinking food pellets (the wardleys brand with the corydoras on the package) and after he got bigger, I just used large sticks, eventually he would go to the surface to eat them.

They are cool fish, and DEFINATELY not cheap.

faze · #6 (**permalink**) 02-29-2004, 10:48 PM

whats the ph in your tank?temps? those are too big considerations but the goldfish also could play a big role they create alot of ammonia in the water....

Ed_r · #7 (**permalink**) 02-29-2004, 10:54 PM

Not sure if these are te same as the true Red tail cats you see att he Aquarium. I personally have seen them as large as 11-12' I'm with faze on this Water temps and PH are definate killers. Also frequent water changes.

telefrag · #8 (**permalink**) 02-29-2004, 11:06 PM

A common misconception about pH (p is for powered, H is for "Hydrogen") is that it is lethal, or harmful.

When in fact pH stability is more important that actual pH levels.

If your tank sits around 7-8 on the pH scale, thats fine, as long as it STAYS in the 7-8 range, if it increases and decreases frequently (like it may when you add say, 24 goldfish) or when you do a large water change.

As long as your pH is stable, I really really doubt it will cause you any problems, unless your water from the tap is just really alkaline (which it is here in N.Texas)

As far as ammonia, as long as you dont have a high fish load, and have good filtration, and do 30-50% water changes at least once a month, I really doubt ammonia will be a problem.
Also, ammonia toxicity decreases the lower the pH level becomes as well.
Just thought I'd give you an FYI on that.

I was a bigger aquarist then I was a herper at one point.
Still have 5 fish tanks.

Diablo · #9 (**permalink**) 03-01-2004, 01:55 AM

Thanks for the info guys. The temps were 82 and the PH was in the 7-8 range. The cat was in with An oscar and a couple of Dempseys. And they all did fine. It seems the the cats would all doo fine untill i would dump a bunch of gold fish in. Then a couple days later they would be dead. I never realized it till I thought back after i heard about the urine being toxic? So I think i will try another one and just not feed goldfish. And as for eating guppies, these cats will eat anything.

telefrag · #10 (**permalink**) 03-01-2004, 02:55 AM

If your really serious about keeping one long term, make sure your ready to provide it with a HUGE tank.

While they dont grow super fast (well... depending on how many water changes you do, and how much they eat), they can get very large. (not arapima gigas large, but pretty darn big) and be too big for any home aquarium.

Its the same situation with red tail cats, as you would have trying to find a home for a 16ft retic.

Pretty slim, so unless your going to cook it and eat it someday, you may want to think twice before getting one.

there are many types of shovel nose, and synodontis cats (not really good in a south american tank) that get good size (enough to avoid being oscar and jack dempsy food) that wont over grow their home.

Just remember that when you bring that cute little 6" inch cat fish home.

Diablo · #11 (**permalink**) 03-01-2004, 03:06 AM

Yeah I am prepared for it to get large. I was going to set up an outdoor pond in my basement for it. I planed on keeping him in the aquarium untill it got a about 1.5' or so then transport him into the pond. Right now ive got a blue channel cat that is a little over a foot in with my Oscars and Dempseys

Ace · #12 (**permalink**) 03-01-2004, 12:59 PM

yes diablo you should get another one, i love those catfish. i would feed it guppys and then as he gets older hand feed it goldfish. That way they do not mess with the tank

Foman · #13 (**permalink**) 03-08-2004, 04:03 PM

Guppies get too small for redtail cats fast(these fish get massive), The best thing to feed your fish is krill, that way you have no worries
about getting some sick feeders or bringing ick or some other illness into your tank. I have also heard stories of people feeding large catfish mice and small rats, now that would be a show.
Diablo- Cool you have a channel cat? I used to have a monster albino that was atleast 2 feet and fat. at that size they can be a little annoying, they eat everything and terd alot.lol

Lfsabch · #14 (**permalink**) 11-20-2005, 09:33 AM

truely an awesome fish, but ya definetly dont throw too many goldfish in at once ,especially if the REd tails are new to the tank. way too many organic changes going on and the result is DEATH.

unluckyseventeen · #15 (**permalink**) 11-20-2005, 03:56 PM

This thread is incredibly old.

mpgt · #16 (**permalink**) 11-21-2005, 11:52 PM

Old thread, yes but for the benefit of anyone reading this...

Red Tailed Cats (RTCs) will eat just about anything that will fit in their mouth. Feeder goldfish can carry diseases. If you really wanted to use them, they should be kept in their own tank, and added as needed for food (not allowed to live in the same tank). My RTC grew rather quickly from 3.5" to over 30" eating mostly catfish nuggets. Shrimp tend to be oily, so I hardly ever fed them.

Fish like these really need large tanks or ponds with suitable filtration and water conditions.

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