# Pets at Home Miss-selling AGAIN



## switcheroo

Maybe it's my fault for not doing my research, but I have once again been mislead by PAH... -.-

I have one male betta/fighting fish in a cycled 50 liter planted tank along with one zebra snail. I wanted a small bottom dwelling fish to help with the 'clean up crew' that is currently my snail; basically to scoop up any leftover food whilst being peaceful enough to live with my betta.

The employee at the store seems to know what he's talking about so I trusted him. 1 hour later and I now have what they called an 'upside down catfish' in my tank. After searching I have no found that my tank is no where near suitable enough for this kind of catfish; I discovered they can grow to 30cms and need a tank double my size!!

Will Pets at Home take this guy back? He is not large at present, nor is he causing any issues, but I have an innate fear of leaving this too long like I did with my 3 goldfish that were previously in this tank (learned my lesson on that one; now rehomed to a beautiful and spacious pond and thriving). 

Any advice? I don't think I have my receipt. What sort of bottom-dwelling fish would be a suitable replacement?

Thanks everyone.

EDIT: I'm nearly positive it's a featherfin squeaker/featherfin syndontis.


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## Fishyfins

It is almost certainly an upside down catfish. When i worked for the company, they were often sold as such. Sadly, as you have found out, they grow large, need big tanks, and dont do much in the way of "cleaning".

The bad news is that there isnt really a suitable replacement for any size tank. There isnt a single fish that is classed as part of a "clean up crew". There are some fish that will graze on algae, such as ottocinclus, but even the most ravenous wont make a noticeable difference, and will always need regular fish foods. Ottos also need to be kept in large groups, and need very good water quality at all times. Corydoras catfish stay small, and though they dont eat algae, will scavenge the gravel for food. Though again, they are a social fish requiring a shoal, and need regular feeding with sinking pellets.

Also, with you having a betta, i wouldnt recommend keeping any fish in with them at all. Bettas, contrary to their reputation, suffer from extreme shyness when other fish are present. If any other fish are present in their tank (even small fish that dont bother them), they more often than not go into hiding, refuse to come out for food, and end up dying of starvation. It is probably best to leave the betta on his own in there.


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## switcheroo

Fishyfins said:


> It is almost certainly an upside down catfish. When i worked for the company, they were often sold as such. Sadly, as you have found out, they grow large, need big tanks, and dont do much in the way of "cleaning".
> 
> The bad news is that there isnt really a suitable replacement for any size tank. There isnt a single fish that is classed as part of a "clean up crew". There are some fish that will graze on algae, such as ottocinclus, but even the most ravenous wont make a noticeable difference, and will always need regular fish foods. Ottos also need to be kept in large groups, and need very good water quality at all times. Corydoras catfish stay small, and though they dont eat algae, will scavenge the gravel for food. Though again, they are a social fish requiring a shoal, and need regular feeding with sinking pellets.
> 
> Also, with you having a betta, i wouldnt recommend keeping any fish in with them at all. Bettas, contrary to their reputation, suffer from extreme shyness when other fish are present. If any other fish are present in their tank (even small fish that dont bother them), they more often than not go into hiding, refuse to come out for food, and end up dying of starvation. It is probably best to leave the betta on his own in there.


I maybe should have elaborated on what I meant by 'clean up crew'.  I rarely have algae problems but was more wanting something that can clean up any leftover food at the bottom of the tank, as my betta tends to miss quite a bit even if I only add small amounts. My snail is actually surprisingly good at removing algae; I had a small fake skull in the tank before completely covered thickly in algae. Over the course of a week, the snail had it completely clean.

Thanks for your advice. Is it best to ask PAH to take the fish back? I only ask as you said you worked for them before, and I really don't want a hassle about it. I don't even care if I lose my money, as long as the catfish doesn't end up in an unsuitable home that could compromise my betta's health. :/

Lastly, are corydoras definitely not an option?

Thanks once again, it's really appreciated!


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## Fishyfins

When i worked for them (finished late 2009), they would take a fish back, but not give the money back. It may have changed since then, but its worth a try!

I would personally say no on the corydoras front. They would be suitable for your size tank as long as you had a group of 3+, but the betta would not be happy to see them there. As i say, betta do not seem to survive long when other fish are added to the tank, due to their extreme shyness.


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## Dragonlady

As Fishyfins said, Bettas are better kept on his own, however I decided to try to keep my male betta with corydoras. 
Well, one betta in 64l tank seemed to me a waste of heater energy. My emergency plan was to set a 2nd, slightly smaller tank if any of the tank mates would have mobbed other guys.

So far after 3 months, I have to say that I am happy with my decision. No mobbing, my betta even started to spend more time on the bottom swimming in the pack with "his" corys. Most of the time he swims on the top, the corys on the bottom. 
I like corys and their funny way of interacting in the school. 
However, the king is my Boris - the fighting fish and he knows it


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## Dragonlady

I forgot to add that it's always a good idea to spend more time and see how a betta is interacting with other tank mates in the shop. In my shop there was another beautiful betta but I notices that he was quite territorial and from time to time showing signs of aggression towards other fish.
As I was planning to keep a betta with other fish, I avoided a guy with too much testosterone.


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## switcheroo

My betta is extremely tolerant of other fish. They had him in a tank with brightly coloured mollies, which immediately seemed like a huge no to me- I didn't know he was there until a member of staff pointed him out, and he stayed towards the back/middle of the tank. I There were only a few mollies in the tank, but it seemed odd to me to have a betta in with other brightly coloured and long-finned fish incase he mistook them for another male. 

In his current tank he seems quite happy. Explores the bogwood and the plants, brushes through them, peeps behind the filter and explores all levels of the aquarium. I haven't kept a betta before and I haven't had him very long (this is my first "proper" tank) so he seems happy. It just looks a bit empty is all


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## switcheroo

Here is my betta. He isn't the prettiest out there but I love him all the same. Looks quite dragon-like to me, and I love his grumpy face! Blurry pics, sorry!


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## kittih

You could try Amano shrimp or large cherry shrimp. They are good clean up crew and amanos get to about 1.5 inches for males and 2 inches for females. Small cherry shrimp might get eaten.


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## NaomiM

I'm going to take the middle ground on this one. Quite a lot of people do keep bettas with corys, as they seem to be one of the better options if you do want to keep bettas with other fish, though I agree that the best option for bettas is to keep them alone. Bronze or sterbai corys are the most popular options if you do decide to go this route, as they are OK with the higher temperatures that bettas need (many cory species require cooler temps). I would say don't consider it at all unless your tank is at least 60cm long, as they need a decent amount of floor space, and if you do go for them, keep a very close eye in case the betta either takes exception to them or starts hiding away due to feeling stressed. It wouls be wise to have a back-up plan in place in case things don't work out, as Dragonlady did.

Re the upside-down catfish, maybe try posting ads on some fishy forums in the hope of finding him a suitable new home? If you're offering him for free and posting on several different forums, chances are you'll find an experienced fishkeeper to take him, whereas if he goes back to [email protected], chances are he'll be resold to another unsuitable tank.


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## bingolitle

I have a Featherfin squeaker - Synodontis Eupterus - called Spike.

He/She is over twenty years old and almost 9" long. Definitely NOT suitable for your tank! 

Spike is currently housed in a deep 4' tank and I would rather I had room for a bigger one. The dorsal fin is very impressive though, swooping about the tank in the evening gloom.


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## Dragonlady

switcheroo said:


> My betta is extremely tolerant of other fish. They had him in a tank with brightly coloured mollies, which immediately seemed like a huge no to me- I didn't know he was there until a member of staff pointed him out, and he stayed towards the back/middle of the tank. I There were only a few mollies in the tank, but it seemed odd to me to have a betta in with other brightly coloured and long-finned fish incase he mistook them for another male.
> 
> In his current tank he seems quite happy. Explores the bogwood and the plants, brushes through them, peeps behind the filter and explores all levels of the aquarium. I haven't kept a betta before and I haven't had him very long (this is my first "proper" tank) so he seems happy. It just looks a bit empty is all


Bettas are the fish with personality and every fish is different. Before I bought my first male fighting fish I did a lot of research and the scale of possibilities is like 1-10. Some bettas are not aggressive at all, some attack even corys and snails. There is another side of the problem of keeping a betta in a community tank - betta being intimidated by other tank mates. I read many posts where owners had to move their poor betta to another tank seeing how he was scared of other tank mates and only hiding in one corner...


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## switcheroo

Holding onto the catfish until he found a home in a suitable aquarium was not an option. He was beginning to react aggressively towards my betta, so back to the shop he went. Can't risk something like that happening. They took him back without a hitch, and were very apologetic.

A further development: last night a friend sprung a leak in his tank that contained five black neon tetra. I offered to keep them whilst he sourced a replacement so long as my betta accepted them; he barely batted an eyelid. Fish are now returned to a new, non leaky tank back with their owner. It was interesting to see how he would react were I to add fish. His behaviour didn't really change beyond being inquisitive- not long after he was back to patrolling his tank and building a little bubble nest (right before I was due to do a water change... sigh!) 

My tank is 55cms long, btw.

*EDIT* Spike does sound very handsome! They are beautiful fish, but since I was used to keeping huge goldfish in this tank before (before I knew anything about goldfish or their requirements) I love the look of smaller fish in the aquarium. Hopefully my featherfin will make his way to a better home than I could offer.


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