How to Keep Kissing Gouramis and What Fish Are Good Tank Mates for Them
Just hearing the name "kissing fish," many people probably find it quite interesting. It is also called the kissing gourami, and it is a species of ornamental fish that is now found in many parts of our country. Many people now buy it and take it home to keep, but before keeping it, what most people probably want to know most is how to care for it!
How to Keep Kissing Gouramis
1. Fish tank: We all know that adult kissing gouramis can reach 20-30 cm in body length, and smaller kissing gouramis can also reach more than 10 cm. Calculated at a tank-to-fish body length ratio of 3:1, the tank must be at least 90 cm. However, most kissing gouramis people buy are around 10 cm, so a tank 40-60 cm long is sufficient.
2. Water temperature: Kissing gouramis can live in water temperatures of 18-30°C, with above 22°C usually being suitable. If keeping them in winter, if you have heating at home you do not need to install a heater. Install a thermometer so you can observe the water temperature at any time. If the water temperature cannot be maintained at around 25°C, you need to buy a thermostat. In addition, keeping kissing gouramis has no strict requirements for water quality; they like weakly acidic soft water.
3. Feed: Kissing gouramis are easy to keep because they are not picky eaters. They eat both animal-based feed and plant-based feed, like eating red fish worms most, and love eating aquatic plants and green algae.
4. Tank mates: Kissing gouramis swim relatively slowly and are not suitable for keeping together with aggressive fish species, such as piranhas, flowerhorn cichlids, three-spot cichlids, and so on. It is best to keep some fish species that are smaller than kissing gouramis and have a gentle temperament.
What Fish Are Good Tank Mates for Kissing Gouramis
Kissing gouramis have a gentle temperament and are active, liking to move in groups at all water levels, but when resting they often stop at the bottom of the fish tank. They are suitable for keeping with relatively active tropical fish. They sometimes suddenly swim quickly and bump into the fish tank, so when keeping them together, they should not be kept with tropical fish that are easily frightened. Generally, they can be kept with various large fish such as sharks and pomfrets. For example: guppies, mollies, three-spot gouramis, arowanas, yellow peacock cichlids, and red peacock cichlids, and so on, are all fine. However, be careful with tiger barbs; this kind of fish sometimes bites other fish.
What Bait to Feed Kissing Gouramis
Kissing gouramis have a gentle temperament and move in groups at all water levels. They can be kept with other fish, and they are omnivorous and not picky at all. Superworms, chopped earthworms, and artificial feed are all fine. They eat whatever the owner feeds them. Not only do they grow quickly, but their resistance is also good, they rarely get sick, and they multiply and have many offspring. Under artificial keeping conditions, kissing gouramis have no fixed breeding season, and breeding is relatively simple. It is best to keep them in pairs and feed them heavily to help breeding.
Diseases of Kissing Gouramis and Their Prevention and Treatment
1. Gill fluke disease: After the fish becomes sick, it will swim around in the tank at an alarming speed.
Treatment method: Put the sick fish into a formalin aqueous solution, adding formalin ICC per 4 kg of water. After soaking the sick fish for one or two ten-second periods, immediately take it out and put it back into the original tank. Twice a day for 2-3 consecutive days is enough to cure it.
2. Pinecone disease: Pinecone disease is also called pinecone disease, in which the scales of the sick fish stand up like a pinecone.
Treatment method: Soak the sick fish in a tetracycline aqueous solution at a concentration of 1 part in 50,000 units for bathing, twice a day for one hour each time. Mix a 2% sodium chloride solution with a 3% sodium bicarbonate solution, and give the sick fish a medicinal bath twice a day for 10 minutes each time. Add 0.5 g of chloramphenicol per 40 kg of water for soaking.
3. Cold: The fish remains still, floating on the water surface, with the skin and fins losing their luster and the color becoming dull.
Treatment method: Keep the water temperature constant, soak the sick fish in baking soda or a 1% table salt solution, and increase light exposure so that it gradually recovers its health.
When keeping kissing gouramis, you must pay attention to the choice of fish tank, which depends on the number you keep. Then there is the control of water temperature; the temperature should not be too high or too low. Finally, there is the feeding; generally they can eat anything, and it is best to feed an appropriate amount of chopped earthworms.