Hillstream Loaches: complete care guide

Hillstream Loaches

They are a great algae eater, they get about 3-inches and they look like aliens that can suck your face and that is why most of the people fall in love with them.

There are several other varieties of Hillstream loaches present in the market, this one is typically about the reticulated Hillstream Loaches, the most common one that most of you probably buy.

Misconceptions

But there is a misconception about them like;  they are only a cool water fish OR they have to have a high flow. Well, yes they do appreciate that. They can thrive in high-temperature water too, as high as 80-degrees and also in a 20-gallon aquarium with just sponge filter and no flow.

What they really want to thrive?

  • Stabilized pH somewhere between 6.8-7.8. 
  • Good water quality, don't let nitrate get way too high; live plants in the tank can help with that.
  • Feed them good food like good quality.

Diet

Wafers would do good for them, they don't usually go for blood worms or frozen brine shrimps. They will eat flake food, they will eat something that hits the bottom. But getting them some good food is an excellent way to keep them happy and it gets a long way to get them in the breeding mode. If you get a fish in breeding mode then it shows they are doing pretty well most of the time.

Do take this into consideration

Temperature from anything between 68-80 is acceptable above they might get more susceptible to poor water quality. Outside of this temperature range, they will start getting more irritated. So, unless you have got an aquarium with tons of water changes, they will still take their bread, they will love it. But if you take them and put them in a 20-gallon with tons of other fishes and maybe the water is not that good, then chances are that they will not do well.

So, take all this in consideration like; Am I pushing the lines here?

Is it a male are female?

It is really difficult to tell males and females apart unless you are looking at adults, typically when buying juveniles at the store. But, the wider head is typically the males. 

In general, if you try to buy a group and try to breed them, it will work under good conditions. Most people usually buy just one because they are $15 fish, they are hard to catch at the store.

How to get them out?

A lot of time you have to use a credit card or something to get between the fish and the glass; then it pops up like a suction cup into the net. You can use this trick at home if you ever want to switch the tank lives in.

Water hardness and lightning

When it comes to water hardness; it is found that they haven't cared one way or the other. Supersoft or pretty hard water do well for most. But again, it is good to keep them in somewhere in the middle, keep it constant and even for them. 

Any lightning work for them too, bright, not-bright, all of them.

Did they get lost?

They are not really shy, which is great. With algae, eater it's not really nocturnal. Do know that they can climb a waterfall in the wild. So, it is good to keep the tank over something. Usually, they won't go anywhere, it's not uncommon to see them cleaning you hang on back filter and they can get inside.

So, if you ever lost the, look inside the filter and check if it hopped in and started cleaning in there or it either got stuck or it is just hanging out in there.

Tank Mates

They go with so many types of fish in the community tank or even with the goldfish. Getting them food can be the hard part. If you have a lot of Corydoras in the tank then they would probably not get a chance of eating. So, watch them eating, because that is where they really struggle. 

If you have a ton of bottom dwellers so they are not fighting for food. If you drop the temperature down low, there are not a lot of tank mates that can live with it in there, therefore no competition for food. 

Don't force them to strive

So, food is like the ongoing maintenance things that are the hardest for them, especially in a store. They might already be hungry in the store and when you get them home, there is a lot of competition because of which they can not eat there as well. Five weeks later the fish is not alive anymore. 

So, great fish, they do eat algae but don't only make them eat. That is a pretty poor diet for the long term. They'll eat everything they can probably eat and then go into, Oh! I am really hungry mode. So, do not force them to do that.

Get yourself one or more too

Go and get yourself one or if you have got a 150-gallon tank get 5 or 6. Just keep in mind that these are not just cleaner fish, these are pets and they should be part of your overall bioload. But since they are pretty costly if you get them 5 or 6, therefore, it is always to start with a small group of them or just one.

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