What will a big tomato clown get along with?

Hey guys,
I foolishly added a fairly big tomato clown to my 55 gallon tank as my first fish six months ago. I have added a lawnmower blenny which died within 20 hours because of the clown, I presume. I've talked to people at my LFS and they recommend I return it for credit. But I really like the fish and want to keep it. It seems to be aggressive and its been the only fish in a 55 gallon tank for six months so its probably going to have a hard time letting anything else survive in the tank, I think. I'm just wondering what people think I can do or if I should just return the fish. What type of fish can I add with the clown that will live without having an overly aggressive tank? Thanks for your help in advance.

 

Aggressive fish...a trigger should be able to teach it a lesson

 

You could take the clown out for a little while.. rearrange your rock.. introduce new fish.. then put the clown back in.

this should make the clown think he is in a different area out of his jurisdiction..and if the other fish are there first..he will most likely not harass them as much

Edit: Or you could just get a trigger haha

 

I think you are stuck! You either have to get aggressive fish or return it.
Even if you add aggressive fish I would take it out and re-arrange the rocks before adding another fish. Tomato's are mean and he likes his 55gal home without anybody else in it!

 

I agree, you can try to rearrange the rock work and try an aggressive fish. Other than that I think returning it for credit may be your best bet.

 

Tomato's are aggressive, you could get the clown fish, but it should have been the last fish on your list. If you still want him, ask your LFS if they could hold him until you fill your tank with the rest of your list. Moving your LR around will help too.


luna

 

Mine is pretty docile but he is small. He will attack my hand tough when it gets close to his nem.

 

You do not say if you have coral and inverts or not. That is a big factor.
If a FOWLR a tank divider works well. A mellow (relatively) Niger Trigger or Picasso Trigger or even an aggressive Angel would work. The clown will be contained by the divider in 1/3 of the tank for about 1-2 weeks. I am not a proponent of disturbing the tank by re-arranging rock.

 

Thanks for the help. I am pretty new to this so if I return the clown what should i get. Should I add a few fish at once so this doesn't happen to me again or should I just buy fish that won't be very territorial?
My tank is a 55 gallon with 100lbs of live rock. Thanks for any suggestions.