Starting from Scratch

This is what I did (whether or not this is what you should do is another matter!):

1) 20G long tank. My CPDs stick to the bottom mostly, so no need for a high tank.

2) Any good filter will do — just use a sponge prefilter over the intake to avoid fry getting sucked in.

3) Any plants that you have good luck growing will be fine — the java moss is usually recommended as a place where your CPDs will lay eggs. I also created some acrylic yarn sponge mops for extra egg-laying areas.

4) Bottom feeders: shrimp are a NO-GO if you want fry, they eat eggs; maybe pandas or some other type of small corys for bottom feeding. Other fish: there are probably many smaller fish that are compatible with CPDs, but most will probably eat the fry. Heck, even some of your CPDs will probably eat the eggs and fry. The main thing to avoid is aggressive eaters (even if small) — they can make it very difficult to get food to your CPDs (who are very passive).

5) These are really tough little fish. With reasonable care, you shouldn’t have to worry about them much. I had my 18 CPDs in a 50G tank with probably 50 other fish at one point, including 25 cardinal tetras, panda corys, pencil fish, etc, etc. My only trouble in that tank was trying to get them fed.

Honestly, I’ve been a little disappointed in their shyness. They will hide much of the time in a planted tank where there are hideouts. Even the slightest amount of movement outside of the aquarium makes mine run and hide, even though they are all very happy. The only way I really get to observe mine is to sit very still — the lower down I get, the better. Mostly I sit still during feeding time to get a good look at mine.

Anyway, hopefully some others will pipe in here with other (and better) information.

Bob,

I was rethinking my recommendation about cory cats, by the way. My gut feeling is that they will find a way to your CPD eggs no matter how thick your java moss is. Corys are eating machines.

If you have any other tanks that can hold your cleaner critters, I think shrimp are your best choice. Just move the shrimp over to the other tank occasionally and you will have fry in less than a week. Then you can move the shrimp back again. The only problem will be if and when your shrimp start having babies themselves. It may be almost impossible to catch them all. I bought 6 tiger shrimp a couple of months ago and put them in my CPD tank. I now have 50 of the dumb things, in all shapes and sizes! If you go with Amano shrimp, you will be safe from babies, since their babies require a larval stage in salt water. When your Amanos do have babies (it has happened to me), the shrimp fry will be about the size of baby brine shrimp and will make a good supply of live food for your CPDs. Any that are not eaten will not survive in the fresh water.