Pros/cons of buying young or older fish?

[Fishnoob78]

I have a 46 gallon bowfront that should be done cycling very soon.

I will be buying 6 yellows and 2 catfish when the tank is ready. More cichlids shortly after that.

The fish store that I goto is huge. They always have young and older for just about any fish. For yellows they have 3 tanks. In one tank there are young yellows for $6, a third with medium yellows for $12 and a larger mixed tank with full grown ones.

Id like to buy young fish and watch them grow. Are there any pros and cons of buying older/younger fish or is it all just preference?

If I choose to buy young fish then all of my fish should be young correct?

Any info about this is helpful, thanks.

[Reefneck]

With my africans I always prefer to buy Young/Small and watch them grow with me. You should always try to get fish close to the same size to cut down on bullying.

It's really your choice on if you want to get older, already colored fully fishes but it's alot of fun to watch the changes they go through from young to adulthood.

Gee, Do I sound like a dad talking about his kids or what?

Keri

[wildtiger]

I too prefer to buy younger fish for several reasons. Younger fish seem to be more stable as far as changing water conditions, you get to watch them grow, it allows them to pair off as they would in the wild and gives you a choice of the ones you really want to keep for breeding (if your going that route).

On the other hand if you buy older fish, then your possibility of not having to wait until they mature is much greater. But on the down side to that, half their life is already over.

IMO young fish are the way to go, you get a good run for your money and they are generally cheaper.