9" clown loach question: HELP

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888fish

888fish

Fire Eel
MFK Member
Jun 19, 2008
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CA
I have a 9" clown loach, got it 2.5 months ago. It's gotten skinny but I have never seen it eat. It just hides, stations 24/7 under a large piece of driftwood. It used to live with 20 other clown loaches (7"-2.5") but now lives with 15 Clowns (7"-4") and other fish species (Tigrinus, Azul, African Arowana, bichirs). I've tried to feed it massivore, frozen shrimp, and frozen blood worms. All the other fish are doing well.

Question: How long can it survive without food?

JJ
 
The biggest problem I can foresee is that it will contract internal parasites, which it may already have. Have you tried bloodworms?
 
I've tried bloodworms. Nothing will get this loach to budge! I've triple dosed the tank with PraziPro as well. Can it even live this long without food?
 
Good question... CL's do like to dig. Maybe he was digging himself a bed & the driftwood pinned him down... Its a miracle mine havent been crushed the way they rearrange my sand. My rockwork has all been knocked over by them undermining the sand.
 
He's not stuck! LOL. He turns around under this same large piece of driftwood. Thanks. I'm going to try garlic marinated market prawns for a week.
 
I have one CL (1 of 10) that I thought was going to die of starvation because it wouldn't eat when I fed the fish. It was very active, but I never saw it eat. Granted, mine was much smaller, approx 2 inches. I was prepared to lose him when one day out of no where he starting eating. Now it eats like a pig and is nice and plump. I have chalked up the issue to the CL having trouble adjusting to its new environment.

From your post I gathered that your CL has been moved or its environment has changed (new fish or new landscape). I'm wondering if it is just taking a long time adjusting to this change.

Got my fingers crossed that it will start eating soon.
 
I also have a 10" clown loach. It would not eat anything other than Hikari algae wafers. I drop a few in at night before I got to bed. I think some loaches are nocturnal eaters. It's funny how these 10" loaches never move around but my 5" loaches I had a few years ago will swim around all day non stop.
 
My CL's go freaking nuts for red wrigglers/ red worms. I pick them up and the bait shop. It takes a little bit to clean off all the dirt, but they just love them and it gets them big fast.
 
Ask the old owner what they feed him before. load him up with that food.Then Start to feed him your regular food.it might take him 2-4 week before he give in. Don't worry once he see other fish eat he'll start to eat. Goood luck I had 25 of them in my tank.
 
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