Baby TSN question

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Rafini

Rafini

Piranha
MFK Member
Jun 28, 2012
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Calgary, Canada
Picked up one today, hes in the growout 20long with 2 bichirs, a dat and a irwini catfish.

The TSN is really tiny, like 2" max with a big head and a tiny body. So far the little guys been in my tank for around 5 or 6 hours and he hasn't eaten. hes literally had food place infront of him and refused to eat it. is this normal for this fish?

The datnoid seems to be acting territorial towards it from time to time so I'm wondering is it better to move this guy into his own small tank until he is feeding well?

either way, anyone have any suggestions for making him eat? I just want to make sure he doesn't waste away or get picked on. I have bought some massivore for him today and hes also ignored that.
 
He's probably still too small for massivore unless you break it into pieces but it's normal for a fish to not eat in new surroundings. Keep offering food an eventually he'll eat something.


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Thanks strollo, he looks really frail, will he be able to stand up to his tankmates? he seems to respond by pretending to be dead or swimming away and hiding in a floating plastic plant.

I have a 10g free that I could hook up to a heater temporarily if he needs it. seems to be very tame though lets me pick him up and he just sits in my hand
 
Do you know what the store was feeding him? Normally dats aren't aggressive towards other species. I would just make sure he has a hiding place to go if he does get stressed.


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Once it stabilizes, it will eat. Most likely frozen blood worms or small pieces of frozen fish will work better at that size. Their rate of grow is much faster than most fishes. Good Luck.
 
Yep that looks just like mine. The dat doesnt seem to be aggressive overly, he just kinda pecks at the catfish. i've seen him do it twice. the catfish totally ignored bloodworms also but I put that down to the fact that he is new. I added a new hiding area for him thats only big enough for him, so hopefully he will use it.

is it normal for them to go all stiff and play did when they feel threatened? this is my first TSN and i really really don't want anything to happen to him so I'm kind of paranoid haha
 
ive grown many a shovelnose out from this size....im up to around 12 i think lol...biggest 5 are all 24-30" and about 3 years old. Who ever said live blackworms has an exellent opinion for starters, and i'd def keep some rosies or even guppies in the tank. Keep throwing pellets to your other fish and he should eventually switch himself off live. I always start with live, then mysis shrimp, krill, shrimp, amd so on. He should atleast be 12-18" after a year. I dont like bloodworms for these tiny cats and be careful not to overfeed when he does finally eat. I've had a couple tiny guys literally explode in the stomach from eating too much. Someone on here will tell you live food is bad but thats def. a hoax. its only natural and sometimes the only way to get new fish to eat. I'd give the shovelnose the 20 long to himself, their very frail at this size. But not for long i've had plenty of 6-8" aros in the stomachs of 4-5" cats. good luck and enjoy. p.s. get him a friend they get along very well with one another. i have 8 in my 1700 intex and its a sight to see.
 
He seems to get on really well with my Delhezi bichir, they lay next to eachother and relax. Right now I'm using the 20 to grow out a datnoid, and some bichirs. if the cat really grows as quick as everyone says when he hits the 5" mark he will go into the 225 with the larger fish (not too big, around 6" or so)

I also stock the tank regularly with around 20 feeders per week. fat head minnows. the datnoid doesnt take anything but live, and although my bichirs will take anything even floating hikari pellets, they absolutely destroy these minnows. I'll get some minnows in there in a few days time so if he doesnt eat by then, he will definately eat the feeders when they come.
 
You know what I am really pissed off. the fish is dead.

Have had it for a total of 6 hours. no wounds, no nothing just dead with its mouth stretched open. I thought it looked and acted a bit weird. hopefully I can get my money back. not too sure if i would want to swap for another one. whats the chance of this happening again?
 
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