Still early yet,give them some time to settle into the confines of the tank and keep the hood lights off for the time being.
Bass and Pickerel won’t eat
- Thread starter Luckyreem
- Start date
Agree with this it often takes adult (wild) fish a month of more to get used to captivity, or adult fish transferred to a new environment that long, and they may not eat until comfortable .
Not sure where you are located; up in my neck of the woods, the temperature of local streams and ponds is just above freezing; ice thickness is still measured in feet on large lakes. Bringing a fish in from those temps to a typical indoor tank would involve a temperature differential of something like 40F degrees. I would expect to spend several weeks slowly acclimating them to that change. I realize that this is an extreme example, but the temperature change is something that should be considered wherever you may be.
Both fish would probably settle down faster with subdued lighting and some plant cover, especially floating plants. It could still take at least a few weeks for them to show normal behaviour.
Finally, live minnows caught using a trap are probably the second-worst food imaginable. Diseases, parasites...problems to which your fish are more susceptible than usual due to the recent stresses of being caught and brought indoors.
The absolute worst food source? Baitstores! Those overcrowded minnow tanks are usually run on a constant flow-through system since it's about the only way to keep the fish alive...but they are still pretty much a fish Auschwitz. Hundreds, thousands or tens of thousands of individuals, usually random mixes of species, jammed together in close quarters, rarely if ever fed, with fresh batches being delivered and thrown in on a regular basis. If you were to design a method of maximizing disease and parasite transmission, that's pretty much the way you'd want to do it. Taking these malnourished diseased fish and offering them as food is not a good plan.
Both fish would probably settle down faster with subdued lighting and some plant cover, especially floating plants. It could still take at least a few weeks for them to show normal behaviour.
Finally, live minnows caught using a trap are probably the second-worst food imaginable. Diseases, parasites...problems to which your fish are more susceptible than usual due to the recent stresses of being caught and brought indoors.
The absolute worst food source? Baitstores! Those overcrowded minnow tanks are usually run on a constant flow-through system since it's about the only way to keep the fish alive...but they are still pretty much a fish Auschwitz. Hundreds, thousands or tens of thousands of individuals, usually random mixes of species, jammed together in close quarters, rarely if ever fed, with fresh batches being delivered and thrown in on a regular basis. If you were to design a method of maximizing disease and parasite transmission, that's pretty much the way you'd want to do it. Taking these malnourished diseased fish and offering them as food is not a good plan.
The water temperature difference was about 15 degrees, Still a significant difference I guess.
I will do what you suggested with some plants.
what is your suggestion in regards to food then? what is my best option?
I personally would offer Tilapia very inexpensive at Wal-Mart but pellet food would provide all they would need such as vitamins. Large floating pellet for Cichlids will be fine Hikari Gold, New Life Spectrum, Omega1 are my choices.
How long has the aquarium been up and running? What are your current water parameters? Without this information there is nowhere to start.
What are your water parameters? The bass does look a bit stressed. That being said natives can take a while to eat when in a tank, they may still be "getting used to" there now environment. I would test the water to make sure the parameters are in line and if so just give it some more time.
**update**
Bass is finally acclimated and eating like a beast,
On the other hand, he’s been attacking the pickerel so the pickerel is stressed hiding in a corner all the time and won’t eat.
I guess he was a little too small compared to the bass.
In regards to all who asked about the water parameters, they are pristine.
my only idea to stop the bass from attacking the pickerel is to add a few more fish to the tank in the hope it will reduce the tension between them.
Bass is finally acclimated and eating like a beast,
On the other hand, he’s been attacking the pickerel so the pickerel is stressed hiding in a corner all the time and won’t eat.
I guess he was a little too small compared to the bass.
In regards to all who asked about the water parameters, they are pristine.
my only idea to stop the bass from attacking the pickerel is to add a few more fish to the tank in the hope it will reduce the tension between them.
