Fish won't eat Pellet .. help

[davdev]

I have 3 Bluegill and 3 P-seeds, all wild caught. I cannot get them to even sniff at pellets, and only 2 will touch flake. The only things they eat are live (Minnows, grubs, worms) and frozen blood worm. I don't really have a problem feeding them any of these things, but I would like to get them on pellets if possible. I tried starving them for 3 weeks, and they still won't touch it.

Any suggestions?

 

[spotted-elk]

you could put pellets in an dnt feed them any thing else tell the starve or eat or feed the minows the pellts the feed minows to your fish try an feed them a few dif kinds of pellets they might perfer one

 

[studd muffin]

Sun fish are the easiest fish for me to pellet train IMO. They will give in when they are hungry enough. The green sunfish and bluegills that I have in my pond were all wild caught and are on hikari pellets.

 

[Itsadeepbluesea]

You could try soaking the pellets in "juice from something they already eat before you feed them, see if that will stimulate them to take it.

 

[AutumnEffect]

Here is what I did to get my 4" male green sunfish on pellets:

I bought some freeze dried red shrimp from my lfs. I ripped a couple of them in half and let them soak in a bit of water first. I had tried feeding them dry, but he kept spitting them out. Once he was eating the soaked shrimp from the surface consistantly, I withheld all food for a couple days. I tossed in a pellet to see what he'd do. The first day or so he'd spit them back out, but he kept coming up to the surface looking for food. On day 3, he ate his first pellet and it's been smooth sailing ever since.

I think the trick is getting them looking at the surface for food, rather than further down in the water column or live fish.

 

[Owain4]

i have that same problem with my yellow perch, everything in the tank (minnows suckers,) is taking flake and pellets. i just cant get the perch to come to the surface to take pellets, they love freeze dried worms and live stuff but man they are stuborn fish

 

[AudriSampson]

Im feeding my blugill, Bullhead cat and Largemouth Bass Krill, pond pellets and the occasional live and frozen food treat. The bass wont eat the pond pellets but everyone else chows them down.