Help with cichlid not eating !!

[aykinhk]

Hi all
I have a problem ATM which I used to feed my cichlids by ocean free SA-G1 for a while and now I run out and buy and change another pellet which is vatalis/ New Era south american cichlid pellet
However they don't interest to eat that at all
They get into their mouth and pull it out , they are looking for food but not eat that at all
So what can I do if I want to change pellet sometime .any trick recommendation
I try to fast them 3 days already and try again but still not work.
Thanks !

 

[Audaxcity]

If they take but spit it out, the good news is that they recognize it as food; they just don't like it.
I've heard that garlic soaking works, but I just offer a bit of the new food every day without any other feeding until they actually get hungry enough to swallow it.
This could take a while, as it was not uncommon for it to take up to a month IME. My heckelii only recently started taking pellets after almost two months (though he did sometimes have the weekly worms and wafers I offered to his tankmates)

 

[aykinhk]

Thanks ,but will they get dead if not having eating for a long period like 10 days plus even u say a month ??

 

[Audaxcity]

Nope. A month is nothing, especially for cichlids as large as your's. Just make sure that the new food is available everyday in small amounts so that your fish can decide when to start tolerating it.

 

[aykinhk]

Cool thanks again you opinion i will ty it see how going
Will try small amount everyday, but do I just leave it in the tank forever or pick up the pellet after 15 mins ?

 

[aykinhk]

Also do you know much about vatalis? the vatalis is a good brand ?????
My LFS highly recommend this one
Before I was try to get Hakari cichlid gold but they say the vatalis has more protein and natural

 

[Audaxcity]

When I say small amount, I'm not joking. Like literally just a few pellets. Shouldn't make a difference in water quality that way, and sometimes fish will eat it when it gets mushy.

I haven't heard of Vitalis before now, but I did a nutritional analysis on Vitalis vs Hikari.
Vitalis is slightly higher in protein(+4%), yes, but its also double Hikari's in fat and moisture. I'm pretty sure fat and moisture causes food to expire faster/more easily, and also clouds up the water more.
Hikari has double the fiber, which is good for decreasing constipation.
As far as I can tell, Vitalis seems more ideal for young fish that are still growing.

However, I also noticed that Vitalis is extremely vague in its ingredient's list, and I quote:
"Fish and Fish Derivatives, Derivatives of Vegetable Origin, Molluscs and Crustaceans, Oils and Fats, Minerals."
That's usually a red flag in my books if you can't track down the exact ingredients. Hikari on the contrary is explicit in the ingredients.