How does an old flowerhorn act?

[Mark Pogarasteanu]

Hi, I have a male GB, about 4 and 1/2 years old, that used to be super-active and energetic, always interacting with me. For about six months now, he has grown gradually sluggish and uninterested, most of the time hiding in his cave. It's like he just wants to sleep. He has a mate and has bred during this time. He eats, but much less than before. The mate is one year old and acting just fine. The water change /feeding routines are the same. No stringy white poop. No signs of disease. Gibbiceps in the tank doing just fine. I have heard that old ZZ type flowerhorns become sluggish, but 4 and 1/2 years doesn't seem old to me. Any ideas? Any help is appreciated.

 

[TwoHedWlf]

I think 4.5 is a decent age for a flowerhorn. Google says 12 years, but there are a lot of sources saying 4-6 and from what others have said that seems about right. They're not very long lived fish.

 

[RD.]

Google is off by about 5 or 6 yrs. Your male fish is just wearing out, simply a case of FH genetics I'm afraid.

 

[ny.subway]

I think age was playing a role on him, my Flowerhorn is pushing on 6 years now. I can see him slowing down every month yet still playful once in a while.

 

[WilliamSmith]

Do you have some kind of flow in your tank? Flowerhorns love water flows also FH's live for like 6-8 years.

Try adding some water flows and some random timings like Randomly giving them food, Randomly changing water

 

[Mark Pogarasteanu]

There is actually very little water flow, It may be worth working on that with a wavemaker. I’ll let you know how it goes.

 

[Man-made Monsters]

I have been keeping Flowerhorns for nearly 20 years. I have seen strong ones last for 7-8 years and I have had others that passed away after only 4-6. My buddy who has been keeping flowerhorns even longer then me has said it best. He said, "This species of fish is like a flare; not a candle. They burn fast and bright but don't stay that way long" Honestly, Flowerhorn are exactly that. They develop big bodies and big personalities from such a young and small size. Unfortunately that kind of development can not be sustained over a long period of time. I hope that creating more water movement in your tank helps you. But honestly it could just be that you flowerhorn is coming to the end of his life cycle. Best of luck.

 

[RD.]

They develop big bodies and big personalities from such a young and small size. Unfortunately that kind of development can not be sustained over a long period of time.

Sure it can, just not with a genetically weak strain of designer fish, such as flowerhorn. Today's flowerhorns are the result of what happens when one breeds solely for looks.

My 7 yr old male A. citrinellus is a large thick fish, with a large nuchal hump, and a personality to match. He still acts like he did in his first year, full of piss & vinegar. He has already outlived all of the flowerhorns that I have kept in the past, and was purchased shortly after my last FH died.

My Midas

Not quite in the same league as some of Buddy's brutes, but I've had a few people ask me lately for a pic so I thought this might be easiest. I just relocated this male back into the 125 where he started out close to 7 yrs ago. Still deciding on what or if substrate is going in. I may just let...

www.monsterfishkeepers.com

 

[TheReefer]

Depends how inbred the flowerhorn is, some that aren't too badly inbred can live 10-12 years, but the really fancy but severely inbred ones only live in the 4-6 year range. It sounds like your flowerhorn might be towards the end of its' life unfortunately

 

[RD.]

10-12 yrs for trimac looking low grade FH's, possibly, but we are light years past those days now. Ironic though, the lower the grade of FH, the better the potential for a reasonably long life.