I need some help

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AndrewLang26

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Mar 27, 2008
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Towson
My GT won't eat his cichlid pellets. All he will eat is freeze dried foods. I know he needs the ingredients in the pellets to keep him healthy and full of color, but the pellets just sit in the tank and float there until I take them ouy.As soon i put freeze dried in there he's all over it, and he hides a lot, doesn't really swim around much. =(

Anythign I can do to get him to eat the pellets?
 
If he's hiding a lot, he may be sick - I'd worry about hexamita (HITH). IME when a cichlid hides, it's often hexa. Does he eat the pellets and then spit them out? Do you see any transluszcent cottony white stuff floating in the tank, kind of like rotted plant leaves?

Either way, I'd treat for hexa flagellates (if you're wrong, it won't hurt him, and if it is HITH time matters). Get some Metrozonidale medication (LFS's now sell it). Raise the tank temp up to 84-86, mix the metro in with the frozen food and get him to eat it. If he eats metro, he'll get better quickly. treat for a week after he is back to acting normally.
 
feed only pellets. he may not eat for a little bit, but by the time he gets hungry he'll eat his pellets. how big is the GT and how big are the pellets your attempting to feed? fish can last a few weeks without eating, so i wouldn't worry if he doesn't eat immediatly.
 
what i do for my hideing Gt's- all of them, i feed sinking pellets, that are made for bottom feeders like loaches. they'll eat them up. and if i leave the room while they eat, they will accept floating pellets.

EVERY gt i have owned (8) has been VERY skittish, they have to get used to there tank.
 
Paullywolly;1697553; said:
If he's hiding a lot, he may be sick - I'd worry about hexamita (HITH). IME when a cichlid hides, it's often hexa. Does he eat the pellets and then spit them out? Do you see any transluszcent cottony white stuff floating in the tank, kind of like rotted plant leaves?

Either way, I'd treat for hexa flagellates (if you're wrong, it won't hurt him, and if it is HITH time matters). Get some Metrozonidale medication (LFS's now sell it). Raise the tank temp up to 84-86, mix the metro in with the frozen food and get him to eat it. If he eats metro, he'll get better quickly. treat for a week after he is back to acting normally.
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you equate a skittish cichlid, with a sick cichlid? come on man.

your going to get him overally worried, besides the fact i've never seen my cichlids that have had hith (Oscars) hide, why would possibly go as far as stateing it could be a diesease? that's just unwise, you haven't even seen a pic of his fish, good lord...
 
GT's shouldn't be skittish AT ALL. They should be up at the front banging the glass wanting food.

My LFS has an entire tank of GT's with HITH right now - all wasting away, hanging behind decorations, not eating. It happens.

Fair enough, a pic would help, but a GT who's (1) a picky eater and (2) timid is an indication of a potential problem. He can wait if he wants, but some preventative medicine may make a big difference and certainly won't hurt him.
 
Paullywolly;1697572; said:
GT's shouldn't be skittish AT ALL. They should be up at the front banging the glass wanting food.

My LFS has an entire tank of GT's with HITH right now - all wasting away, hanging behind decorations, not eating. It happens.

Fair enough, a pic would help, but a GT who's (1) a picky eater and (2) timid is an indication of a potential problem. He can wait if he wants, but some preventative medicine may make a big difference and certainly won't hurt him.
Click to expand...

Defo not, my guys are in great shape. all but one would not eat floating pellets, because they were skittish. i speak from my experience with Gt's (True btw, not saums) you may have found differences with saums in your time fish keeping. but you cannot justify jumping to conclusions of sick fish, by being skittish- (look at all baby or cichlids that come into an new aquarium..all skittish- so by your therory- they all have Hith (which btw can be seen on cichlid heads (Hith-Hole in the Head) so haveing a fish with hith isn't a matter of thinking it may have it, you know when they have it, easiest Diesease to ID.
 
He is about 2.5 to 3 inches in length. He doesnt have HITH, my oscars had that back in the day. Come to think of it he does eat when I am not in the room. He ate 15 feeder guppies in less than a day the other day...Ill put a pic of him up soon. I don't know how to do it without adding a new thread.
 
Here he is thanks for all the help I will keep you updated

Omar.jpg
 
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