JD diet adv

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nativelover

Feeder Fish
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May 30, 2005
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so i picked up a baby Jack Dempsey about 1.5" long max. he was in with some other JD's and convicts and the convicts were terrors to them and the other fish in the tank, so he's basically missing his tail right now, fins frayed, had a small infection on its tail and no color.

I've been feeding blood worms and small cichlid gold pellets along with goldfish flakes that i feed the shiners in the tank with him. at first he would only eat a little bit of food then hide, but now after 3 days he's a little pigger and has the belly to show for it, hes starting to get color and the infection is gone and his tail is seems to be growing back slowly.

when he's bigger i'll feed red worms, blood worms, pellets, maybe crickets if he'll take them and possibly feeder fish if i have to leave for a few days. i know goldfish arent the best idea, and its not easy to find feeder guppies or fatheads, but the local bait shop has crawdads and shiners and they seem to be healthy and in constant supply. what do you think about this?

also i will be getting some baby sunfish and grow them out with him. most likely they will be greens and bluegill, but you can never tell with fry untill they get about 2" or so.

heres the tank.
P1090379.jpg


the shiners
P1090387.jpg


and the JD, ill try to get better pics, but he likes to nose the glass and try to swim towards me when i get close.
P1090383.jpg
 
Pretty cool. You probably should put some type of refuge in there though. A little cave or fake plant could really keep the JD's stress down. I would also suggest not feeding any fish as feeders. I think the JD would be happy with insects or even small live shrimp as feeders, or even live blackworms. If you are gone for a few days the fish would be fine with no food. If you are gone for a few weeks then that is a different story.
 
I'm going to look for some large rocks and pieces of slate. and tomorrow im going up to my parents to go through some old fish tank stuff and get some plants from that.
 
shiners are definitely a healthier alternative but should still be quarantined first, IMO feeder fish are just more trouble than they are worth, insects make good treats but as long as he is on a good pellet he will be fine, also i would stay away from mixing natives with them as JDs need much higher temps than what would be comfortable year round for the natives, and at that temp their metabolism will be really high and they will be quite aggressive and messier and not live as long, also that tank looks like a 55g and if thats the case and your JD turns out to be a male then he will need that whole tank to himself... GOOD LUCK
 
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