Marbled African wont eat???

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Dovii dude

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Jan 11, 2006
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Massachusetts
www.tanbusters.com
He is about 12 inches long,i have had him about 2 monthes,in this time he has only eaten 1 time(and he only ate Koi Pellets!!of all things!!)All he does is rise to the top of the tank and take a breath every once in awhile.I have tried Shrimp,Smelt,feeders,earthworms and beefheart is there something i am missing??Any help is greatly appreciated!!!:eek:
 
hhhmmm.... Sounds like you have tried. How is the water chemistry? Is he/she with any other fish in the tank?
-Sometimes, they can go for awhile not eating. Mine have gone for about a month, they don't eat, nothing! Then one day, they attack the pellets, feeders and smelt like there is no tomorrow!
-Water temp. will play a big role on how active they are, too. For Africans, keep it about 76-79 F' Temp. (Sub Tropical)

Best of luck though on getting him/her to eat.
Another thing too, every time I buy a new lung, I put them in a bare bottom hospital tank to make sure they eat everything and poop normally. Once I'm sure they are in good health, I'll move them to a display tank.
I hope this helps. :)
 
First of all don't worry. They can go MONTHS without eating. And I am NOT talking about the period where they estivate in their mudballs. I have done extensive research on their behavior, and have 29 lungfish at this time, and I can tell you that they will go for a very long time without eating without further ado.(BY CHOICE) The interesting thing is, they actually shrink a little during this period. They don't get thin. They use their body resources to sustain themselves, and when they start eating again, they regain their size, and grow some more. It's very interesting. They also are very much "individuals" so to speak. Some are pigs, some are picky, some don't eat much at all. This goes for their activity level also. Some of them are still as logs all day, while others are swimming up a storm - even in the same species. I do not heat the water in any of my lungfish tanks - they are all at warm room temperatures, that flucuate from time to time, again with no effect on behavior. (Think natural habitat, natural cycles) This is all normal for them. Especially since they all actually come from their native habitat.

You mention that yours has already eaten. He's good for months, if he decides he doesn't want to eat. What I'm saying is, don't stop feeding him, but don't be concerned when he doesn't eat. Just remove uneaten food, of course. Something that people often forget is.... They didn't get to be the size they are now, by not eating. Example: If you get a 2 foot lungfish, you know that he has been eating in the past to grow to that size. Sometimes it's just a matter of finding his personal preferred food.

Hope this helps.
 
Thanks alot guys,this has been a great help!!!One thing i have noticed is that my fish seems to "grind"his food instead of chewing it,it takes him awhile to eat just a few pellets,but he did eat quite a few of them.These are very interesting and different fish!!!:D :eek:
 
I feed mine sole on variety of pellets and no more live food. Works well, so far so good ! :)
 
i have never seen mine eat!!! but i put food in in the evening and it's gone by morning so i know he does eat just a bit shy!!!lol
 
yep, some are shy lol
 
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