My Silver Arowana won't eat pellets!

[A/C Dood]

Hello MFK's,

I'm a new member as of 12-31-08 and this is my first post. I'm not totally new to fish keeping but always eager to learn and study.

I picked up a 10" Silver Arowana about 8 days ago. He refuses to eat pellets or food sticks. I asked my my LFS what they were feeding, they said Gold fish.

I'd really like to get this guy on pellets/food sticks. I gave in and bought a few rosy red minnows and he scarfed 'em down. He's a kinda skittish but I expect he'll be that way until he gets used to the new surroundings and tank mates.

I'm going to let him get good an hungry and hopefully he'll go for the pellets.
BTW I've offered him Tetra Jumbo Sticks, Hikari Chiclid Gold Floating pellets, freeze dried krill, frozen krill that was soaked and strained to get rid of the salt, frozen blood worms and fresh beef heart- he just swims on by.

My water temp is at 78*F +/- 1*. No major aggression or stress from tank mates, he's active and very alert, lots of room in my 135g tank, lots of filtration and 2-50% Water changes per week, water test levels are all normal, what more could a fish ask for? Oh yeah, the tank mates are eating like pigs, fat & happy!

Any ideas or suggestions on how I might get him to take pellets/food sticks?

Regards,

A/C Dood

 

[Eleven Bravo]

to MFK! So you had silver arow for 8 days now, how often do you feed? Who are the tankmates? as for the temp, i would bump it up to around 82. Getting arows on food sticks/pellets are a hit or miss. Some people get lucky and get them on it fast, for some it takes longer weeks, and months. It took me a month to get my jardini on food sticks. I starved him for a week. Just be patient.

 

[djdlemma]

Don't give in and give him anymore feeders. If you are patient, he will see all the others eating and eventually starve and take to the pellets. He's just being stubborn. Mine took a little while, but now he eats anything that I feed him. Good luck!!

 

[Hao]

agreed mines is stubborn to eat krills and just wants MP and meal/super worms so i just threw in 2 krills a day to see if he eats then il try again da next day eventually he ate it =D

 

[pwmin]

bump the temp

get it fat on feeders just to make sure it's healthy

you can also try crickets, worms and/or cut up pieces of tilapia filet a/o shrimp (i would suggest some of what you tried already, but that obviously doesn't work). offer them and if it doesn't eat them, remove (try one piece at a time). krill is actually better for this process that tilapia, shrimp, etc. because it floats

once it's eating those, try pellets

or you can skip right to pellets. you're probably going to have to starve it. this is why you wanna make sure it's healthy so it doesn't cause any problems. I got lucky w/ my last aro and pellets, but I've never actually gotten any other aro on pellets, just shrimp and tilapia. Oh, yeah, they've always taken krill right away.

this is usually what they go for in order of easy to hard: live, crickets, krill, pellets

i want to word the whole thing differently, but I'm having brain aneurysms, lol

 

[Cobizzle]

I would agree with starving it...may sound cruel but the Arowana will be fine. All of the Arowanas I had were brought up in the store on feeder fish, which as you know, is expensive and also a good way to introduce disease into the tank/fish.

I used floating sticks and my aros would take them into their mouths, then spit them out. Eventually (after about a week) they started eating them. Just remember, they arent going to eat the sticks or pellets right away so scoop the old ones out when they got soggy so you dont ruin your water quality...

Hope this helps!

-Cobizzle

 

[A/C Dood]

I feed 3 times per day. They get 2 minutes to clear the water of all food. Tank mates are:
1- Saum Green Terror
1- Electric Blue Jack Dempsy
1- Red Headed Severum
3- Clown Loaches
1- Leporinius
1- Sailfin Pleco
The Red head nips at the JD, GT and the Leporinius but loves the Arowana. Actually they all love the Arowana they swim under him/her, I think they like the feeling of the fins. I swear my Leporinius is a freakin' pervert, it's like he's gettin' a woody or something, he gets all goofy when he touches the anal fins. He kinda bows up and like looses his mind for a second or two and then goes back for a little more fin action.

135g tank
2 Rena XP3's, 2 AC 500's
2 50% water changes per week with fresh chemicals.

Yeah I know, I'm stocked to the gills. I'm good for about a year then I'm going for a 410g custom tank for the family room.

Regards,

Richard

 

[billylee]

Mine took months of trying but it works.
I first got him on MP then krill and slowly pellets --
in this order only. Getting him on krill is key cause
it floats then pellets is easier after that.

Let me know how u did.
GL.

 

[likestofish]

i would recomend raising the temp to 82 and just wait it out he will give in. Also rying hikari aro sticks my aro wont stop eating them.

 

[devder1]

cant find the link right now but you can find a really good article here on MFK about getting peacock bass off of feeders
it involves holding feeders just above the water until the fish is about to go after it and then dopping them in 1 at a time after u have their attention
eventually they get used to hitting them immediately t the top of the water and they hit pellets just like they hit the feeders
gl!