Hello All,
I am new to this forum, infact I just registered to seek advice / help from all the experts out there.
About myself, I am from India and an aquarium hobbyist for about 15 years now. I've been growing cichlids for as long as I know. I grew two pairs of German Blue Rams last and gave it away to one of my very close associates whose daughter wanted them so bad.
I have a 36 X 18 X 18 - 50 Gallon tank and it was empty for almost 8-9 days since I gave away the rams. I happened to cross by a LFS and saw a 5 inch flowerhorn who was very active. I wanted to buy him and paid the shopkeeper and asked him to hold on to the fish for a couple of days for me to prepare the tank.
I changed the substrate to soft rocks from the aquarium sand I had earlier. I use a 200W Heater and the tank's temperature is around 28 ºC. I have a submersible filter (Venus Aqua) 800 L/H with the stock sponge filter medium. I had a couple of hiding spots / caves for the cichlids earlier and I removed almost 70% of it. Have one piece of driftwood and and artificial resin Rock with one artificial plant to increase the FH's swimming space. For lighting I use a havell's 2 foot LED bulb.
As additives to the water, I added API aquarium salt, Seachem Prime, Ocean Free Slime Velvet and let the filter on for 24 hours then an aeration pump for 24 hours and then again the filter for 12 hours before I went to the shop to pick the FH up. I bought him home, let the packet float in the water for 30 mins, strained the aquarium water and released him into the aquarium, turned off the lights for about 6 hours without even bothering to look at him so that he gets enough space and privacy to settle in.
For the first two days whenever I walk past him, he goes into hiding either under the canister of the filter or at one corner of the tank. I didn't feed him for 24 hours and then I put a few dried shrimp which he devoured in less than few seconds. I again didn't feed him for another 12 hours and everytime I walk past him he always hides and is extremely intimidated by my movements. I fed a few pellets of Hikari Cichlid Staple Mini, Grand Sumo Mini Pellets, Wild Flowerhorn Fishfeed once every 8 hours. He eats them the very next minute. But for the past 4 hours, he has been going crazy. He just keeps jumping out of the water, swimming very hard and is disgusted by my very existence. He also does that rocket swoop where one side of the body brushes into the pebbles like a swoosh. He jumped and hit the aquarium roof and has a small chunk of flesh gone out from his 'KOK' . He has never been so violent before. He was always intimidated by me moving here and there and when I watch him from a distance , he would just stray around the tank calm. It's almost 5 hours as I write this now and he is still jumping, rocketing, and moving awry all around the place. I tried turning the lights off, keeping the lights on no difference. Fed him 8 pellets exactly of hikari staple , ate all of it and still continues to instill a fear in me. I'm afraid he's contracted any disease. I'm providing links below for two smal one minute videos I shot off his behavior.
Please help me identify what is wrong with him.
I am new to this forum, infact I just registered to seek advice / help from all the experts out there.
About myself, I am from India and an aquarium hobbyist for about 15 years now. I've been growing cichlids for as long as I know. I grew two pairs of German Blue Rams last and gave it away to one of my very close associates whose daughter wanted them so bad.
I have a 36 X 18 X 18 - 50 Gallon tank and it was empty for almost 8-9 days since I gave away the rams. I happened to cross by a LFS and saw a 5 inch flowerhorn who was very active. I wanted to buy him and paid the shopkeeper and asked him to hold on to the fish for a couple of days for me to prepare the tank.
I changed the substrate to soft rocks from the aquarium sand I had earlier. I use a 200W Heater and the tank's temperature is around 28 ºC. I have a submersible filter (Venus Aqua) 800 L/H with the stock sponge filter medium. I had a couple of hiding spots / caves for the cichlids earlier and I removed almost 70% of it. Have one piece of driftwood and and artificial resin Rock with one artificial plant to increase the FH's swimming space. For lighting I use a havell's 2 foot LED bulb.
As additives to the water, I added API aquarium salt, Seachem Prime, Ocean Free Slime Velvet and let the filter on for 24 hours then an aeration pump for 24 hours and then again the filter for 12 hours before I went to the shop to pick the FH up. I bought him home, let the packet float in the water for 30 mins, strained the aquarium water and released him into the aquarium, turned off the lights for about 6 hours without even bothering to look at him so that he gets enough space and privacy to settle in.
For the first two days whenever I walk past him, he goes into hiding either under the canister of the filter or at one corner of the tank. I didn't feed him for 24 hours and then I put a few dried shrimp which he devoured in less than few seconds. I again didn't feed him for another 12 hours and everytime I walk past him he always hides and is extremely intimidated by my movements. I fed a few pellets of Hikari Cichlid Staple Mini, Grand Sumo Mini Pellets, Wild Flowerhorn Fishfeed once every 8 hours. He eats them the very next minute. But for the past 4 hours, he has been going crazy. He just keeps jumping out of the water, swimming very hard and is disgusted by my very existence. He also does that rocket swoop where one side of the body brushes into the pebbles like a swoosh. He jumped and hit the aquarium roof and has a small chunk of flesh gone out from his 'KOK' . He has never been so violent before. He was always intimidated by me moving here and there and when I watch him from a distance , he would just stray around the tank calm. It's almost 5 hours as I write this now and he is still jumping, rocketing, and moving awry all around the place. I tried turning the lights off, keeping the lights on no difference. Fed him 8 pellets exactly of hikari staple , ate all of it and still continues to instill a fear in me. I'm afraid he's contracted any disease. I'm providing links below for two smal one minute videos I shot off his behavior.
Please help me identify what is wrong with him.
