Niger Rip saw Oxydoras Catfish not eating

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thundayam

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Oct 19, 2009
12
0
0
uk
Hi guys,

Looking for some tips/help on my Niger catfish ... I have been looking out for a youngster for a few months and recently found one at approx 10". Not as young as i wanted but all i have managed to find. ( still looking as i would like 2 ) Anyhow ... When i arrived at the dealer the Niger looks emaciated he has hardley 0 body fat and almost looks like a skeleton ! ... He said it was feeding on raw prawns although i am 99.9% sure he hasnt fed for months.... Now i thought i could rescue this fish and turn him around .... Think i am going to lose the battle tho ! Had him 5 days now and he hasnt had a thing!

Water conditions are spot on.
Have tried frozen blood worm and Live blood worm
Earth worms large and small
Catfish sinking pellets
High protien sinking granules
Maggots
Crushed aquatic snails
Mussels Chopped
Raw Prawn Chopped

He hasnt tried anything .... I have fed late at night when the lights are out as i know how they can be shy when young. Still he hasnt taken any of the offerings
He is in a 120g temporarily with a few other inmates all leaving him well alone.
I think he has shut down ....almost lost the will to live ! This is a first for me as normally catfish are easy to get feeding ...
Any help or advise is appreciated

I will try and get a pic of him and post it if poss ...he is tucked round the back of bog wood most of the time making taking a decent pic almost impossible ...

Cheers Thundayam

I can only assume
 
sounds like mine when i got it. I fed frozen bloodworms, hikari sinking carnivore pellets and algae waffers. Dont expect him to eat meaty food with gusto anytime soon. If it has been starved, it's lost most of the bacteria in the GI tract and will need time to gain it back. Feed algae waffers first and then try other foods. Feed about 1 hour after lights out and shut down the filter. Calm/dark waters may be more inviting for him. Good luck and dont give up
 
Thanks Doradid... Havent tried that yet ! Will get some algae wafers tomorrow and turn the pumps off .... good stuff cheers
 
any update on the fish ? you try feeding it with the lights off or at night. that helps sometimes. desperate times, you may wanna try and increase the temp of the tank by a few degrees.
 
Update ... still not feeding ..... I like the idea of inreasing the temp !...will try that now .... Yeah all feeding has been done with lights out ... iknow these fish are notorious for feeding at night...

Reason why i bought him was that i knew he had a better chance with me than with the LFS...

Thanks for the feedback guys .... anymore ides are welcome
 
Update .... he has been grubbing around the bottom and i think he has taken some small amount of food .....just not sure what as i have not seen him take it ...the only reason i guess he has taken a small amount is that i saw some small stool deposits just under him ( where he lays during the day ) ... I am still throwing in a variety of foods every night well after lights out ..... stomach still looks concave ! .... any other ideas guys ???

Cheers Sandy
 
it is essential to understand whether the condition is caused due to malnutrition alone or by some infection as well. if she shows improvement in the next few days then it can be the former which is a better case. lets hope there no infection involved.
 
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