Normal Arowana Behavior?

[MooseMann]

I recently got a 6ish inch Black Arowana. He’s in his own grow out tank. No light, just natural light. Low traffic room in my house in the back corner. I have had bad luck with black arowana in the past so I want to make sure this guy is happy and healthy except he seems way more skiddish than previous fish. Every time I walk into the room he drops down and just lays on the bottom of the tank. I have had him for about a week. My question is, will he warm up to me and not be so stressed or is this normal behavior? Would it be beneficial to cover the tank completely? He still eats very well. 4-6 Hikari food sticks a day. Let me know what you guys think. I really want to keep this guy!

 

[MooseMann]

Also I have been checking water conditions and they are all perfect. No ammonia or nitrites. Barely any nitrates

 

[abominus]

the behaviour of every fish varies. i think the arowana is just being shy and needs some time to adjust to you and the surroundings. otherwise the arowana looks healthy and is eating too. my 8 inch pacu used to do the same. it would immediately lie on it's side when i came to see it but would swim regularly when i wasn't watching it. with time it grew out of it's shyness. give your arowana some time, it's shyness will end soon, especially as it gets bigger.

 

[tlindsey]

the arowana looks healthy and is eating

+1

give your arowana some time, it's shyness will end soon, especially as it gets bigger.

Agree

 

[MooseMann]

the behaviour of every fish varies. i think the arowana is just being shy and needs some time to adjust to you and the surroundings. otherwise the arowana looks healthy and is eating too. my 8 inch pacu used to do the same. it would immediately lie on it's side when i came to see it but would swim regularly when i wasn't watching it. with time it grew out of it's shyness. give your arowana some time, it's shyness will end soon, especially as it gets bigger.

Thanks! I was just worried he was constantly stressed!

 

[Trouser Cough]

A few things to keep in mind.

That thing is a predator and a baby. It thinks anything else and everything else is also a predator and has arrived to eat it. Arowana don't fight so the flight instinct is very strong. If it can't escape it will cower.

The reflection in your glass makes it appear that the door to that room is just a few feet in front of the tank. That fish may see zero movement in that room for hours on end and then when you storm in it sees this gigantic hole in the side of its world swing open and an assumed predator pop out of it at an alarming pace. What you're seeing is natural behavior but not normal behavior.

Black Arowana scare easily and even more so as babies. IIRC you posted something similar before and the issue likely has something to do w/ either you or the environment rather than the fish you've had in the past. The key element to remove is anything that might scare the fish. As it gets older and heavier it will attempt to launch out of the tank and if you don't sort out the issue you can eventually expect that you'll be raising a stressed fish with all the down sides that can bring. That will last all the way up to the day you walk in and see a horseshoe shaped dried out fish on the floor w/ carpet fibers stuck to it.

Reduce the number of scary events that baby fish is exposed to. That is the way.

 

[MooseMann]

A few things to keep in mind.

That thing is a predator and a baby. It thinks anything else and everything else is also a predator and has arrived to eat it. Arowana don't fight so the flight instinct is very strong. If it can't escape it will cower.

The reflection in your glass makes it appear that the door to that room is just a few feet in front of the tank. That fish may see zero movement in that room for hours on end and then when you storm in it sees this gigantic hole in the side of its world swing open and an assumed predator pop out of it at an alarming pace. What you're seeing is natural behavior but not normal behavior.

Black Arowana scare easily and even more so as babies. IIRC you posted something similar before and the issue likely has something to do w/ either you or the environment rather than the fish you've had in the past. The key element to remove is anything that might scare the fish. As it gets older and heavier it will attempt to launch out of the tank and if you don't sort out the issue you can eventually expect that you'll be raising a stressed fish with all the down sides that can bring. That will last all the way up to the day you walk in and see a horseshoe shaped dried out fish on the floor w/ carpet fibers stuck to it.

Reduce the number of scary events that baby fish is exposed to. That is the way.

Would you suggest covering the tank completely? That is the only other solution that I can think of in this case to remove scary events.

 

[Trouser Cough]

Would you suggest covering the tank completely? That is the only other solution that I can think of in this case to remove scary events.

I'll answer that from two different perspectives.

Firstly, any Arowana that is going to be kept long term must be kept in a tank that has a secure lid and in that sense is covered. Weigh it down, tie it down, etc. Whatever you need to do to ensure that it can't pop the lid off will be important. You have purchased a fish that as an adult can launch itself 6' vertically and all of that power can easily rip tank lids off. I lost one in this way years ago and still regret not having been better prepared. In that manner every Arowana tank must be 'covered'.

Secondly, I would say that a baby Arowana tank is not really a display tank as you appear to have it set up. It's not that it's wrong to display but it's not ideal for the fingerling you've bought. It might be as easy as turning the tank 90* so that the end wall of the tank faces the door and then just cover the end wall. If you give the fish the chance to acclimate to the idea that you're not just in the room but that you've been there for a while and you don't pose a threat you'll have a more relaxed Arowana. Conversely if you occasionally pop that door open and trot in you're going to have that fish looking for a way out of the tank and associating you w/ his escape problem rather than associating you w/ food or some other positive aspect.

I suppose you could cover the tank completely but it shouldn't be necessary unless you have some seriously crazy stuff happening in that same room often. Kids throwing stuff around, anybody hammering a vacuum cleaner into the tank stand, a weird vibration from a pump or other aquarium accessory, the door popping open quickly, etc. All of that stuff should be eliminated where possible.

 

[MooseMann]

I'll answer that from two different perspectives.

Firstly, any Arowana that is going to be kept long term must be kept in a tank that has a secure lid and in that sense is covered. Weigh it down, tie it down, etc. Whatever you need to do to ensure that it can't pop the lid off will be important. You have purchased a fish that as an adult can launch itself 6' vertically and all of that power can easily rip tank lids off. I lost one in this way years ago and still regret not having been better prepared. In that manner every Arowana tank must be 'covered'.

Secondly, I would say that a baby Arowana tank is not really a display tank as you appear to have it set up. It's not that it's wrong to display but it's not ideal for the fingerling you've bought. It might be as easy as turning the tank 90* so that the end wall of the tank faces the door and then just cover the end wall. If you give the fish the chance to acclimate to the idea that you're not just in the room but that you've been there for a while and you don't pose a threat you'll have a more relaxed Arowana. Conversely if you occasionally pop that door open and trot in you're going to have that fish looking for a way out of the tank and associating you w/ his escape problem rather than associating you w/ food or some other positive aspect.

I suppose you could cover the tank completely but it shouldn't be necessary unless you have some seriously crazy stuff happening in that same room often. Kids throwing stuff around, anybody hammering a vacuum cleaner into the tank stand, a weird vibration from a pump or other aquarium accessory, the door popping open quickly, etc. All of that stuff should be eliminated where possible.

Thank you that all seems like very good advice and all makes sense. If I’m not able to turn the tank 90 degrees, due to free space restrictions, will it be okay in the long run? Right now it’s currently about 5 feet from the door to the room. Also added a few plants as coverage for it. It’s not necessarily for my benefit (show tank) but I thought it would like having some coverage. Would it be better to take out the fake plants and just have a bare tank? It does have a heavy glass lid currently as well. Thanks again for all this help! These are my favorite fish and I really want to make sure I can provide it with what it needs.

 

[MooseMann]

I'll answer that from two different perspectives.

Firstly, any Arowana that is going to be kept long term must be kept in a tank that has a secure lid and in that sense is covered. Weigh it down, tie it down, etc. Whatever you need to do to ensure that it can't pop the lid off will be important. You have purchased a fish that as an adult can launch itself 6' vertically and all of that power can easily rip tank lids off. I lost one in this way years ago and still regret not having been better prepared. In that manner every Arowana tank must be 'covered'.

Secondly, I would say that a baby Arowana tank is not really a display tank as you appear to have it set up. It's not that it's wrong to display but it's not ideal for the fingerling you've bought. It might be as easy as turning the tank 90* so that the end wall of the tank faces the door and then just cover the end wall. If you give the fish the chance to acclimate to the idea that you're not just in the room but that you've been there for a while and you don't pose a threat you'll have a more relaxed Arowana. Conversely if you occasionally pop that door open and trot in you're going to have that fish looking for a way out of the tank and associating you w/ his escape problem rather than associating you w/ food or some other positive aspect.

I suppose you could cover the tank completely but it shouldn't be necessary unless you have some seriously crazy stuff happening in that same room often. Kids throwing stuff around, anybody hammering a vacuum cleaner into the tank stand, a weird vibration from a pump or other aquarium accessory, the door popping open quickly, etc. All of that stuff should be eliminated where possible.

Also I was considering putting a curtain type set up to cover the tank. Preventing any sudden movement to scare the fish. Would that be a good idea? My only concern with that is anytime I open the curtain to feed it, it will be the same effect as when I enter the room and it will associate me as the predator opening the curtain. Thoughts?