So i picked up 2 kelberi from my lfs on monday. The bigger one is eating fine, but the smaller one doesnt even seem interested in the food. Im feeding aro sticks, cichlid gold, bio gold+, and hikari fd krill. The rest of the bass and the two aros are eating fine. I always feed in the same spot and refuse to feed live food. Any suggestions on what I should do?
Smaller Kelberi not eating
- Thread starter Chizzle
- Start date
This is a tough spot for you. You have to relax, be patient, worry, and be careful all at the same time. It could be the new environment that he hasn't become acclimated to or the new tank mates that intimidate him. IMO you should keep feeding as you have and if he doesn't eat by the weekend you should put him in an isolation tank. Use water from the main tank to eliminate the stress of different water. Then try the same prepared foods that you are using to see if it was the environment or tank mates. If this works, you will have to fatten him up good before putting him back. Unfortunately this move will stress him out so he may not eat for a day because of the move itself. If this doesn't work I would try live before he gets too weak. There is nothing worse than watching a fish starve himself to death. Good Luck!
gangster;4989022; said:
It is 4", how long do you think it can go without food? One of my buddies said not to feed it blood worms because it would need to eat a lot of cubes to be full at this size and that the pellets will make it grow faster.
oscarfishguy;4989035; said:
Yeah man I have all this stress on top of all the midterms I am studying for. I dont think his tankmates are intimidating him, he seems pretty happy in there, just not eating. Yeah feeders is going to be my last resort, just spent a good deal of money on these guys and dont want to lose them.
I'd also try frozen bloodworms or maybe mysis shrimp. You know how fragile fish can be when moved so getting food in it's stomach is your best interest. As far as quantity of bloodworms, I really wouldn't worry about it needing a lot...I'd just be happy it's eating. There's always time to ween it onto your usual foods later on.
The True Guapote;4989777; said:
Still no luck w/ the smaller kelberi eating pellets/fdkrill. I learned today that when both kelberis were brought to the store they were about the same size. Today there is a notable difference in size with the larger one being not only thicker, but an inch longer than the smaller one.
I put in some bloodworms and sure enough the smaller kelberi as well as the rest of the bass all went for it. The smaller kelberi only got a small amount of it, at least he's eating a bit.
Thats great news! I have seen bass from the same hatch grow to twice the size of their siblings at just a month. Once they get bigger, they start bullying the others for dominance. If they aren't separated the smaller ones become food. I don't think that will happen b/c your fish are already 4" or larger. Just watch for the bullying.
Try mixing brine shrimp and blood worms together. Get the cubes and thaw them out into a small cup. Take some of your pellets(one or two), crush them up and add them to the blood worms and brine. Let em soak for a minute or 2. Then when you feed use a spoon and dip a little bit in at a time, always feeding in the same spot. They will get used to this area and know when its feeding time. Eventually they will hammer the spoon getting the food. Once they are used to this add more pellets to the mix. Over time you can reduce the bloodworms and brine shrimp and up the dosage of pellets. Eventually they will be eating straight pellets.
gangster;4991795; said:
That sounds like a really great idea, thanks ganster I will try that today!
how do u get the mix to stay on the spoon? When i tried this morning it kinda came off and started floating off in the water. The kelberi ate it none the less, is it suppose to teach it to associate the smell of pellets with food?