Spooked Out Gar?

[Kr0wn]

hi,

i recently did a water change some weeks ago, but in the process, my florida gar jumped out and landed on the floor, flapping about. i quickly placed him back in the water and he was fine, but since that day, it seems as though he doesn't trust me anymore. i say this because i used to hand feed him shrimps + squid everyday, but now he won't dare venture out of his comfort zone (on the aquarium floor), except when he comes up every now and then to take a gulp of air.
also, whenever anyone walks near the tank, he panicks, and for a couple of minutes later, he swims and rubs his snout against the glass (a clear sign of stress).
anyway to prevent all this?

thanks.

 

[MaKiri]

i though gars were laid back...

 

[mrwinkle]

Mine did that once before; the top of my tank is 6' from the floor!!!! Your gar will be fine. As far as swimming against the tank I know about that also. My FL gar did it so much he rub a sore on his nose. What i did was i put a towel on both ends of my tank and increased my water changes(from 2wk- 3wk). I guess the extra fresh water helps calm him down, and the towels give him more privacy. So far his nose has healed up and he trust me a lot more. Just give your gar time and he will come back around. Just be thankful he did not break his back.

hi,
i recently did a water change some weeks ago, but in the process, my florida gar jumped out and landed on the floor, flapping about. i quickly placed him back in the water and he was fine, but since that day, it seems as though he doesn't trust me anymore. i say this because i used to hand feed him shrimps + squid everyday, but now he won't dare venture out of his comfort zone (on the aquarium floor), except when he comes up every now and then to take a gulp of air.
also, whenever anyone walks near the tank, he panicks, and for a couple of minutes later, he swims and rubs his snout against the glass (a clear sign of stress).
anyway to prevent all this?

thanks.

 

[xander]

As the previous post mentioned, what your gar needs now is an added sense of security and the standard "3 course meal" for gars on the mend.

For security, leave the lights off as much as possible (also don't switch it on suddenly), no sudden movements in front of the tank, add some floating plants maybe and cover the sides of the tank.

The "3-C-M" is to increase the frequency of your waterchanges, add salt and increase the temperature.

Posted on mobile.monsterfishkeepers.com

 

[Kr0wn]

Mine did that once before; the top of my tank is 6' from the floor!!!! Your gar will be fine. As far as swimming against the tank I know about that also. My FL gar did it so much he rub a sore on his nose. What i did was i put a towel on both ends of my tank and increased my water changes(from 2wk- 3wk). I guess the extra fresh water helps calm him down, and the towels give him more privacy. So far his nose has healed up and he trust me a lot more. Just give your gar time and he will come back around. Just be thankful he did not break his back.

okay, thanks for the advice.

 

[Kr0wn]

As the previous post mentioned, what your gar needs now is an added sense of security and the standard "3 course meal" for gars on the mend.

For security, leave the lights off as much as possible (also don't switch it on suddenly), no sudden movements in front of the tank, add some floating plants maybe and cover the sides of the tank.

The "3-C-M" is to increase the frequency of your waterchanges, add salt and increase the temperature.

Posted on mobile.monsterfishkeepers.com

okay, thanks alex.

 

[mrwinkle]

how is he doing?

 

[Kr0wn]

how is he doing?

alot better! i just hand fed him a couple of shrimps... but if i move suddenly he'll get spooked and hide again... but definite improvement, and again, thanks for the advice.