What is the easiest and most successful way to pellet train RTG Arowana?

[Addi_13]

Unfortunately... Asians have a mind of their own... some you win... some you never win...

Good advice above, you can also cut some earthworms and soak the pellets in the juice for a few seconds or in blood worms before feeding
Yep... the world of arowanas
Just patience and relax.... the more stressed you get.. they feel it and its worse..

While on the eating subject.... prepare yourself for future sulking if she is upset with you for some reason.... she wont even eat her favourite food for a while!!!

Hey Maria,

We meet again, thanks for posting. Unfortunately we the earthworm we get here aint healthy, so i dont want to use any earthworms. Till now its been 9 days, he seems pretty active and looks fine. The only things concern me now is that he completely ignores pellets till now, he doesn't even bites them. I just pray I dont starve him to death. I have ordered another pellet yesterday "Azoo Carnivorous Sticks", its supposed to have more krill and shrimp content, I really hope he will eat those. Also how long can I starve 9" arowana, how many days? I really dont want to give up till the last day..

Regards,
Additya

 

[Addi_13]

Unfortunately... Asians have a mind of their own... some you win... some you never win...

Good advice above, you can also cut some earthworms and soak the pellets in the juice for a few seconds or in blood worms before feeding
Yep... the world of arowanas
Just patience and relax.... the more stressed you get.. they feel it and its worse..

While on the eating subject.... prepare yourself for future sulking if she is upset with you for some reason.... she wont even eat her favourite food for a while!!!

Hey Maria,

We meet again, thanks for posting. Unfortunately we the earthworm we get here aint healthy, so i dont want to use any earthworms. Till now its been 9 days, he seems pretty active and looks fine. The only things concern me now is that he completely ignores pellets till now, he doesn't even bites them. I just pray I dont starve him to death. I have ordered another pellet yesterday "Azoo Carnivorous Sticks", its supposed to have more krill and shrimp content, I really hope he will eat those. Also how long can I starve 9" arowana, how many days? I really dont want to give up till the last day..

Regards,
Additya

 

[Chicxulub]

He's going toward the food, which means that he recognizes it as a potential meal, but he doesn't want it. He's been well fed on 'better' foods, so he's unlikely to want to eat the pellets.

Give him a few days to go hungry and he'll take them. If you're really worried, let him go hungry for a few days and offer a few live crickets, just enough to be a snack but not fill him up. Let him go hungry for a few days again, then again offer another live cricket snack. Then, let him go hungry again and throw in some Carnisticks. At this point, he should associate things hitting the top of the water and floating with food, and his feeding response will kick in before he can consider whether or not the food is alive. Once he does, feed him till he's full.

 

[MariaS]

Hey Maria,

We meet again, thanks for posting. Unfortunately we the earthworm we get here aint healthy, so i dont want to use any earthworms. Till now its been 9 days, he seems pretty active and looks fine. The only things concern me now is that he completely ignores pellets till now, he doesn't even bites them. I just pray I dont starve him to death. I have ordered another pellet yesterday "Azoo Carnivorous Sticks", its supposed to have more krill and shrimp content, I really hope he will eat those. Also how long can I starve 9" arowana, how many days? I really dont want to give up till the last day..

Regards,
Additya

Hello Additya,

I dont think there is much more advice that can be given over and above what everyone has suggested.

No one can say for sure how long she will be ok without food but she should be ok another 3 or 4 days.
Every fish has different levels of resistance.. you will have to watch her and use your judgement
My Chili Red was about 8inches wen she arrived and she starved herself nearly a month before she ate anything.....
Personally i would never have the heart to deliberately starve her that long.. she just would not eat.... and she survived.
We cant say all will be ok for that long

Maybe go back to shrimp and put a pellet hidden side?

One thing is for sure... relax... if you stressed and anxious your arowana will feel it too..
Take a day at a time and just carry on trying
If anything can test our patience... Arowana love to do that

 

[Arowana718]

Be patient bro. Once it settles down, just mix pellets with whatever he eats. One day he will take pellets, then strictly stick with pellets.

Some aros dont eat when they are stressed for whatever reason. I wouldnt worry at all. They are very hardy fish. Their number #1 death is commiting suicides

 

[Addi_13]

Be patient bro. Once it settles down, just mix pellets with whatever he eats. One day he will take pellets, then strictly stick with pellets.

Some aros dont eat when they are stressed for whatever reason. I wouldnt worry at all. They are very hardy fish. Their number #1 death is commiting suicides

Hey bro, thanks for replaying. He have been in that tank for almost 1 and half months, he is active, do you think he isn’t still settlers? What do you mean by mixing the pellet? He does like dried shrimps so do I keep soaking the pellets in shrimp paste or do I feed the pellets and shrimp together?

Also do you think I should starve him further? It’s 11th day today? Please advise! And I have taped every small opening where it could have jumped from!

 

[Arowana718]

Hey bro, thanks for replaying. He have been in that tank for almost 1 and half months, he is active, do you think he isn’t still settlers? What do you mean by mixing the pellet? He does like dried shrimps so do I keep soaking the pellets in shrimp paste or do I feed the pellets and shrimp together?

Also do you think I should starve him further? It’s 11th day today? Please advise! And I have taped every small opening where it could have jumped from!

Some aros go on hunger strike for mysterous reasons. No need to starve.

Mixing meaning throw in pellets with his usual food he eats. Good pellet to start is hikari floating sticks.

If you want, lower water level about 4” from the top. Leave lights off. This will calm the aro more. No worries

 

[Leo Messi]

I have already owned 3 Asian Arowanas and had huge success getting them to eat pellets with the following method:

1) day 1: stop feeding. don't feed for a full day.
2) day 2: offer a few pellets. he doesn't want them? try later (few hours later).
3) day 3: try again. by now, the Aro should at least show interest and maybe take 1-2 pieces into his mouth - even if the Aro spits it out again this is a good sign.
4) day 4: offer again. still doesn't want them? now feed him his food that he eats (shrimps or what ever it is). just for day 4. don't feed a lot, just a bit so he/she has eaten a bit.
5) day 5: repeat from day 2.

Always worked for me and all of my 3 Arowanas have taken the pellets either on day 2 or latest on day 4.

Whats also important is, as soon as the Aro eats the pellets, feed him/her only pellets for a few days, so the Aro gets used to them. I have found it to be hard to get the Aro continue eat pellets if I feed other foods (that he likes a lot) as soon as he/she started eating pellets.

 

[Addi_13]

I have already owned 3 Asian Arowanas and had huge success getting them to eat pellets with the following method:

1) day 1: stop feeding. don't feed for a full day.
2) day 2: offer a few pellets. he doesn't want them? try later (few hours later).
3) day 3: try again. by now, the Aro should at least show interest and maybe take 1-2 pieces into his mouth - even if the Aro spits it out again this is a good sign.
4) day 4: offer again. still doesn't want them? now feed him his food that he eats (shrimps or what ever it is). just for day 4. don't feed a lot, just a bit so he/she has eaten a bit.
5) day 5: repeat from day 2.

Always worked for me and all of my 3 Arowanas have taken the pellets either on day 2 or latest on day 4.

Whats also important is, as soon as the Aro eats the pellets, feed him/her only pellets for a few days, so the Aro gets used to them. I have found it to be hard to get the Aro continue eat pellets if I feed other foods (that he likes a lot) as soon as he/she started eating pellets.

Hey Bro,

Nothing works, I have starved him for 16 days and still he doesnt want to eat pellets. He doesnt even bite them, nor does he look at them, just totally ignores them. Then I dropped a MP after 16 days and he ate it immediately. Now I have added him back in 340 Gallon community tank and he becomes excited at feeding time watching others fishes eating but he still ignores the pellets. He puts them in his mouth and takes them out immediately. All he wants to eat is dried shrimp and MP. He was still active after 16 days of starving, I guess he is just spoiled. Do you think I should starve him for a month or two? or should I separate him in his dedicated tank? Please Suggest.

Regards,
Additya

 

[Davidiator]

i have a arowana that got cloudy eye from undernourishment because i was only feeding it bloodworms and my tank was not very taken care of at that time...

So i decided i would make him eat pellets unless i feel like giving him a cube of bloodworms

so i did not feed him for about a month... i would put in the pellets and he would not even notice them... i put them in once a week... then he was getting super skinny and i was worried about him starving but then i decided "you know what i will let him keep starving till he eats the pellets"

i kept at it and now every morning as soon as he see me holding the pellet container he races to the left side of the tank cause that is where the BGK is not...

(i did the same thing with the BGK and it now eats the pellets also it eats on the right side)

Sadly the arowana still has cloudy eye but i think it is slowly going away thanks to the pellets and the 50% WC every other day...