Wyckii food

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Croc1

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
May 6, 2020
13
19
3
50
Uk ,essex
I recently purchased a 18" wyckii and was told it had been fed on mussles , i have tried mussles ,prawns , squid ,salmon , chicken ,carnivore pellets , halibut pellets , bloodworm pellets , catfish pellets ,earth worms and the only thing it will eat is earth worms on 2 occasions it picked up mussles but sput them out . Ive just ordered some mackeral to try Any ideas what else to try as hes a little big to just have earth worms
 
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How long has it been in the new tank? Maybe just settling in. A few cats can go thru periods of not eating and act normal. Maybe thebiggerthebetter thebiggerthebetter can help. Viktor has a big wyckii and may offer some help.
 
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Hes only been in the tank for just over a week , i did think it was due to settling in but if he was not eating due to settling would he not refuse everything ? The earthworms ive put in hes been straight on them
 
Mine always ignored most things too when bigger (now around 28" ) including mussels and pellets, but I have her trained now to hand feed on white fish fillets I buy frozen and defrost (8 fillets in a 900g bag from "farmfoods"). At her size she takes one fillet every six or seven days. White fish ,tilapia or similar would be better than mackerel i feel as I find it too oily.
The one thing you will find with Wykii is that they want a home, a shelter, a territory to fight over and defend, even if just from you, so to make him happy you will need to provide one if not already.
(Just an fyi, mine started on mussels when small but then started refusing them, that's when I switched to the above as she seemed to want a more filling meal, she took to white fish quite easily)
 
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Earthworms are usually irresistible to fish. I think it is merely settling down or not hungry yet or both.

Mine eats everything but prefers thawed fish.

If feeding thawed cuisine, it'd be wise to add supplemental vitamins and minerals.
 
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Cheers for the replys , i have gave it a large hide which it uses and circles like its took ownership of it ,i will give some white fish a ago
Hopefully will start to get am appeitite soon , is it hold of on the earth worms for a while and let it get hungry so ot eats something abit more substainable , how long can it take larger fish to settle in a new tank other fish ive had normally eat around day 2 of being in a new tank gut they have all been smaller
 
It's not unheard of to take a few weeks to settle, albeit often as you say it is days, not weeks.

Large catfish can fast for several months without any problem or notable weight loss.

It's not a timid fish and it is smart and interactive with the keeper. It sounds like it behaves itself as expected too other than not feeding much. I don't see any reason for concern yet.

I'd not get it accustomed and spoiled on the worms. I suggest offering it what you want it to feed on and if uneaten, take out. Offer again in a few days. Repeat. If it doesn't accept the feed in 1-2 months, it'd be then warranted to troubleshoot the situation.

I am saying all this assuming that your water is not the source of the problem, that there is firmly zero ppm ammonia and nitrite by a liquid (not dip sticks) test kit, there is proper aeration with a good margin of safety, the temp, pH, hardness, TDS are not out of whack / range for this fish, etc. That is the basics all check out.

If you haven't checked and tested all this, I'd say you must.
 
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