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Oc. clowns

Posted: Mon Jul 31, 2006 1:05 am
by SadaAesix
I bought one clown fish and he seemed so lonely I purchased a second. They're ocellaris clowns. I have not seen these guys eat since I have owned them. The PS said all was well and they were eating but I sure haven't seen it. Now I read where they actually won't eat anything that they cannot swallow whole or that they eat phytoplankton and algea floating in the water. I have noted they are open mouthed alot.
How possibly can I get these guys to eat and what should I offer them.
I have tried, spectra food, flake, three types
Krill and a mixture of halibut, squid and shrimp. The larger of the two took a nibble at that but hasn't offered to eat anymore. The smaller of the two looks thin. The larger who has been in my tank longer dosen't look bad, swims strongly and the only abnormal behavior is tail up, head down in the corner of the tank when he is resting. They show no signs of interest in the anemone but I knew that would be a chance. Anyone with care and feeding on these guys feel free to shed the light needed here. thanks Sada

Posted: Mon Jul 31, 2006 9:41 am
by StoneFish
How long have you had them? Sometimes some wild caught fish may take a few weeks to begin eating, especially if all you are feeding is prepared foods like flakes and pellets. Try frozen food, like brine shrimp is what I usually try for fish not eating yet, just to try to get them to eat.

Posted: Mon Jul 31, 2006 11:27 am
by mykpoz
How long have you had them and how did you acclimate / QT them?

Also, what are your water parm. as you have another thread about anemone behavior.

Answers

Posted: Mon Jul 31, 2006 12:29 pm
by SadaAesix
I had one, the largest now for a week and a half and the smallest only four days.
Acclimate was get them into the water asap because I live an entire 5 minutes away from my PS.
I add water and acclimate for a half hour or so, all they need to get used to is the temp, the salinity and the other perameters are the same if they aren't at the time I check I leave them in bag longer up to an hour and a half.

Posted: Mon Jul 31, 2006 12:45 pm
by Suziq21
Sada-
Try soaking your food in garlic for several minutes, the liquid concentrate kind. You can get it at the FLS under the Kent Marine label and pay big $$, or go to the grocery store and pay a lot less for the same thing. Clowns can be funny about feeding. It also helps if the food is big/small enough to fit into their mouths. They will spit out anything that doesn't fit right. They do not feed on phytoplankton and feeding brine shrimp is generally not advised as I was told it merely acts as cotton candy. It fills them up, gives them a big "sugar rush" and then in the end they are really mal-nourished. Try frozen mysid and squid soaked in garlic. Also, if you have a decent copepod population in your tank, your fish may be feasting on those lil' guys.

My first maroon wouldn't eat for 2 weeks, then I changed my food the what the LFS had-forumula one flakes (soaked in garlic) and she ate fine. My recent pair took ~3-4 days.
Alos, be sure to look them over for any health related issues like parasites, etc.
Check out Joyce Wilkerson's book on Clownfish. It's a decent resource.

Posted: Mon Jul 31, 2006 4:05 pm
by Amphiprion
Try foods like brine shrimp and mysid shrimp. Ocellaris clownfish should not be picky eaters at all. Are they captive raised? The smaller individual does not sound like it is doing well. The larger sounds fine--typical clownfish behavior. You can also try formula foods. In any case, I would be sure to include plenty of algae in their diet, since it can make up to 25% of their diet.