34 replies to this topic

[Buccal]

I hate to say that it may already be a losing battle.
But trying to coax them to eat is best by triggering their predatory responses meaning live movement.
Suggestion:
Do not feed rest of today and do not feed all of tomorrow (no offering them food) to build hunger and let settle.
Keep them in very very low light for today and tomorrow.
Buy or source some earthworms, maybe bunnings, and keep them cool.
On Sunday mid-morning cut worm ends at a centimeter long and feed sparing instantly.
Earthworms are quite visible and move vigorously.
Smell and movement of earthworms is the best you can try.
If they take worms, do not feed every second day for 4 days to keep up hunger.
After that cut salmon into worm shape strips.
If they get use to worms it's the hardest thing to wean fish off.
Worms are bad for Africans who ever is reading.

[FrontyKwal]

Okay heres an update, they are still alive and doing alot better than before although they seem to have a very odd blotchy pattern on them I will upload a photo in the next half an hour and they always hide behind my heater when I approach the tank but from a distance I can see them swimming around the tank.

I took your advice Buccal and went and bought an earthworm kit from Bunnings and they get very excited when I put them in the tank but whatever cut up worms hit the floor they dont want anything to do with it, they go up to it and see it wriggling but just dont eat it but when I drop some more in the smash it. I recently set up a rcs tank and I thought why not try chuck a couple in the bass tank aswell and they smashed them and were waiting at the top of the tank until I dropped them in so they must of loved them. I dont have enough rcs to keep feeding them but Im trying to breed them for live treats (pretty much for the amuesment). I did notice when a couple of them ate the rcs their blotchy pattern went away from about 5 minutes but then came back anyone know why or what the blotchy pattern even is ?

[FrontyKwal]

[Buccal]

I'd say they may be border line damaged by heat and lack of oxygen, possibly.
If they eat a few pieces of worm, leave it at that, keep them a little starved, it's best for sick or healing fish, be patient.
It seems they are hanging on, so they could be in healing mode.
If blotches disappear and come back it's obviously a fixated mood they're in.
Just enough food to stay alive each day don't push it, if food is unbeaten on bottom after 30 seconds of feeding, take it out.
If they are at all consuming, even the slightest of food, there is hope, just keep the tank a darkish gloom.

[bigjohnnofish]

some good advice there... if they arent eating... use any method possible to get them eating and healthy again... then try weaning back onto pellet food...

[FrontyKwal]

Iv only been feeding them once a day since Sunday how long should I keep this up for and when do you think I should start trying the Atlantic salmon ? They aren't producing a lot of waste should I still keep doing small water changes everyday ? Cheers for the info it has helped a lot

Edited by FrontyKwal, 10 January 2013 - 04:19 PM.

[Buccal]

I'd say at least for another week, maybe two weeks.
Just patience.
If after a week and a half they are still not back to normal activities, put two or three little swordtail platy in there.
The platies that go for the food may help induce the bass to join in the food frenzy and follow like sheep.
This is called dithering.
Dithering is the use of a host for many types of beneficial reasons.
The platies are week so they can't out perform sick fish.

[FrontyKwal]

They are pretty much back to normal behaviour when Im standing about 5 meters away from the tank I see them swimming around and following each other all the time its just when Im infront of the tank they hide. Today I chucked 9 1cm bits of earthworms in there, 6 pieces got eaten by 3 of them while the other 2 still hid behind the heater. I put in another 6 pieces and they went up to it while the pieces were floating down but didnt eat any. So I just put in a block of frozen brine shrimp and they ate the whole thing no worries, put in a block of bloodworms 5 minutes later and they demolished that aswell :S

I just need to try ween them off brine shrimp and bloodworms but I dont want to try yet because they are ill and Im scared if they just keep refusing other food they will starve themselves and die because they are already in a bad state. But yes what you said about the swordtail platys sounds like it will work good, the bass dont even notice food until 1 of them see's it and starts eating then they all start to do it, maybe with the platys there they will think they have competition and try eat whatever I put in there before them

I will update in a week or so and tell you how they are doing. Might grab some platys this weekend since I will be popping into a couple lfs

Cheers

[Buccal]

Getting onto pellets isn't to hard.
The reason for your problem is treating them to much and avoiding pellets to much.
Saying this, and not saying this is you, I'm just stating, that some people get stuck in their minds there is a big problem when there's no problem at all, sometimes things may not be so bad.
Wether stuck on worms, brine shrimp, prawn or fish bits or what ever you have to combine the pellet then ween back the undesired food.
Eg, take the frozen little cube of brine or worms and let it defrost.
Get one pellet of carni size not masi size pellet.
Cut up with razor blade into pin head size bits.
Mix it into the brine cube and feed.
Do his for a week.
Then following week add two pellets, then the week after that add three pellets and dice bits of pellet a little larger.
You get the gist of it, keep doing this till very little then no brine shrimp.

I have done this with ease with pbass before and stingray pups I bought from over east.
But it's patience, don't skip the steps.
These are alternative to starving when it's risky being already not in good shape.
The difference of growth in a pellet only fed fish is a staggering difference to a fish with a part pellet diet.

[bigjohnnofish]

guy i know that lives 5 min from my place bought a heap of peabass in the group buy that was organised by chombies... his are all over 20cm now! ... from 6cm to 20cm+ in just under 2 months...
anybody else had that sorta growth rate???

[Jules]

johno - thats impressive growth, took mine 6 months.
Fonrty kwal - i feed my monocs from Dens batch, frozen blood worm and brineshrimp for about 4 months straight, as it was all they ate. as long as there eating when there small thats all that counts, plus frozen foods arent that dear, especailly if you buy the huge sheets of it and snap off what you need. as for pellets, when i had toi feed mine pellets i starved them, and feed a few different types of pellets to see what was advertising to them, im confident to say a fish shouldnt starve itself to death surely. as far as them being spooked goes, thats normal, mine used to hide all the time. Even now as adults there scared of me, unless im opening the coverglass or they see that little white cup which holds all the food before pouring it in.

Edited by Jules, 16 January 2013 - 08:19 AM.

[FrontyKwal]

So far mine are doing heaps better Iv been feeding them once a day they have been eating only pellets since Friday. Im feeding them the Hikari sinking carnivore pellets I break them into halves and 3 of them are always keen to eat them but the other 2 still hide when I drop them in. I chuck 4 half pieces in and they get eaten, another 4 and some hit the floor and then another 4 pieces and a couple get eaten but when I come back to the tank half n hour later there's nothing on the floor so perhaps the scared ones eat them when Im not around or the L333's have a munch on them.

Im still keeping up with water changes even second day now, but when I do they start to get that blotchy pattern and freak out darting around and hiding and darting around again these guys must be super stressed from what they've gone through I think Buccals right when he said they might be borderline damaged

[Buccal]

It's perfectly normal for your fish to freak out occasionally or doing maintenance.
The blotches are just stress showing as mood patterns on body.
Because pbass are smart they like routine.
They always take time to get use to any little change.
I think your on track.
But don't become obsessive with water changes ect LOL.

[bigjohnnofish]

johno - thats impressive growth, took mine 6 months.

well i better divulge the recipe... his dad has a good size dam behind his place and they get close on a 1000 gambusia first thing in the morning... and again in the afternoon... not many left between feeds...

power growing food

[Jules]

Gotta love them little feeders.
As a kid my mate n i would walk around the local school lakes and catch 100s of gambusia at a time. Id quarantine them for a week and salt bath them, to feed to my fish and turtle at the time.
If i were to do it these days ppl would think im probably looking for something that i may have disposed of in there........