Blue Acara Needs Help...

[CluelessScot]

Hi all,

My brother bought a Blue Acara on monday (one before yesterday). The woman told him that its a wild one and that he is very aggressive. This acara is being kept in a 10gallon tank alone and has a cave to hide in. The fish has not eaten anything since my brother bought him and we are getting a little worried... The water stats are fine. I gave my brother some plants cos i read that acaras eat roots of plants? we have tried blood worm, brine shrimp and mosquito larvae. The fish actully looks good and he is really nice but he still aint eaten. The woman said it will just be him adjusting to his new home but i dont know, a week with no food seems a bit much to me. Im going over there tonight so any help before 8 will be ace

Kev

 

[a.d.wood]

Hi Kev,

How big is the acara???

Obvious thing, check with the shop as to what they were feeding him then replicate at home. I would be surprised if the acara didn't pounce on live bloodworm the minute it's added to the tank.

With the wild apisto's I bring in, feeding for the first few days is always a mix of live and frozen foods, slowly reducing the livefood so that the fish are then quite happy taking the frozen food (add live and frozen at the same time).

Andrew

 

[CluelessScot]

Hi Kev,

How big is the acara???

Obvious thing, check with the shop as to what they were feeding him then replicate at home. I would be surprised if the acara didn't pounce on live bloodworm the minute it's added to the tank.

With the wild apisto's I bring in, feeding for the first few days is always a mix of live and frozen foods, slowly reducing the livefood so that the fish are then quite happy taking the frozen food (add live and frozen at the same time).

Andrew

He is about 5". She said that she was feeding him frozen bloodworm and frozen brine shrimp so i had the bloodworm and my brother has frozen brineshrimp. He was looking a little pale but one we added the plants he has went darker again and his stripes are showing good. Do you think he is eating at all? like once we leave the room? A week and a day without food seems alot to me and i would have thought he would have died not eating anything? poor guy he looks ok tonight, a little shy. He swims away and hides in a cave then after about 4~5mins he comes out to the front of the tank to say hi, but its like he is scared by the food. sometimes gets jumpy when it floats by him...

 

[freddyk]

You'd be surprised how long he can go without food, the week has been easy for him. Keep rechecking the stats if you aren't since a fish that size will foul a little tank pretty quickly.

The thing is that blue acara still has a couple of inches to grow, and even at it's current size you'll find it's never going to thrive in that size of tank and show you his best. Unless you can get yourself a 30 gallon or bigger I'd find another home for him and get a more suitable fish for the 10 gallon tank.

Do you think he is eating at all? like once we leave the room?

Is the food still there when you return?

 

[CluelessScot]

I agree with that. I would rather him be in a nice big tank. I will suggest it to my brother. There is a little bit of food left but im not sure if he is eating it or its just the filter moving it around.

 

[CluelessScot]

Update: Tried a few earth worms last night and nothing Went back to the shop today and the lady gave me a bottle of "Kent Freshwater, Heavy Spirulina Formula Zoe" Its some kinda vitamin additive? You put a few drops on your bloodworm and leave it overnight in the refrigerator then feed the following day. She said if that dont get him eating then she dont know what will

 

[freddyk]

Well, at least if he isn't eating he won't outgrow his tiny little tank