Rifea
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- May 5, 2017
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A few days ago I got a small elephant nose fish(~2-3 inches) from my lfs, and thus far, he has not yet eaten. He's currently in a 20 gallon long tank(I am aware he'll outgrow it, but for now he's too small to go into the 55gal) and currently has no tank mates. aka no competition for food whatsoever!
The 20 gal is planted with lots of places for him to hide with driftwood, rocks, etc. I've tried both jumbo and normal frozen bloodworms, as the lfs had been feeding their elephant noses the same thing for the few weeks they'd been there. It isn't an issue of him being too shy to come out, he's practically exploring every inch of the tank whenever I turn the lights off, and a couple times I saw him eat the bloodworms then spit them out. I've tried during the day, at night, with and without the lights on.
Ammonia is at 0, Nitrates/Nitrites are at 0, this tank has been up and running for a very long time. pH is around 7.6-7.8, though that's just how the tap water is in my area. The pH was the same at the lfs, and while it is a little high, I don't think that's the issue since they thrived in the same pH water at the store.
I have a fire eel too, and when I first got him, he didn't eat for around two weeks. Would this be a similar sort of hunger strike while he gets used to the tank? My fire eel had little to no interest in food whatsoever though, and with the elephant nose, it seems like he gets excited after he spits out the bloodworms, and swims around as if he's looking for food.
Any ideas? ;; I'm worried that he's getting a little too skinny and I really don't want him to pass due to starvation.
The 20 gal is planted with lots of places for him to hide with driftwood, rocks, etc. I've tried both jumbo and normal frozen bloodworms, as the lfs had been feeding their elephant noses the same thing for the few weeks they'd been there. It isn't an issue of him being too shy to come out, he's practically exploring every inch of the tank whenever I turn the lights off, and a couple times I saw him eat the bloodworms then spit them out. I've tried during the day, at night, with and without the lights on.
Ammonia is at 0, Nitrates/Nitrites are at 0, this tank has been up and running for a very long time. pH is around 7.6-7.8, though that's just how the tap water is in my area. The pH was the same at the lfs, and while it is a little high, I don't think that's the issue since they thrived in the same pH water at the store.
I have a fire eel too, and when I first got him, he didn't eat for around two weeks. Would this be a similar sort of hunger strike while he gets used to the tank? My fire eel had little to no interest in food whatsoever though, and with the elephant nose, it seems like he gets excited after he spits out the bloodworms, and swims around as if he's looking for food.
Any ideas? ;; I'm worried that he's getting a little too skinny and I really don't want him to pass due to starvation.