Tetras Not Eating - Need Advise

[Aeroconn]

Greetings,

I hope someone can help me with this problem. My fresh water tropical fish don't seem to want to eat, especially my Neon Tetras.
They keep spitting out the foods I try and end up dieing.

I've tried the following foods: Hikari micro pellets, Tetra tropical flakes, freeze-dried Tubifex Worms, Tetra nibblers (Tuna flavor).

All these foods float and the tetras don't seem to want to go to the surface to feed. These foods also fall fast and the tetras don't seem to want to eat from the bottom either.
When they do grab food pieces, they spit out the light yellow or green colored food (flake and pellets) and sometimes spit out the red flakes (50/50). These floating foods also sink fast when they do start to sink and like I said, once on the bottom, the tetra won't touch them.

In two months time I've lost about 9 tetras. I buy them in groups of 4. Now only 1 is left alive. Other fish seem to be doing ok.

Here is my set-up:

12-gallon fresh water tank with under-gravel filter system. Also do weekly water changes.

Stocked with: 1 zebra danio; 3 rasbora; 1 neon tetra; 1 cory catfish; 1 plecostamus.

I'm at my wits wnd trying to find something the tetras will eat. All the other fish seem happy and healthy, so I am assuming the tetras are not surviving due to starvation.

Any advice or direction would be appreciated.

Thanks,

~Aeroconn

 

[PrairieSunflower]

I've only had neons for about 2 months myself... but already in my experience I've found they practically swarm food, any food, I give them.

Have you tested your water?

I'm a bit slow at figuring out other people's stocking levels, but I am wondering if you tank is overstocked as well.

 

[coolie]

I'm wondering if the deaths are unrelated, or due to pollution of the water and you are over feeding. You have to bear in mind that Tetras are very small,
so when you look at their body size and imagine that a flake of food is like a Full English Breakfast.

Also with tetras, they will spit the food out if it's either something they are unfamiliar with or if it's not their favourite food, and they are not particularly hungry.
All this left over food will sit in the tank and cause ammonia to build up.

 

[Aeroconn]

I'm wondering if the deaths are unrelated, or due to pollution of the water and you are over feeding. You have to bear in mind that Tetras are very small,
so when you look at their body size and imagine that a flake of food is like a Full English Breakfast.

Also with tetras, they will spit the food out if it's either something they are unfamiliar with or if it's not their favourite food, and they are not particularly hungry.
All this left over food will sit in the tank and cause ammonia to build up.

Thanks for the info. The pH and temp are within normal levels. I haven't tested for ammonia, however. I'll have to pick up that kit this afternoon.

I'm not noticing leftover food on the bottom. The cory cat seems to eat anything and everything. The food that stays on the bottom after a feeding is all gone by morning.

What I find strange overall is that none of the fish in the tank flock or swarm towards the food. I can remember having a tank as a kid in high school with just common tropicals and it was a feeding frenzy whenever that lid opened and food was dropped in.

Thanks again for the advice. I'll start by checking the ammonia levels.

~Aeroconn

 

[Aeroconn]

I've only had neons for about 2 months myself... but already in my experience I've found they practically swarm food, any food, I give them.

Have you tested your water?

I'm a bit slow at figuring out other people's stocking levels, but I am wondering if you tank is overstocked as well.

Funny you should say that. When I was in high school I had a tank and I remember the it was a feeding frenzy whenever the lid was opened and food dropped in.

Not so with the fish I have now. None of them swarm towards the food. They aren't lethargic though. The rasboras school together and swim the entire tank. The zebra danio also swims the whole tank. The shyest by far is the tetra, but even he swims freely.

I'll be testing the ammonia levels this week as suggested in the response below.

~Aeroconn