Red Devil Cichlid

[jeep04]

I just became the owner of a Red Devil, she is about 7 inches and i have had her for about a week and a half. She is not wanting to eat though, when i got her she was kept in a 20 gal tank which was way to small and i felt bad for her so i emptied out my 36 gal to bring her home and then i did some reading and realized that was not going to be big enough for long. Since my wife and i fell in love with her personality the first day, We decided to get her a new tank asap. But while in the 36 i tried 4 different types of ciclid food all types of flake food even tried peas, lettuce(Iceberg & Romaine),cucumber,bloodworms(frozen) even my clown loches favorite Hikari wafers and nothing. I moved her into a new 75 gal all to herself last night and just before the move she ate maybe 5 small pieces of frozen bloodworm. She looks fine, water is perfect so i'm kinda at a loss of what to do. I know fish can go awhile but she's a big girl, She has to be hungry. Thanks again for your help in advance, i have visited a few forums but this is by far the most helpful to date.

[Martin Thoene]

Central American cichlids are all eating machines. I therefore doubt this will be a long-term fast. She's probably disturbed by the move. It must be traumatic having lived in cramped conditions for so long and then being shifted into a larger environment. I'm not suprised that she ate some Bloodworms. They usually get any fish kick-started back into a normal eating pattern.

The 75 will most definitely be a better sized home for her. Just ensure that you have really good filtration as these fish produce copious amounts of waste and are messy eaters at times. You'll need to do frequent partial water-changes to ensure maintenance of good water-quality.

Once settled into the big tank you'll probably be back here complaining that she's eating you out of house and home

Martin.

[starsplitter7]

Hi there,

I just wanted to say thank you for rescuing this incredible fish and giving her the home she deserves. I am sure she will be a very rewarding pet.

I know very little about cichlids. I was a caretaker of a tilapia born in space on the space shuttle. My first experience in fish keeping and cichlids. He was a great fish. Lived with his mate in a 125.

Do you know what the fish was fed before the move?

I have a few carnivorous fish, and I feed them frozen silversides broken into pieces, and I release the pieces into the flow of the filter. My fish happily chase them down and gobble them down. I had to wean them off live food.

I know you fish is a happy omnivore, but I am sure a little meat will get her in the mood, and then like Martin said, she will eat you out of house and home. Would earthworms be appropriate for this fish? What about if you left a little piece of blanched zucchini for the night?

I used this to find she is an omnivore. I know you have been searching for info.
http://animal-world.com/encyclo/fresh/c ... dDevil.php

[jeep04]

Thats what i keep hearing about these big Cichlids, How they eat like pigs. I would love to watch her chow down at least then i wouldnt have to wonder if she will make it. Thank you for the response, i guess i'll just keep an eye on her and keep trying small amounts till she's ready.

[jeep04]

I did try the blanched zuchini and she didnt touch it, I'll try something a little meatier. I thought she might have been fed live but i would rather not do that unless its a must to keep her alive. Just don't want to have to kill another fish just to feed one, i know its natural and all, but it's not natural for me as i have nevr killed an animal and don't plan too start.

[stevenallenbarnard]

I know most people don't like to go this route, but have you tried live feeders like rosy reds or comets. It might get him kick started.

[starsplitter7]

Feeding live isn't nutrious in most cases and it is an easy way to introduce diseases and parasites into your tank. I used to work in the pet store, and I can't begin to tell you the number of cichlids that were brought to us with nutritional problems and Hole in the Head because of dirty tanks, live food and other issues.

The feeder fish are cheap because they are half starved, sickly and grown in overcrowded conditions. Not something you should feed to your fish.

I can not bear to feed live, and I even managed to get the store I work for to stop selling live.

Try the chopped silver sides in the filter flow.

Often my fish ignore zucchini the first day and eat it the second since it is too tough for them.

[stevenallenbarnard]

Feeding live isn't nutrious in most cases and it is an easy way to introduce diseases and parasites into your tank. I used to work in the pet store, and I can't begin to tell you the number of cichlids that were brought to us with nutritional problems and Hole in the Head because of dirty tanks, live food and other issues.

The feeder fish are cheap because they are half starved, sickly and grown in overcrowded conditions. Not something you should feed to your fish.

I can not bear to feed live, and I even managed to get the store I work for to stop selling live.

Try the chopped silver sides in the filter flow.

Often my fish ignore zucchini the first day and eat it the second since it is too tough for them.

While this is true, if the fish is unwilling to eat anything after so many days, then feeders may be your last choice.

Get on Cragslist and see if anyone has any extra convict cichlid fry or baby livebearers (platies, mollies, guppies etc.) i've used all of these in the past to raise my own feeders with great success.