1 clown in qt--will it ever eat?

[LK]

Hi, I recently came across a sad 4-inch clown loach at a big chain pet store. It was in a tank with a bunch of big catfish, trying to wedge itself under a piece of driftwood, its only possible hiding place in the tank. Pretty pathetic looking. The employees said its previous owner couldn't keep it and had dropped it off a few days earlier. After sleeping on it, I decided to go back and get it the next day. I have 3 clowns in a 55g tank, all under 2 inches. I know they'll be outgrowing the tank eventually, but I will either upgrade or personally find them good homes. I won't dump them at a chain store. So I figured the lonely 4-incher would have a better shot at a good life if I bought it. Anyway, it's in a 10g qt tank now, looking fine, and being relatively active considering it's all by its lonesome. But it hasn't eaten in since I got it, 48 hours now. I've offered every flake and pellet I own, plus peas, zucchini, cucumber, banana, and cooked shrimp. I seem to recall that when I got my first 3 loaches, one of them didn't eat for almost a week. I'm just more worried about this guy because he's by himself and must be stressed out. In other people's experiences, how long will newly acquired clowns go without eating? Especially ones kept singly in qt? It'd make me feel better to know whether my guy's on a normal schedule or not. Thanks! (PS--With him not eating, I got paranoid after reading about "skinny disease" online. What are the chances a relatively large clown could catch that? He wasn't with other clowns in his tank at the pet store, but for all I know they have a centralized system, and some of the younger clowns in other tanks did look skinny. Mine does not look skinny, he's at least an inch in diameter, but any opinions on this?)

[helen nightingale]

there are definately posts on here from people with similar concerns, so you are not alone. i think Emma's massive clowns didnt eat for some time after she rehomed them, but now love their food.

do you have any frozen foods? maybe the loach is used to frozen food rather than prepared fish foods. sometimes people read that loaches need bloodworm in their diet, and think that means they only eat bloodworm

i hope the loach settles down nicely for you.

[LK]

Thanks for the tip. I've never bought frozen food before but I'll go get some soon. I wish I knew what his previous home was like and what kind of food he's used to. If only his last owner had been more involved in getting him a new home, the new owner (me!) wouldn't have to be guessing about it. But who knows what circumstances led to him being donated to the pet store. I don't mean to preach to the converted here, but I'm relatively new to fish-keeping, and I'm quickly learning what sad little lives most fish have. I mean this loach is over 4 inches, which means he's pretty old, so somebody must have been taking good care of him once upon a time. Anyway, thanks again! I'll keep at it and post back if I can't get him eating in another few days.

[starsplitter7]

And post if you do get him to eat.

[helen nightingale]

i have a yoyo that i got as an adult. she has one blind eye and 3 of the front barbels missing. i wonder what her previous life was like too.

i had another thought. do you have hikari sinking carnivore pellets? these are made with picky feeders in mind, and my fish would eat them till they exploded, if they could they are definately worth a try, if you can get them.

[LK]

Hi, thanks again. I do have the carnivore pellets, which my other loaches love. Today was the first day my new one even investigated the food when I put it in the tank, so I guess that's a good sign, even though I don't think he actually ate. Today I'm going to go shop for frozen bloodworms, sinking algae pellets (which I hear some loaches like) and maybe an anti-parasite med, just in case. I'll let you know if there's progress!

[Batch]

If your LFS has black worms that might do the trick. Even my cories go bonkers over them.


Batch

[bslindgren]

I have always had the most success with frozen brine shrimp to get them to eat. On the other hand, if the clown is by itself in the qt tank, it may just be too stressed. Perhaps throw in some dithers to make it feel a bit more at ease.

[LK]

thanks again, everyone. I believe that he ate this morning. I didn't see him eat, but I can't see the food either. I used the carnivore pellets. I'm posting more updates on the thread "follow-up question for clown in qt." I should've just kept it all in one thread, but it seemed like a new question. anyway, updates from now on will be at the other thread. there's some pics, too