Is my mandarin too skinny? Please help me ???

[Robert Nofer]

 

[ngoodermuth]

Hi Robert, it's much easier to help if you keep everything is in one post

I do think the mandarin's tail may be related to malnutrition, as they are generally pretty disease resistant. But, as we discussed before-he needs supplemental foods and fast!

 

[smh254]

My mandarins tail is always beat up. I think it from going in and out of the rock work. Mandarins are definitely picky eaters. If he's losing weight now he probably won't make it.

 

[Robert Nofer]

Ok

 

[Cae]

I found cyclops too small. Maybe if you put him in a breeder box and fed him that way?

 

[Cae]

I have a male and female in a 110 gal and they will eat vitalis marine pellets, it took a couple of weeks but that's mostly what they eat as they wiped out the pod population .

 

[Cae]

Guess what, I also have algae. I think it gives the little critters somewhere to breed and hide.

 

[Cae]

 

[Tim Olson]

I got my Mandarin Dragonet a few months ago and he was pretty skinny. Then I found out about Nutramar Ova, what a difference. I spot feed and spray the food on the surface of the rocks and he'll go right for it. He has been steadily gaining weight. BTW, I also have a significant amount of pods in my tank, but the Nutramar Ova is what I think is helping the most.

I'm still a relative newbie, when it comes to Mandarins, but I hope this helps.

 

[40B Knasty]

From those first few pics. Is it just me or does it seem like that fish has ich? A lot of white spots. Can't tell if it is just bubbles or sand sticking to the slime coat.
About the topic of it being skinny. Yes!
A fat healthy dragonet looks like this. No skeletal lines done the length of the fish.

 

[NanoCrazed]

Robert, how large is your tank and how much rock work do you have, and does your rocks have lots of nooks and crannies or smooth?

It may be worth building a pod hotel and tucking it in a corner (see my DIY post on this for an idea).

I had a similar issue with my spotted that I rescued despite an over abundance of rocks in my tank -- she was almost point of no return skinny. The pod hotel has now made her fat like the one in 40B Knasty's pic...to the point that I felt encourage to introduce a pair of green mandarins to the tank (they were meant as temporary residents out of necessity while in transit for another tank but wound up leaving them in since they immediately all got along).

You can see the two greens hanging on the hotel for some late night snack in the pic...

After months of refusing to eat nothing but pods from the hotel and rocks, the spotted just recently decided to occasionally pick on frozen nutra ova eggs and mysis blend that I feed to her other tank mates. And, even explored some flakes. So, I would suggest trying both pod hotel and frozen supplement...

 

[NanoCrazed]

Here's a before and after shot in terms of introducing the pod hotel. Hard to see the rib line but it was much more pronounced than the picture shows.

 

[Robert Nofer]

Thank you I’m actually trying that right now

 

[Robert Nofer]

Looks good I wish mine looks like that mine used to look like that

 

[Val Shebeko]

De encapsulate brine shrimp eggs. Look on youtube. Works great. They eat the eggs and the shrimp thst do hatch get eated too. Cheap and apparently tasty. Helps preserve the pod populations. Reduces the hunting pressure.

 

[NanoCrazed]

Thank you I’m actually trying that right now

Be sure to load up the hotel with a large bottle of tisbe pods to help things along. Easiest way for me was to pour the bottle in via the top holes using a long funnel like the tube from a baster after removing the bulb

 

[Jamesisjamess]

Mine looks like that but i can see him eating and picking at the rocks he is verry active

 

[Leslie Tabor]

How old is your tank? How big? How much rock work?

 

[Leslie Tabor]

Mine looks like that but i can see him eating and picking at the rocks he is verry active

Please answer the same questions. How old? How big? Rock work? They should NOT be so thin that you can see the lateral line on their bodies.

 

[Leslie Tabor]

Mandarins pick at rock and sand looking for food ALL day. They need well established...at least 1 year old...tanks. The tank should be way larger than most people think, they need A LOT of rock for pods to live and reproduce in. You will find it difficult to impossible to keep a mandarin in a tank smaller then 75 gal. IMO, this is still too small. If they eat frozen, awesome, but that will only be supplemental at best unless you can literally stand and feed them all day long. These beautiful fish are cheap, but far from easy which is why they unfortunately die all the time. You will he amazed how emaciated they will get before they die. I had some weird issue happen with my male, which led to not eating. It is so sad.