mandarin Help

[Oceanwave45]

So I have read several post regarding these guys and I do want one!!

However I have contacted several places online and it course they all tell they eat frozen food and other don't know. So to say the least I do not want to buy online but none of my LFS stock these fish.

The only place I know that has these in stock is Petco.

Either way I'm taking a risk by buying one - therefore let's say i get one and it's not eating frozen foods which means it's eating pods.

How do I make sure I have enough pods and restock these pods?

I do not have a sump.

Thx
Andrew

 

[jpreefer]

Bed advice is to just stay away from a mandarin. You have no sump, a young tank, and very little experience. Also buying one from petco is almost a 100% guarantee of infecting your tank with ich or velvet.

The success rate is pretty dismal based on these factors.

 

[duncangweller]

These things eat pods all day every day. If you have any doubts it's probably not enough.

I have trained them to eat frozen by using a small jar and I squirt some frozen into the jar so it can go in and eat. The problem is that the other fish figure out how to get the food out of the jar and next thing you know the poor thing is starving.

I love them too, but I have held off since the last one as it just isn't fair to the poor fish

One other thing to bare in mind is that they aren't like other fish that will race to the surface to grab a mouthful of frozen food. They generally pick it off rocks as it lands. Which is another thing that hasn't happened often in the past with a tank full of fish.

And finally, if you have any other foraging fish like leopard wrasses or 6 line etc then they'll chip away at your pod population too.

I hate to pee on your parade. Hopefully someone else can give you a more positive story than me and tell you otherwise.

 

[jpreefer]

In addition just yesterday you posted you had 1.0ppm of ammonia in your tank..

 

[Oceanwave45]

Bed advice is to just stay away from a mandarin. You have no sump, a young tank, and very little experience. Also buying one from petco is almost a 100% guarantee of infecting your tank with ich or velvet.

The success rate is pretty dismal based on these factors.

Thanks for being honest!!!

 

[Oceanwave45]

In addition just yesterday you posted you had 1.0ppm of ammonia in your tank..

lol I know!!! That's why asking before I get one... would you recommend something else?

 

[Oceanwave45]

These things eat pods all day every day. If you have any doubts it's probably not enough.

I have trained them to eat frozen by using a small jar and I squirt some frozen into the jar so it can go in and eat. The problem is that the other fish figure out how to get the food out of the jar and next thing you know the poor thing is starving.

I love them too, but I have held off since the last one as it just isn't fair to the poor fish

One other thing to bare in mind is that they aren't like other fish that will race to the surface to grab a mouthful of frozen food. They generally pick it off rocks as it lands. Which is another thing that hasn't happened often in the past with a tank full of fish.

And finally, if you have any other foraging fish like leopard wrasses or 6 line etc then they'll chip away at your pod population too.

I hate to pee on your parade. Hopefully someone else can give you a more positive story than me and tell you otherwise.

No way, you have great advise that's why I'm asking! Thank you for being honest! Would you recommend anything else instead?

 

[Mike N]

Get something that doesn't require pods as a primary food source and you should be ok (after that ammonia is taken care of)
What size tank?

 

[Firethorn77]

If you don't have a fuge, get a hang on back one. That's what I have on my 40 breeder. My mandarin just eats pods and that allows for a space for them to populate and reproduce. I restock pods every two to three months.

Half a bottle in the tank and the other half in the fuge when all flow is off after 15-20 minutes of the tank being dark so the pods can get into the rockwork.

 

[DSC reef]

If you don't have a fuge, get a hang on back one. That's what I have on my 40 breeder. My mandarin just eats pods and that allows for a space for them to populate and reproduce. I restock pods every two to three months.

I don't think that will be efficient long term for the OP's tank especially if it's still cycling. I can't see how a hang on fuge will supply enough pods to keep a mandarin fed with as much as one can eat. Not to mention the way it's worded, the OP can't simply buy a fuge and throw a bag of pods in there and all is good. ID stay away from a mandarin as the advice you've got is solid. There very demanding and the last thing you want to see is that beautiful fish slowly starve to death which can take over a year in some cases.

 

[Firethorn77]

I've had mine for a few months now. It's a well established tank. He's good and fat. I wouldn't recommend one before the tank has been running for at least six months.

 

[DSC reef]

I hope it works for you but a few months is nothing when it comes to success with a mandarin. There amazing fish but just not for everyone.

 

[Firethorn77]

I don't tend to lose fish. Like to think I've gotten pretty good at it over the last 30 years. ☺ I do see your point however.

 

[petemichelle]

i got a mandarin and put it in a acclamation box inside the display. I fed it pods, and brine shrimp at the same time with the fans off. since it was in the acclimation box the other fish couldn't steal it's food, and I could see it eat. this went on for weeks, when I saw it eating the brine shrimp, I would put only brine shrimp in there at times, when i saw him doing okay and not loosing weight and still eating the brine shrimp only, I eventually let him into the main display. every day I feed, I make sure I know where he is and squirt him some brine shrimp just for him, I put some in the tank for all the other fish so they don't steal from him and he's doing fine. it's been a couple years, and he's okay.

 

[OREGONIC]

In addition just yesterday you posted you had 1.0ppm of ammonia in your tank..

Dont rush the tank, i know its hard not to but let things settle for a few weeks before you add anything. Every time you add something it takes time for things to balace again. Also i have read that even if mandarins eat frozen food it is not enough to sustain them they still need a steady supply of pods.

 

[DSC reef]

i got a mandarin and put it in a acclamation box inside the display. I fed it pods, and brine shrimp at the same time with the fans off. since it was in the acclimation box the other fish couldn't steal it's food, and I could see it eat. this went on for weeks, when I saw it eating the brine shrimp, I would put only brine shrimp in there at times, when i saw him doing okay and not loosing weight and still eating the brine shrimp only, I eventually let him into the main display. every day I feed, I make sure I know where he is and squirt him some brine shrimp just for him, I put some in the tank for all the other fish so they don't steal from him and he's doing fine. it's been a couple years, and he's okay.

Are you gut loading the brine shrimp? Live brine have very little nutritional value.

 

[DSC reef]

Dont rush the tank, i know its hard not to but let things settle for a few weeks before you add anything. Every time you add something it takes time for things to balace again. Also i have read that even if mandarins eat frozen food it is not enough to sustain them they still need a steady supply of pods.

This is very true.

 

[Oceanwave45]

yesh after reading everything about these guys I have come to the conclusion they are best left in the ocean - too many have died already - I'm not willing to watch on die that's not my goal

 

[rinckemd]

If you do decide to try a mandarin some day, save up and get a captive bred one from some place like algae barn. I purchased wild ones in the past from lfs’s that just didn’t stand a chance. Probably starved already and I was too stupid to realize it then. I don’t know what percentage of wild collected manadarins live long lives in tanks, but my guess is low. Leave them in the wild.