Naso won't eat

[Feltman]

I got a blue hippo a week ago and a desjardini and naso 2 days ago all 3 are in a 30 gl qt tank and I have yet to see the naso actually eat he seams to be getting thin are there any tricks to getting a picky fish to eat. I have tried lrs fish frenzy hikari spurila brine and mysis all soaked in Kent garlic extreme. I also tried a baster but he gets very skiddish when it enters the tank. Its not like the food isnt getting to him he just swims by it. I planned on treating Cupermine and pazipro but was hoping to get them eating first. I don't physically see any problems other then he is starting to look thin. Also bought from liveaquaria if that matters.

 

[4FordFamily]

Some naso are very very very shy.

You should be leaving nori (seaweed) sheets in the tank for it. This is their primary diet staple. For finicky fish I would rubberband it to something resembling a rock so it can graze.

Stand barely in view as far as you can still see to see if it eats. My blonde naso cow ONLY eats if I am at least 8 feet away from the tank. I've had her a year and she still hates me.

 

[mguili1947]

That was a bad decision on your part 3 tangs in a 30 gallon spells death to those animals.It should not havebeen done

 

[4FordFamily]

That was a bad decision on your part 3 tangs in a 30 gallon spells death to those animals.It should not havebeen done

Yeah it's crowded no doubt but if very temporary and many large water changes to keep down ammonia it can work.

Good point though, to the op was this qt cycled? If not you need to be doing dang near 100% water changes daily. I had 10 small tangs in a 55 gal qt with 4 Angels and a few other fish but I did daily 80% water changes until it cycled and still did 80% weekly changes afterward.

You need a seachem ammonia badge to tell you the ammonia levels during treatment and in qt. anything other than yellow requires a large water change. High ammonia levels will definitely curb appetite and will lead to certain death of not watched closely.

 

[mguili1947]

They will stress each other out and end up with ich

 

[4FordFamily]

They will stress each other out and end up with ich

Stress perhaps but as a necessary evil to keep them parasite free. Ich won't be a favor in cupramine.

 

[Feltman]

That was a bad decision on your part 3 tangs in a 30 gallon spells death to those animals.It should not havebeen done

It's a qt tank and all 3 are very small it's simply to observe and treat before going into the main tank theyve been swimming together with no signs of agression as of yet

Yeah it's crowded no doubt but if very temporary and many large water changes to keep down ammonia it can work.

Good point though, to the op was this qt cycled? If not you need to be doing dang near 100% water changes daily. I had 10 small tangs in a 55 gal qt with 4 Angels and a few other fish but I did daily 80% water changes until it cycled and still did 80% weekly changes afterward.

You need a seachem ammonia badge to tell you the ammonia levels during treatment and in qt. anything other than yellow requires a large water change. High ammonia levels will definitely curb appetite and will lead to certain death of not watched closely.

Yes it was cycled using seachem matrix in a canister filter and I already have the badge.

My question was tricks to get him eating I'm fully aware 3 tangs in a 30 is not a long term solution.

 

[mguili1947]

Good Luck

 

[Humblefish]

Have you tried feeding nori on a clip? The naso I QT'd for my velvet experiment - at first nori is all he would eat.

 

[Feltman]

Have you tried feeding nori on a clip? The naso I QT'd for my velvet experiment - at first nori is all he would eat.

Ya I put some in tomight one of the 3 ate it but I got busy and wasn't able to see who so I'll try again tomorrow hopefully he'll see the other ones eating it

 

[Humblefish]

Do you have at least 3 PVC elbows in the QT - one for each tang? Your 30 gal is fine as a QT for 3 tangs, but as @3FordFamily pointed out nasos can be somewhat shy and reclusive. They are like gentle giants and need a good hiding spot to call their own in order to feel comfortable in their environment.

So long as the tangs aren't physically damaging or overly harassing one another, you are fine. There will be some skirmishes, and that may induce stress which can bring on symptoms of ich if they are carrying the parasite in the first place. IMO; this is a good thing. Better to find out they have ich now in QT, where you can do something about it, than find out months later once they are in your DT.

 

[Feltman]

Do you have at least 3 PVC elbows in the QT - one for each tang? Your 30 gal is fine as a QT for 3 tangs, but as @3FordFamily pointed out nasos can be somewhat shy and reclusive. They are like gentle giants and need a good hiding spot to call their own in order to feel comfortable in their environment.

So long as the tangs aren't physically damaging or overly harassing one another, you are fine. There will be some skirmishes, and that may induce stress which can bring on symptoms of ich if they are carrying the parasite in the first place. IMO; this is a good thing. Better to find out they have ich now in QT, where you can do something about it, than find out months later once they are in your DT.

Ya I got 3 differnt size pvc fittings in there the sailfin and naso swim together all day and I noticed at lights out they went to the same one and we're still in there I checked later.

 

[4FordFamily]

That's good. Yeah I would just back up and observe from a distance mine is so shy. It's sad because she's gorgeous but I forgot she even exists because at first sight or sound of me (even door to basement opening) she dives and hides. I feed her more than once per day sometimes up to 5x per day you would think she would love me by now.

As soon as I step back she goes to town and eats like a cow. That's why I call her cow she will gobble up anything and everything and is fat as a whale now. She will eat 50 blackworms at a time if you let her. Her tankmates are almost all wrasses who are also a bit skittish by nature so i wonder if she just reacts to them. Oddly half of them love me now and the other half still retreat initially when I walk by. They come out as soon as they see food or I open the lid and cow just hides. :/

 

[Feltman]

Thx for the help guys I didn't want to try any seaweed since I didn't want to push the biolod but 2 days worth and now he's accepted frozen food as well and no amonia readings yet so so far so good.