So I bought a fu Manchu lionfish 3 days ago and he refuses to eat. I tried feeder fish and brine shrimp. All he does is hide under the rocks in my tank night and day. I want to try feeding him ghost shrimp but the pet store I go to won't get any until Thursday. Will he last or what should I try to do?
why wont my lionfish eat?
- Thread starter cjtheboss
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puebloreefer
Community Member
usually most fish can go 7 days with out eating if they are healthy you would probably will be fine waiting to get the live ghost shrimp but be aware he may never eat frozen
tupes
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I have a fuzzy dwarf and all he eats is live ghost shrimp. I've even tried to target feed him by using a squirt bottle and squirting frozen food right in front of him. All he does is look at it but don't make an attempt to eat. The second a shrimp is put in the tank it's like he get possessed. Lol
Reef Fever
Valuable Member
theres some interesting studies on lions, it has been recorded that in the absence of food they will go into a "hibernation" after about 3 months only 10% of the lions body weight in the test pool was recorded as a loss..
Anyways fun fact aside, give it time to adjust and then follow my steps:
Here is what I do step by step
Step 1: Acquire a healthy specimen lol
Step 2: Choose your feeder. (ghost or grass shrimp, doesn't matter) I use ghosties because they are easier to find and more readily available.
Step 3: Keep a stock of the feeders just in case this step of the process takes a little longer. It is up to you (the food god) to decide which way you want to do this. I take the ghostie straight from the holding container and stick him on the clear acrylic feeding stick (you may choose to kill your ghostie more humanely, but I recommend against it). While the shrimp is on the stick it may still "twitch" a bit. This will only aid you in your process. The lion at this point can see the stick is there, yet does not mind it as the delicious shrimp is right there for the gulping! This is a crucial step because it acclimates the lion to the stick and lets them know that when this rod comes pokin through the water, food is on its way. Do this step only upon the first feeding attempt. However, if your lion refuses the ghostie then repeat this step until the lion takes the ghostie 100% of the time.
Step 4: Once the lion takes the "live" shrimp from the stick EVERY time, move on to something frozen. Make sure you give your food of choice a proper thaw. At first lions may be finicky with a "cold" meal. If you are lucky, like in the case of my hawaiin red eye, the second day I had her she was eating scallops of the stick. Don't expect that though!! My recommendation for the next transitional food is krill. Try to use pieces that look as "whole" as possible. You may need to "dance" the krill along the rock-work or simulate it "walking" along. If you get even the SLIGHTEST head turn from your lion then you are in business!! If they get interested but still turn away, just try again the next day! DO NOT be pushy about putting the food in the lions face. This is unnatural and will freak the lion out.
Step 5: Once you make it past Step 4 and your lion accepts krill EVERY time, try new foods. Krill, while part of a nice varied diet, SHOULD NOT be the staple of your lions diet. Some lions will forever depend on the stick..others will eat food dropped in the tank. It really is the luck of the draw.
Believe it or not, buying fresh fish from your local supermarket can prove to not only be beneficial but also quite inexpensive. Many items can be chopped up and frozen for use at a later date. Below I will list some of my recommendations for what to feed from the supermarket....
Acceptable Food Items for Your Lion: Lobster, Scallops, Cod, Salmon (caution:very oily), Shrimp, Red Snapper, Squid, Clams
My lions LOVE scallops and lobster.
Anyways fun fact aside, give it time to adjust and then follow my steps:
Here is what I do step by step
Step 1: Acquire a healthy specimen lol
Step 2: Choose your feeder. (ghost or grass shrimp, doesn't matter) I use ghosties because they are easier to find and more readily available.
Step 3: Keep a stock of the feeders just in case this step of the process takes a little longer. It is up to you (the food god) to decide which way you want to do this. I take the ghostie straight from the holding container and stick him on the clear acrylic feeding stick (you may choose to kill your ghostie more humanely, but I recommend against it). While the shrimp is on the stick it may still "twitch" a bit. This will only aid you in your process. The lion at this point can see the stick is there, yet does not mind it as the delicious shrimp is right there for the gulping! This is a crucial step because it acclimates the lion to the stick and lets them know that when this rod comes pokin through the water, food is on its way. Do this step only upon the first feeding attempt. However, if your lion refuses the ghostie then repeat this step until the lion takes the ghostie 100% of the time.
Step 4: Once the lion takes the "live" shrimp from the stick EVERY time, move on to something frozen. Make sure you give your food of choice a proper thaw. At first lions may be finicky with a "cold" meal. If you are lucky, like in the case of my hawaiin red eye, the second day I had her she was eating scallops of the stick. Don't expect that though!! My recommendation for the next transitional food is krill. Try to use pieces that look as "whole" as possible. You may need to "dance" the krill along the rock-work or simulate it "walking" along. If you get even the SLIGHTEST head turn from your lion then you are in business!! If they get interested but still turn away, just try again the next day! DO NOT be pushy about putting the food in the lions face. This is unnatural and will freak the lion out.
Step 5: Once you make it past Step 4 and your lion accepts krill EVERY time, try new foods. Krill, while part of a nice varied diet, SHOULD NOT be the staple of your lions diet. Some lions will forever depend on the stick..others will eat food dropped in the tank. It really is the luck of the draw.
Believe it or not, buying fresh fish from your local supermarket can prove to not only be beneficial but also quite inexpensive. Many items can be chopped up and frozen for use at a later date. Below I will list some of my recommendations for what to feed from the supermarket....
Acceptable Food Items for Your Lion: Lobster, Scallops, Cod, Salmon (caution:very oily), Shrimp, Red Snapper, Squid, Clams
My lions LOVE scallops and lobster.
ReefFrenzy
Shrimp Pimp
theres some interesting studies on lions, it has been recorded that in the absence of food they will go into a "hibernation" after about 3 months only 10% of the lions body weight in the test pool was recorded as a loss..
Anyways fun fact aside, give it time to adjust and then follow my steps:
Here is what I do step by step
Step 1: Acquire a healthy specimen lol
Step 2: Choose your feeder. (ghost or grass shrimp, doesn't matter) I use ghosties because they are easier to find and more readily available.
Step 3: Keep a stock of the feeders just in case this step of the process takes a little longer. It is up to you (the food god) to decide which way you want to do this. I take the ghostie straight from the holding container and stick him on the clear acrylic feeding stick (you may choose to kill your ghostie more humanely, but I recommend against it). While the shrimp is on the stick it may still "twitch" a bit. This will only aid you in your process. The lion at this point can see the stick is there, yet does not mind it as the delicious shrimp is right there for the gulping! This is a crucial step because it acclimates the lion to the stick and lets them know that when this rod comes pokin through the water, food is on its way. Do this step only upon the first feeding attempt. However, if your lion refuses the ghostie then repeat this step until the lion takes the ghostie 100% of the time.
Step 4: Once the lion takes the "live" shrimp from the stick EVERY time, move on to something frozen. Make sure you give your food of choice a proper thaw. At first lions may be finicky with a "cold" meal. If you are lucky, like in the case of my hawaiin red eye, the second day I had her she was eating scallops of the stick. Don't expect that though!! My recommendation for the next transitional food is krill. Try to use pieces that look as "whole" as possible. You may need to "dance" the krill along the rock-work or simulate it "walking" along. If you get even the SLIGHTEST head turn from your lion then you are in business!! If they get interested but still turn away, just try again the next day! DO NOT be pushy about putting the food in the lions face. This is unnatural and will freak the lion out.
Step 5: Once you make it past Step 4 and your lion accepts krill EVERY time, try new foods. Krill, while part of a nice varied diet, SHOULD NOT be the staple of your lions diet. Some lions will forever depend on the stick..others will eat food dropped in the tank. It really is the luck of the draw.
Believe it or not, buying fresh fish from your local supermarket can prove to not only be beneficial but also quite inexpensive. Many items can be chopped up and frozen for use at a later date. Below I will list some of my recommendations for what to feed from the supermarket....
Acceptable Food Items for Your Lion: Lobster, Scallops, Cod, Salmon (caution:very oily), Shrimp, Red Snapper, Squid, Clams
My lions LOVE scallops and lobster.
^^^^ Excellent advice right there! ^^^^
I kept a dwarf fuzzy lion for months and trained it to eat from my fingers, even clumps of our food. I wanted a Fu Man Chu but had read many experiences of them refusing to eat, even various live foods. This is definitely one specimen I would first keep in a cube or 40 breeder so it can be trained to eat in a setting without other fish racing around competing for food.
BTW- If you are gonna keep feeder shrimp at home for more than a few hours, think about gut loading them with some Selcon or Vita-Chem added to the water. I am fortunate that Dr. F Marini lives nearby and have picked his brain on a few occasions. He wrote a great book on lion fish you can find on Amazon for about $10. It is worth the read....
Lionfishes and Other Scorpionfishes: The Complete Guide to the Successful Care and Breeding of These Spectacular and Popular Marine Fish (Aquarium Success): Frank C. Marini: 9780793816798: Amazon.com: Books
Good luck!
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Thank you for all of the useful info! Last night I was able to get ghost shrimp and he ate it! Didnt take longer than a few minutes. Thank you guys so much I really appreciate you getting back to me so fast and with good info.
