Clownfish Pair - Will Only Eat Pellets

[president89]

Usually people have this the other way around. Right now my pair of clownfish will only eat New Life Spectrum Thera+ A Sinking Pellets. They won't touch any of the various frozen foods I have. I'm trying to growout some live brine shrimp, but that's another 2 weeks away. Do I not give in and only give them the frozen food they won't eat? These guys have only been in my tanks for about a week. I just thought it was odd that they'd accept pellets, but not the good stuff.

Frozen Brine Shrimp
Mysis Shrimp
Formula A
Marine Cuisine
Cyclopeeze
Supermarket homemade stew - recipe from "The Complete Illustrated Breeder's guide to Marine Aquarium Fishes - including garlic

 

[Daniel62]

I would say you are lucky

 

[hijinks]

Mine only eat pellets for the most part

 

[DasCamel]

Give them time, they'll start to eat everything.

 

[RocketCityNano]

Yeah, mix some frozen in when you feed pellets...and soak everything in garlic.

 

[Amoo]

How many times a day do you feed? Could just be they love the taste of the pellets and have learned if they wait they will get some. Mine love the same pellets. Every fish I own from Tang to Goby gobbles them up with as vicious a feeding response as anything else ("the good stuff") I give them. I've resigned to just mixing reef chili, coral frenzy, Reef Roids and Phyto with a cube of mysis and spot feeding my corals/small nems and whatever the fish catch they catch.

 

[bluecoyote79]

Mine really love the New Life pellets as well, but started eating Rod's Food after a few feedings. The pellets actually seem to add better weight to my Cardinalfish.

 

[Azedenkae]

Why do you need the Clownfish to eat non-pellet stuff? NLS is the best type of food already, you're lucky they're eating that. They don't need the variety - it's only if they don't take to such type of food, really.

If you really want to, yeah, only feed them what they don't eat and they will eventually give in but... I don't see a point.

 

[bluecoyote79]

Well the pellets are really good, but variety is also beneficial. My fish did really for years on the pellets but they are doing even better with a mix of frozen and pellets.

 

[oh207]

My pair of snowflakes only goes after pellets. I try to feed them Mysis, Spirulina Brine, Mega Marine, squid, Rods food and recently LRS Reef Frenzy but they ignore it all. The only other thing they eat besides pellets are Rods Fish eggs. And these guys spawn every 2 weeks.

 

[president89]

Why do you need the Clownfish to eat non-pellet stuff? NLS is the best type of food already, you're lucky they're eating that. They don't need the variety - it's only if they don't take to such type of food, really.

If you really want to, yeah, only feed them what they don't eat and they will eventually give in but... I don't see a point.

Because all the books and breeders I've talked to said you should have a varied diet. I am trying to get them to spawn. My reef recipe has geletin. I'm going to try and push the pellets into the gelatin before feeding. Maybe I can trick them!

 

[president89]

No dice.. smart little fish. Should I just feed them what I want them to eat and eventually they eat it?

 

[Anemone12]

My breeding pair of skunks only eat pellets.. Seem times they pick at the mysis shrimp I put in but then they just spit it back out.

 

[Yuri Barros]

And what about fish roe.......???

Like Tobiko........flying fish roe..........

The raw roe is very nutritious, due to its high vitamin content, high protein content, and large ratio of omega-3 to omega-6 fatty acids
Source : WIKI

Massago (Capelim eggs)............


I don´t know if people use this to feed clownfishes............as a seasonal food item..........once its a high fatty food.........must be used with careful.......

I don´t know........???

Many fishes in the Wild will eat other fish spawn............when disponible.......

Someone with experience with this........???

 

[president89]

IIRC Frank Hoff wrote about this in his book Conditioning, Spawning, and rearing of fish with emphasis on marine clownfish.

 

[SwampyBill]

Try soaking food in Sel-Con. & I'd suggest feeding PE mysis instead of brine. PE is much more nutritious. My fish guy used to say that brine was like popcorn to humans--empty calories & not very nutritious. Try to treat them w/ Cyclo-peeze. I've never seen a fish not go crazy for Cyclo-peeze freeze dried powder.

 

[president89]

Tried Selcon and mysis the other day. Will try again. Maybe they will mistake for brine.