fuzzy dwarf feeding

[Moonstream]

I just brought home my first lion- a 2.5-3" fuzzy dwarf. he was eating freeze-dried krill at the store (saw him take on 4-5" clown and picasso triggers for some) so I at least know hes eating frozen krill well.

I bought some (sanfran bay brand) there, so I have that on hand to feed him. what else should I get?

frozen shrimp is on the list. silversides too, but I'll probably have to order those and wont be able to get them until the weather gets colder, I think. anything else to get?

also- if I need to get live food (if he gets picky with the food after being moved to a new tank) would guppies work short-term instead of ghost shrimp? guppies are easier for me to get a hold of by far, is the reason I ask. I'd just be using them until he got comfortable enough to go after the krill, not long-term. if it took more than two or three weeks to get him settled in, I would switch to ghost shrimp. in both cases they'd be fed ocean nutrition reef flakes just before being fed to the lion to add to hopefully their nutritional value.

would feeding daily be better than feeding every other day? in in each case- how much should I be feeding at once? I have a feeling lions arent one of those fish who will eat until they're no longer hungry, that they're more the type to eat and eat and eat.

 

[Moonstream]

a bump for the late night crowd, so this doesnt get buried come morning

 

[namxas]

First of all, don't EVEN feed the fish FD krill...that stuff is terrible, and once the fish get "hooked" on it, it's very tuff to get them to take anything else (it is actually referred to as "fish crack"). It has been linked to lockjaw in many predatory species, esp. lions. In fact I wouldn't feed ANY krill to the fish at all for the same reason (lockjaw).

Guppies and ghost shrimp are fine until you get the fish weaned. Gut load them with a good-quality marine flake prior to feeding them out.

You're correct...many lionfish will actually overeat to the point of regurgitation (not a good thing). We feed our lions, etc. 3x a week (M-W-F). Feed them until you see a slight "belly bulge" like this (this girl is actually pretty darned full):

Another thing that will help is not to give the fish too large a food item...stay right around the size of its eye, esp. at first. We go to the grocer's fish counter or the local fish market and get small amounts of SW fish (salmon, tuna, snapper, cod, anchovy, smelt, etc.), shrimp, scallops, lobster, squid, clams. The food is better quality and actually cheaper than the LFS.

HTH

 

[small alien]

Greg, I always love reading your posts. You are so generous with sharing your knowledge and experiences. And you do it in such a gentle and kind way. Kudos to you, Greg, for being a great fish keeper and a great guy!

 

[Moonstream]

so all krill is bad? I kinda had a feeling the freeze dried wasnt very good (I cant imagine it has very much nutrition in it) but frozen too? I went out and god a pack of frozen krill and frozen silversides; he took two pieces of krill, seemed to enjoy it quite a bit.

I'm trying to get him used to the feeding stick more; I'm using a small clear tube skewed through the food item. I used it to feed him the krill, and didnt seem to realize the stick was even there.

so- I guess I'll start feeding him silversides and get some other SW fish meats as well.

and, not only has the little guy eaten, but he's colored up (he faded out when I first added him to the tank, now he's back to his normal red/orange coloration) and is out from behind the rockwork and perching in the light!

 

[namxas]

You can use the krill sparingly if you want, but the fish ultimately needs to have a varied diet. We don't use it at all because there are so many other good foods out there, but that's our preference.

It's great to hear that your fish is doing well so soon.

 

[Moonstream]

how often is sparingly? like once every six feedings? my mom is stopping by the seafood store near us later, and said she'd see if they have any scraps and bring home a cup full of whatever they have.

I'm planning to feed monday, wednesday, and friday, and might throw in a small weekend feeding once in a while.

as far as stuffing food goes, I have ocean nutrition flakes I'm planning to use, and I also have some hikari shrimp pellets on hand- would those be okay to use as well? tomorrow I'll be feeding again, and then again on monday. thinking I might try getting him to take some silversides.

in other news, he's getting more and more comfortable in the tank every day. I'm really loving the little guy, and am really strongly considering getting a dwarf zebra as well (in another tank, though; I dont know how two such similar-looking lions would get on in a tank this size).

 

[namxas]

Just use it in conjunction with other foods. We typically offer two foods at a time, such as salmon and scallops. You'll learn which foods your fish like, and sometimes, they'll "tell" you that a particular food is getting boring or maybe a bit older/whatever than they like.

It's kinda like feeding kids in terms of likes and dislikes, so as you go along, you can find out which foods "everyone" likes well, and experiment with new foods. Eventually, you'll develop a list of foods that work for your fish, then you simply mix up the menu.