Help with finicky eater - geometric pigmy hawk

[Dr. X]

Hello everyone,

I have a 12 gal nano with a tailspot blenny and a geometric pigmy hawkfish. Both have been in the tank for about a month. The blenny eats everything - flake, frozen, dry nori, live adult and newly-hatched brine shrimp...he is a pig. The hawkfish comes out and watches, but will only eat frozen mysis shrimp or adult brine. Today I tried newly hatched brine shrimp (24 hrs) and he watched them swim by...

I've tried formula one and shrimp flake, as well as small pelleted food mixed in with his favorite frozen mysis, and he ignores the dry food. What else can I try? This fish will starve when I go away on vacation!

 

[MCCOOL]

Unless you're leaving for >2 weeks, I doubt it'll starve to death.

Mine would only eat mysis shrimp for a while, but now takes NLS pellets. The only tip I can offer is to mix the pellets with mysis/brine and feed at the same time, eventually it might start to take the pellets.

Good luck

 

[Dr. X]

That's good avice. Thanks!

That's good avice. Thanks!

I was thinking of soaking the NLS pellets or flake in the packing juices of the frozen mysis, but I'm afraid of cyano/BGA. In the past, I've had massive outbreaks when I introduced the packing juices of these products. Maybe a little bit won't hurt...

 

[MCCOOL]

I also rinse all my food before putting it in the tank, very good idea. I doubt soaking the pellets/flakes a few times will do much harm though, I'd try it once or twice and see how it goes

 

[dvmsn]

Mine do not take pellets, but will eat anything frozen. I would just offer a more balanced frozen selection.

 

[MCCOOL]

Dvmsn - is it safe to assume from your wording, that you have more than one? How do they get along, if they're together?

 

[suta4242]

I have had my pair, that I bought as tiny juveniles, for around 17 months. To this day they won't take pellets, but will take frozen and some live food. Even with the frozen, one of the two shows no interest if the foods not moving. eg if the powerheads turned off.

As an aside, I initially found them hard to teach to eat even though they were in a QT first where I could focus on their needs...so I transferred some amphipods over for them to hunt.