How gental are your snowflakes Eels?

j4mypets

j4mypets

New member
Maybe too late to ask, since i just got one. But did i just fall for the " she's really gental and bother any fish" from the LFS . Usually i research the fish i am going to be well in advance but i brought back my Niger Trigger ( after 2 yrs) to trade, and saw her. I had NEVER wanted an eel. I watched her for over an hour and fell in love. Another couple was in there and they also told me theirs was very docile. THEN i came home with researched her and read they are known to eat small fish, I have clowns and chromis, and dwarf angels, will she hurt them? She is in quarantine along with sinapore angels who she was in the tank with at the LFS.

As always, any help in much appreciated.

LISAD- If you happen to see this thread you were a major help to me 3 yrs ago when i first started and you told me eventually my tastes may change and they have. I really appreciated all your help.
 
Don't put yourself in the position to get bit. Use feeding sticks or tongs and keep an eye out for your eels. If bitten it is best to get yourself checked. And they are major escape artists.
 
Thanks Cakeman for reminding me thats another thing i read about them will they go over the overflows, do you put crate over the whole top and weight it down?
 
Crap I just read watercity101's thread and am now really worried, should i bring this fish back to the store?
 
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why would u have to be checked out from a eel bite. i was wondering about that. i have a snowflake eel and love it but was wondering about a bite from one.
 
I've had two snowflakes over the years. Very mellow. Sometimes I'd have a load on, and hand feed the them. :p Never got bit. Nor did the eels ever bother my fish. I got rid of them because they kept tearing up the gravel, which would cause the tank decorations to fall over, and scratch the acrylic. I had a small lobster in the tank for about six months... one day I came home from work... and no more lobster. Just bits of shells. I wish I would have been home to see that.
 
You should not have a problem I have a 1 inch damsel and a 1.5 inch damsel with my 12 inch snowflake and he does nothing to them. They will not eat small fish! In the wild they naturally live on crabs shrimp and other small inverts. Now if you were in a small space and could only eat others like you I bet you would. This is why people say they eat fish. If they are properly fed you should have no problem with fish and even hermits... I've watched my hermit walk right on by and he just observes them. The only time ive ever seen him attempt to attack fish was when they had food and he was hungry but this was only the ones that had food. Great to watch and enjoy have fun
 
Oh I feel so much better! I am glad to hear some good stories after all the horror stories ,not to ,ention I am quickly becoming attached to her she is alot of fun to watch! This morning she is doing good as well as the angels. I want so badly to add her to the dt. We have to go get some escape proofing material!
 
I have a 12" and a 6" snowflake and a 24" banded snake eel together along with a scorpion fish, picaso trigger, stars and strip puffer, a six line wrasse, large hermit and four mollies I converted to salt and they all get along the eels are the most docile of all the fish the mollies and the six line are small and could easily be eaten but as long as I feed regularly nothing bothers them.
 
I am so glad. Because after all my reading last night we were going to take a trip back to the store. I have been using the same lfs and they had never steered me wrong.
 
I hate to be a wet blanket, but "peace in the kingdom" may not last forever. I've read reports that snowflakes become more aggressive when they hit sexual maturity (which I think happens somewhere around the 24" mark), at which time they may go after fish. I've never experienced it myself - mine's only around 15" now - but I'm a bit worried about it.

Also, I know I've told you this before, but I just love that Newf!
 
I had a snowflake that killed everything I put with him. Everything. He never ate them but just smashed them, and then he would not eat a thing for 9 months then I gave him back to the fish store. They all eventually get to a point at about 20 to 24 inches where they get extremely aggressive and will try to kill other tankmates.
 
I think this is just a bad rep. People never explain how they care for them. A hungry animal will do anything for food. They don't eat fish in the wild unless they are dead or weakened. This could be the case for many instances in the home
 
IME, once a SFE gets some size on it (e.g., becomes mature), there's a good chance that it will get nasty, kill tankmates, and be prone to biting (I was bitten twice, once the eel actually came out of the water to bite me while I was changing out a lamp in the canopy. I had this eel for 15 years, but I ended up having to keep it in solitary confinement after I became fed up with it. At the time, I couldn't GIVE it away (it was a big, pretty specimen too). I ended up losing it when a GFI outlet failed and needed replacement.

One thing folks need to bear in mind is that sure, in the wild, these eels tend to be more mellow, but when confined with other fish in close proximity, they aren't going to pass up a sleeping fish as a meal.
 
Well, I was hoping someone would say that because we decided take the chance and just add him. I would stress for the next couple weeks and go back and forth on whether to keep him so we beefed up the rock work and in they went. All is well so far, the sailfin is tailslapping her to make sure she stays in the caves..she hasnt shown any interest in eating, and I hope she does so she doesn't get to hungry and eat my fish! My computer crashed so I have to do this from my cell, or I would show the pics I have already gotten. I will when I get my computer back up.
 
oh crap I'm worried again oh man, I am so happy with the aquascape, for the first time in 3 yrs it would suck to have to tear it apart to get her out!
 
my 13" SFE was in a tank with a 3 inch dwarf angel and a 5 inch volitan lion. the only time i had issues was with the lion the eel would snip at the fins. but would never go after him. ive also fed him live goldfish and guppies. the biggest goldfish he got was a little over 1/2 inch long and he snapped it in half pretty impressive imo.
 
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