Mandarin Dragonet Care
- Thread starter gr3
- Start date
Flippers4pups
Home made abyss
P.E. mysis shrimp is all my Spotty will eat. I too use the acrylic tube on a syringe to spot feed, with all pumps off. Been doing this twice a day for over one year now and it's fat and happy. Knows it's feeding time when the pumps go off by ending up in the same spot to eat each time. Funny, it seems to have learned to head to the same spot. Wife says that "it's like a dog when it comes to eating".
Devaji108
New member
thanks so much for the info guys/gals the mandarin are my all time fav. fish. I am building a 75 with a 40br display fuge...the fuge is going to focus/house a mandarin or pair.
so are you guys saying that using the above method you are having success even with wild mandarins? or just the ORA ones?
so are you guys saying that using the above method you are having success even with wild mandarins? or just the ORA ones?
Flippers4pups
Home made abyss
Mine isn't a ORA mandarin. So i guess wild.
I just wanted to throw in my two pennies...
I purchased a mandarin around Dec, 2010 or Jan 2011. It was wild caught and rather skinny (but I've seen much worse). Having dealt with disease in the DT once already, I swore to QT all new fish. The mandy was no exception. I took the time (6 weeks) in QT to train the fish to eat prepared foods. It worked out well as the fish had no other competition for food. I placed thawed frozed mysis in the same corner every time and used a pipette to gently move the food along the bottom of the tank. I tried to mimic its natural foods pace. After about a week, he began to eat and after the second week, I didn't have to use the pipette to try to entice the fish. It goes to show that with some patience and determination, mandarins can be trained to eat foods other than live pods. Here's a couple pics of when i first got him, and how much fatter he is now ( the most recent pic is a few months old).
I purchased a mandarin around Dec, 2010 or Jan 2011. It was wild caught and rather skinny (but I've seen much worse). Having dealt with disease in the DT once already, I swore to QT all new fish. The mandy was no exception. I took the time (6 weeks) in QT to train the fish to eat prepared foods. It worked out well as the fish had no other competition for food. I placed thawed frozed mysis in the same corner every time and used a pipette to gently move the food along the bottom of the tank. I tried to mimic its natural foods pace. After about a week, he began to eat and after the second week, I didn't have to use the pipette to try to entice the fish. It goes to show that with some patience and determination, mandarins can be trained to eat foods other than live pods. Here's a couple pics of when i first got him, and how much fatter he is now ( the most recent pic is a few months old).
lcs
It's Spring!!!!!!!
Mine is wild as well. He was fairly skinny when I got him, but I did see him eat frozen brine. It's hard to find a wild one that isn't skinny, they don't eat for a long time before they get to your LFS. The trainability probably depends a lot on the individual fish; mine seems willing to at least try new foods. My most recent successes with him have been getting him to eat two Spectrum pellets (hey, it's a start! 
) and just last night he was taking food out of the water column and not just on the rocks - bloodworms and the mysis! :dance:
I would say that if you can get one, it would be best to get an ORA. I wish I could have gotten one close to me. It just seems more ethical.
) and just last night he was taking food out of the water column and not just on the rocks - bloodworms and the mysis! :dance:I would say that if you can get one, it would be best to get an ORA. I wish I could have gotten one close to me. It just seems more ethical.
jbax
New member
i'm glad many people are having success with mandarins. years ago many people said they won't last 3 months, if that.
when i first got mine i added 2 bottles of tigger pods 2 weeks apart and that was 3+yrs ago. and i moved 3 months ago and added 1 bottle (just in case). all my saltwater friends tell me, my mandarin is obese and needs to get it's stomach stapled.
when i first got mine i added 2 bottles of tigger pods 2 weeks apart and that was 3+yrs ago. and i moved 3 months ago and added 1 bottle (just in case). all my saltwater friends tell me, my mandarin is obese and needs to get it's stomach stapled.
Here's a short clip of the mandarin. I did lots of research before getting it and knew of their terrible success rate in captivity. Thats why i felt it necessary to get it eating prepared foods. I wanted it to have the best chance for a long, healthy life.
http://m.youtube.com/index?client=mv-google&desktop_uri=/&gl=US&rdm=4o960d3x7#/watch?v=BWET3F-IdKI
http://m.youtube.com/index?client=mv-google&desktop_uri=/&gl=US&rdm=4o960d3x7#/watch?v=BWET3F-IdKI
Hmm... Not sure why its not working. Here's a vid of the whole tank. The mandy is in it somewhere. Its 6 mins long though so if it gets boring, jump forward a bit. I think the mandy is about 3-3.5 mins into the vid.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y638-K_HX9s&feature=youtube_gdata_player
montecarlo97
New member
I feed mine the same way, with a pipette after I turn of the pumps. He comes to the same spot once the pumps are turned off. I just stick the pipette about an inch in the water and squirt, it just slowly falls down to him(brine shrimp).
I also ordered a small outlet from amazon that plugs into my power strip that I plug my pumps into, it has a remote control on/off, that way I can be lazy and not have open the door and reach in the stand to flip the switch.
I also ordered a small outlet from amazon that plugs into my power strip that I plug my pumps into, it has a remote control on/off, that way I can be lazy and not have open the door and reach in the stand to flip the switch.
lcs
It's Spring!!!!!!!
Contratulations monte! How long have you had your mandarin? Now that you know he'll eat brine, try to introduce other foods. Brine shrimp don't provide the right nutrients long term. Mine would eat Nutramar Ova, bloodworms, mysis, and was just starting to give New Life Spectrum pellets a try.
Good luck!!
Good luck!!
Congratulations! That's great!
Madehtsobi
New member
man i wish mine would eat frozen or pellets...
