Potter's Angel - Advice Needed

[rssjsb]

I've had a potter's angel in QT for three weeks. He was at the LFS for two weeks before that. He didn't eat in front of me, but he was fat and alert and I decided to take a chance.

Put him in QT. He refused all of my frozen foods (including mysis, brine, nutramar ova, cyclopeeze, squid, scallops, clam, rogger's) and prepared foods (NLS Thera A pellets, flake, sera tabs). He ate frozen feeder shrimp (Penaeus vannamei) from LA and picked at live brine. Ignored newly hatched brine. Miraculously, he's not wasting - entirely because he's picking at the algae in my QT (well-established and continuously running) and occasionally at nori.

He's had one course of prazi and one of chloroquine disphosphate. After 5 weeks at LFS and with me, he seems clean, with no signs of ich or flukes. I'm kind of anxious to get him into a display where he'll have more to pick at. While he's not skinny and is maintaining bulk around his head and "shoulders," I do think he's lost a little mass.

My choices are (1) a well-established 40-gallon with a pair of fairly mild-mannerd saddlebacks, solorensis boxfish, a wimpy toby, and a fair crop of algae; or (2) my big 185-gallon display with some bossy, but not nasty, fish, including a majestic, multibar, and singapore angel and kole tang. These guys are pushy to newcomers, but ignore them after a day or so.

My other option is to run carbon, order some more feeder shrimp once the CP is out of the system, and try again to wean him onto frozen.

What do you guys think?

 

[flameangel88]

He's had one course of prazi and one of chloroquine disphosphate. After 5 weeks at LFS and with me, he seems clean, with no signs of ich or flukes. I'm kind of anxious to get him into a display where he'll have more to pick at. While he's not skinny and is maintaining bulk around his head and "shoulders," I do think he's lost a little mass.

What do you guys think?

If your potter is not eating now and in the DT it may be more difficult to get it to eat especially if there's aggressive fish around. My suggestion is bring some rocks from the DT into the QT if you think there's thing on it to pick at. If it's not losing too much mass at this point then I would say no need to rush till getting it to eat first. I personally find potters more sensitive to moving between tanks and water quality then say a flame or coral beauty angel. Maybe try a live clam on a half shell to see if you can entice it to eat.

btw--how big is the potter?

 

[rssjsb]

It's about 3 inches, maybe a little less. My thinking was that there would be more foraging opportunities in my other tanks. But I maybe just getting over-anxious. The fish in the 185 aren't really aggressive, but there would definitely be some hazing and I don't want to drive him into permanent hiding. The forty is smaller, but it has a lot of algae. The clowns are a bit of a concern, but they've never shown the slightest interest in any of their tankmates.

But I guess I can wait a little longer as long as he's picking. I'll get the meds out and then move some LR in from one of my other tanks to see if he'll eat. I'll try the clam thing too, even though I really hate doing that.

Do you think it would help if I lowered the temp? It's probably around 79 in the QT.

 

[flameangel88]

I prefer 74. I don't see a need to be up that high.

 

[FIREFISHPAT]

Try adding Garlic to the foods you mention. Keep tank around 78. Leave him in until eating. They like very small size of food when comes to eating.

 

[FIREFISHPAT]

See if you can get your hands on Diet Angel Food by Pro Salt. My Potter loves it. If not try Drawf angel frozen food and add garlic to All the foods.

 

[LargeAngels]

Like flameangel88 said put more stuff in that it can graze on and don't be quick on moving him to the DT until it has gained wait or is eating prepared food.

Potters do much better in low 70's than high 70's. Try a good flake food like Omega One and Veggie flakes. Take small flakes and put it in with good water flow.