Tube feeding success - regal angel

[alprazo]

i just wanted to describe another successful transition from fasting to feeding with the aid of tube feeding.

I purchased a regal angel. From day one it refused frozen mysis, brine and shad roe. It refused raw fresh oyster, clam and mussel. I also tried fresh squid, frozen menhaden and flake food. The only interest is showed in food was following a 1 inch grass shrimp around the tank. After two weeks of fasting and having never seen the fish pick at the rock work, or lettuce in the tank, I started tube feeds with the use of tricaine and Stat, a high calorie liquid supplement for newborn sheep, horses, and other livestock. I've used Stat in the past for my sharks. I started the feeds before the fish really started to thin out.

About 10 days (5 feeds) after doing forced feeds every other day, tonight the fish started eating flake food right out of the water column. I'm really excited because never has the fish shown interest in food.

I just wanted to restate how helpful this technique this can be. This fish could of course started eating on its own, but it's been shown that the longer the fish fasts, the greater the chance it develops GI dysfunction and loses the ability to absorb nutrients from its food, even if it does start eating.

Anyway, I highly recommend considering it and to start long before their bellies looks "pinched". I wish I videoed this fish, but in I will repost the one I did In the past.

 

[alprazo]

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2138236&highlight=tube+feed

 

[alprazo]

 

[Jasanden]

Very interesting. I just thought about doing this with a Regal Angel , but decided to leave it at the pet store. Where cAn you purchase Stat? Also , can you use mashed up ( almost liquified) frozen food? Definitely something I am going try with any fish that refuses to eat for a long period of time.

 

[snorvich]

Great idea!

 

[Dmorty217]

Very impressive, much to be learned from you sense

 

[alprazo]

I had a bottle of Stat left over from a shark pup that never ate. A guy at a public aquarium recommended it to me for tube feeding sharks. When I did it for the clownfish and an idol in the past, I used mashed flake food, but decided to use a high calorie prep so that I could space out the Feedings, plus the tricaine is expensive.

The regal ate just in time to finish the cp/prazi qt. I keep a stargazer in the qt tank to keep the filter efficient and today I saw the angel picking at the tail and dorsal fin of the stargazer. This one turned the corner over night and I actually move it to a display tank today.

Btw. Stat can be purchased on Amazon. Mazuri power works great too, but you really have to make a dilute prep to push it through the tube. For sharks I've also used Gatorade instead of water to keep the calorie content high.

 

[Dmorty217]

I had a bottle of Stat left over from a shark pup that never ate. A guy at a public aquarium recommended it to me for tube feeding sharks. When I did it for the clownfish and an idol in the past, I used mashed flake food, but decided to use a high calorie prep so that I could space out the Feedings, plus the tricaine is expensive.

The regal ate just in time to finish the cp/prazi qt. I keep a stargazer in the qt tank to keep the filter efficient and today I saw the angel picking at the tail and dorsal fin of the stargazer. This one turned the corner over night and I actually move it to a display tank today.

Btw. Stat can be purchased on Amazon. Mazuri power works great too, but you really have to make a dilute prep to push it through the tube. For sharks I've also used Gatorade instead of water to keep the calorie content high.

Gatorade for sharks you say? Can you please elaborate...

 

[Dmorty217]

Also where can I get the syringe/ pipet combo at that will work for fish and small sharks

 

[alprazo]

When making the gruel, instead of mixing the flake food with water, you can use Gatorade or pedialyte

 

[alprazo]

Those 1cc disposable. Pipettes or I use angiocaths. I order them through work. They are the tube that gets inserted into a vein for an IV. They are soft, but semi rigid and come in different sizes.

After the success of the clownfish I thought I would try to make and try to sell a kit. As you can see by the initial thread there was almost zero interest and it seemed like I was the only one that had problems getting fish to eat. Unlike CP, it never caught on.

 

[Dmorty217]

Does it matter on flavor of Gatorade? Could you make me one for fish and one for smaller sharks? I could paypal you the $. Could you make reusable ones? I have stat coming and clove oil for sedation. I don't have a problem fish as of now but I want to have everything I need when I get my bigger tank up and going in my new home. Pm me if you think that's something you can do and pricing.

 

[Dmorty217]

I think this is brilliant

 

[jjk_reef00]

That is amazing, great work! I may have to try this oneday.

 

[Jasanden]

I would also purchase a kit if possible. It bothered me watching that beautiful Regal dwindle away at my friends shop. He would have let me tube feed that beauty right in his store if it would have saved it.

 

[caribfan]

Those 1cc disposable. Pipettes or I use angiocaths. I order them through work. They are the tube that gets inserted into a vein for an IV. They are soft, but semi rigid and come in different sizes.

After the success of the clownfish I thought I would try to make and try to sell a kit. As you can see by the initial thread there was almost zero interest and it seemed like I was the only one that had problems getting fish to eat. Unlike CP, it never caught on.

Ever thought about using this method to try and get some of the corallivore butterflies to transition to prepared foods?

 

[Dmorty217]

Ever thought about using this method to try and get some of the corallivore butterflies to transition to prepared foods?

I thought of you Matt when I saw this

 

[SDguy]

After the success of the clownfish I thought I would try to make and try to sell a kit. As you can see by the initial thread there was almost zero interest and it seemed like I was the only one that had problems getting fish to eat. Unlike CP, it never caught on.

You have to realize it is INCREDIBLY daunting for the average fish keeper to think about doing this. I'll freely admit, I don't have the nads to try this.

 

[Dmorty217]

You have to realize it is INCREDIBLY daunting for the average fish keeper to think about doing this. I'll freely admit, I don't have the nads to try this.

I agree with you Peter but if it's this or your several hundred dollar fish is surely a goner, I would take my chances with this. Depends how badly you want to save a fish I suppose too.

 

[SDguy]

I agree with you Peter but if it's this or your several hundred dollar fish is surely a goner, I would take my chances with this. Depends how badly you want to save a fish I suppose too.

Well, just because a fish is slowly starving doesn't really make me any more comfortable possibly destroying its insides with a plastic tube


This may sound harsh, but I feel like I would want to practice on a hardy fish, like the clown the OP used.