Garlic Question

[richardhmc]

Is it true that garlic helps entice fish to eat? I have a spotted mandarin that is getting very skinny.

I took him out of the display, and put him into a 5 gallon with a bunch of live rock filled with copepods. I can see the copepods running all around and run in front of his face and he won't eat them!

I've tried mysis shrimp, copepods, pellets, and cyclops.
I've heard that using garlic helps the fish's appetite? Is that true?

 

[Lenny718]

Garlic can help entice finicky fish to eat but in your case with the Mandarin I don't think it will help .

 

[richardhmc]

yeah this guy wont even eat copepods. what the hell am i supposed to feed him now?

 

[Lenny718]

yeah this guy wont even eat copepods. what the hell am i supposed to feed him now?

Not sure Rich. If he's not eating pods which is there main source of food it may just be his time. This is the main reason I never recommend these fish to anyone, They may do well for a few months but they will eventually starve themselves to death.

 

[JARRETT SHARK]

try sinkable pellets

 

[Lenny718]

try sinkable pellets

You can give it a shot but if he isn't eating pods its highly unlikely he will eat pellets.

 

[richardhmc]

I do have pellets that sink. right now i just put mysis and pellets in his tank and let it sit there hopefully he takes a bite

 

[guarda]

if he's not eating, i would try anything. hope he makes it.

 

[richardhmc]

if he's not eating, i would try anything. hope he makes it.

thanks. he's still swimming around all fine though.. just not eating

 

[guarda]

Maybe he just got shy. Mine hated the tank move btw. Stressed him out and didn't move or eat for 10 days.

When i first got my mandarin i bought loads of stuff i didnt use since i got him trained fairly quickly. So if you think it would help, lemme know if you need; garlic sauce, selcon, zoomax, freeze dried brine, that acrylic trainer thing i made or anything else I might have, just let me know.

 

[richardhmc]

I think I do remember him eating tigger pods.
Anybody know an LFS in manhattan that sells them?

 

[greenstreet.1]

ma had some don't know if they still have

 

[emmanuel]

yeah this guy wont even eat copepods. what the hell am i supposed to feed him now?

What you probably see is amphipods I read somewhere that these are too big for mandarins (at least if they are grown enough for you to see them)
I've had mandarins for 8 years now and never witnessed them eat amphipods large enough for me to see .In the past when my system wasn't mature enough I used the tigger pods but that could get very expensive

 

[InfernoST]

I think I do remember him eating tigger pods.
Anybody know an LFS in manhattan that sells them?

Did you try Manhattan Aquarium?

 

[richardhmc]

yup going to head over to MA.

but why don't they eat amphipods? My larger mandarin could definitely take a chomp at em. They are so big and juicy!