7 Days Of Starvation!

[sforzauk]

Well, I got a red tailed black shark on Monday and basically it hasn't eaten anything since I got her. She is really small at the moment, at around 5cm. I've tried flake food, small pellets and larger pellets but she doesn't show an interest in them. She is acting perfectly normal and stays out of the way of the other fish so is not bullied. I keep her in a 58 litre long tank with 2 small opaline gouramis around the same size. Everything is fine(as in pH, ammonia etc.) except the nit. levels were a little high, so I cleaned out the tank and put in some live plants. The temperature is at 26 degrees. Any help or advice appreciated. Thanks.

 

[WILDER]

She's not eating as she is stressed the tank is way to small for her, they need 40gals, try some frozen foods like bloodworms, daphnia, brimestrimp.
Red tailed black shark like hiding spaces does she have any like caves.

 

[black jack1]

You sure it's not living on algae? I have a RTBS around the same size of yours and he also hasn't been or doesn't appear to be eating anything for over a week, maybe because he wasn't feeling too good. But i found that he was eating algae off the glass, nothing else though. Still doing it! I think i need to get rid of the algae so he goes back to flakes etc...

 

[WILDER]

http/www.aquahobby.com/gallery/e_bicolor.php

 

[sforzauk]

I dunno, I can't see any algae on the panes and I scrub them with a sponge every water change. She might be eating the plants though as I've seen the gouramis nibbling at them...

She's not eating as she is stressed the tank is way to small for her, they need 40gals, try some frozen foods like bloodworms, daphnia, brimestrimp.
Red tailed black shark like hiding spaces does she have any like caves.

The fish store said that she would be fine as they can grow a maximum of 12cm, and my tank can hold 30cm of fish. Not exactly caves in the tank, but some dense vegetation at the back which she hides in.

 

[WILDER]

That's why she got no hiding spaces they love there caves, to be honest i would take her back to the lfs that tank is too small for her and she deserves better, and find and lfs that is good, and research the fish fefore you buy, as it can become a nightmare instead of a pleasure.

 

[xenomorph]

Fish can go for a very long time without eating. I would not worry about it, give the fish a couple weeks or so to get settled into its new home.

Last fall we got a new lima shovelnose cat--just a little 4" thing--and we were trying for MONTHS to wean it off feeders. I gave in once and fed it a feeder after it had not eaten for three weeks. A month later it finally accepted its first worm and three weeks after that, it was eating them regularly. Talk about frustration

 

[fish mad]

Fish can go for a very long time without eating. I would not worry about it, give the fish a couple weeks or so to get settled into its new home.

Last fall we got a new lima shovelnose cat--just a little 4" thing--and we were trying for MONTHS to wean it off feeders. I gave in once and fed it a feeder after it had not eaten for three weeks. A month later it finally accepted its first worm and three weeks after that, it was eating them regularly. Talk about frustration

A fish has a natural instinct to survive . I think you will find she is surviving on the bits caught on the plants thats what mine does so dont worry she will be fine.

 

[teddyman5]

Well, I got a red tailed black shark on Monday and basically it hasn't eaten anything since I got her. She is really small at the moment, at around 5cm. I've tried flake food, small pellets and larger pellets but she doesn't show an interest in them. She is acting perfectly normal and stays out of the way of the other fish so is not bullied. I keep her in a 58 litre long tank with 2 small opaline gouramis around the same size. Everything is fine(as in pH, ammonia etc.) except the nit. levels were a little high, so I cleaned out the tank and put in some live plants. The temperature is at 26 degrees. Any help or advice appreciated. Thanks.

What is the tank size? '58 litres long'

 

[sforzauk]

To be honest, she would not exactly be getting a much better home, as I purchased one of the largest fish tanks in the store, and most other people buying the fish would put it in something smaller (assuming they purchased the tank from there, which is probable as there arn't many pet/fish stores around). I have researched the fish so I know what they are like. It is a 58 litre long. Thanks for all your replies

 

[sforzauk]

Well, there was obviously something wrong with her as she died on the 11th.

 

[WILDER]

Sorry, R.I.P.