Blue-jaw trigger not eating

[Slickdonkey]

Hey Steve,

I picked up a blue-jaw trigger at the LFS 24 hours ago and he is still not eating. I should admit he also was not eating in the store although one of the owners assured me he was eating earlier in the day. He even offered to give me a call when the fish was eating again but I decided to give it a go anyway so I don't have to drive down there again...

Anyway, I've tried mysis and brine soaked in selcon and vita-chem. He wasn't interested. Tonight I dropped a frozen manila clam in there; also no go.

I know I probably shouldn't have brought him home, but on the other hand he probably has a better chance of survival with me since he now has his own 55 gallon QT with no other fish to compete for food.

After 24 hours, temperature is 78F, SG 1.018, ammonia 0 (salifert). pH is 8.2. He's got a few bleached coral pieces to hide under. He seems to be alert and no obvious signs of disease but I'd feel better if I could get him eating.

I know the LFS was running copper in their system but I am not. I would appreciate any advice you can offer.

 

[matts125]

Hey Slick,
This is very common behavior for a Blue throat Trigger. They are very skiddish for the first few days and mostly just wedge themselves in the rock and hide with no interest in food. I would give it a few days like 4-5 days before getting worried I went through the same thing when I got my male BTT and about a week later he was out and eating..

Matt

 

[Herefishyfishy]

Have you considered lowering the salinity a tad to induce appetite?

 

[Slickdonkey]

Seems low already but I may drop it a bit the next time I do a water change.

 

[jsmkmavity]

try a small piece of banana on a stick or in a pair of long aquarium "tweezers", and just leave it near where he is hiding but not too high in the water column. if that works next time try a piece of shrimp the same way. if he eats that you should be good to go. just watch carefully for any signs of ich or velvet. that will kill their appetite.

 

[steve-s]

As noted it's quite common for this (most fish) not to eat immediately. With the trigger, it can easily be days before they show interest. Many stress very easily and can affect their appetite and behavior quite severely. Lowering the salinity as suggested would help but no lower than 21 ppt (1.016 SG). This is low enough to help with feeding/energy consumption but not low enough to be a problem if something else pops up.

As I touched on, stress is a big factor here. Ensure there are plenty of places the trigger can easily hide in, not just behind. No overhead light, no bright ambient light or quick foot traffic. At the next feeding, add some of the Vita_Chem directly to the water. The B12 it contains will also entice the appetite. At least for the short term, no Selcon. Stick to foods the trigger would recognize in the wild. Although meat, brine amd Mysis do not measure up. Raw scallop, fresh frozen large krill (whole bodied if possible), shrimp tails or small whole raw shrimp, raw crab meat and so on. Getting the fish accustom to eating what you feed is the first step. Working on a good dietary regime can come later, albeit the sooner the better.

 

[Slickdonkey]

Scallops, crab, sounds good. Maybe I'll make a seafood pasta tonight and give him some of the scraps. Damn fish eats better than my family does...

How much Vita-chem do you recommend adding? Water volume is about 55 gallons.

Thanks for your help Steve, I will post back with results.

 

[steve-s]

The directions should say 1 cap per 25 gal? If not I would use 2-3 for a 55 gal. Be sure to remove any carbon/adsorbant media for a few hours after adding to allow for maximum effect. Just remember top return it later.

 

[jfingers8]

Please do not lower your salinity anymore you are way to low as it is. You need to be between 1.024 and 1.026 that is normal maybe that is why he isn't eating but raise your salinity slowly so you don't shock them.

 

[Herefishyfishy]

Hi Jfingers8, yes reefs are best kept from 1.024 to 1.026 but often the practice of lowering salinity increases appetite along with lowering the stress on the fishes system. The fish do not have to pump so much salt back out. Their blood stream's salinity is much lower than sea water. In fact, some live fish stores keep their fish only tanks at a lower salinity to lessen their losses. Lower salinity is terrible for most corals but fine for fish.

 

[BIG-G]

I bought a blue throat a few weeks back and it did the same thing give it some time he will eat. What did the trick for me was some fresh shrimp from the grocery soaked in some garlic he tore it up. now i have trouble getting food past him for the puffer.

 

[Slickdonkey]

Well I put 2.5 capfuls of Vitachem in the water, removed the carbon, and tried to feed him some crab, scallop, and shrimp. He is still not interested. Yesterday I added a big PVC pipe with one end closed off that he has taken a liking to. He still is not actively swimming around or eating, but he appears to be healthy otherwise.

Tomorrow I may see if I can find some live brine shrimp. That's never failed me before...

 

[Herefishyfishy]

You could always try live feeder goldfish. Steve S. loves them:lol: :lol:

 

[Slickdonkey]

R.i.p.

Well he didn't make it. I should have known better than to buy a fish that wasn't eating at the store.

 

[Herefishyfishy]

Sorry for the bad luck. Take it back, warrentees or not.

"I pity the fool that sells me a bad fish"

 

[steve-s]

You could always try live feeder goldfish. Steve S. loves them:lol: :lol:

For those of you that don't know, this is sarcasm at it's best...

:badgrin:

Well he didn't make it. I should have known better than to buy a fish that wasn't eating at the store.

Sorry for the loss. Doesn't make any sense for the trigger to pass in only three days from lack of eating. You did not notice anything odd at all about the triggers appearance/behavior otherwise?

How was the trigger acclimated?
Ammonia, pH, temp etc all check out?

If you cannot determine a better cause than lack of feeding, please be sure to sterilize the QT before using it again.

 

[Slickdonkey]

Sorry for the loss. Doesn't make any sense for the trigger to pass in only three days from lack of eating.

Right, especially since the LFS said he had been eating before I got him.

You did not notice anything odd at all about the triggers appearance/behavior otherwise?

No, not really. He liked to wedge himself under the bleached coral pieces on his side, but I think that's normal behavior for a trigger. Other than his shyness he looked like a healthy fish to me.

How was the trigger acclimated?
Ammonia, pH, temp etc all check out?

The journey home was about 30 minutes from the LFS. I floated the bag for about 30 minutes while adjusting the pH of the tank to match his bag water using liquid "pH down". Then I released him into a colander and dumped him in (no nets). SG was almost a perfect match using a refractometer so I didn't adjust either the tank or bag water to match.

I did an ammonia test 24 hours later and it read zero. pH was adjusted 8.0 when I put him in and gradually raised itself back to 8.4 over the course of two days (this is what it was before adjusting with "pH down").

If you cannot determine a better cause than lack of feeding, please be sure to sterilize the QT before using it again.

Will do Bleach and air dry?

 

[steve-s]

Are you absolutely sure the pH, salinity and temp where a match before releasing the trigger?

Will do Bleach and air dry?

Yes! Just be sure to rinse several times before you air dry and use an unscented 5% bleach 10:1 is plenty.

 

[Slickdonkey]

Are you absolutely sure the pH, salinity and temp where a match before releasing the trigger?

Yep, I have a pinpoint monitor and a refractometer, and the temperature was right on as well.

 

[dragoneggs]

Sorry to hear Slick. I know you did your best based on seeing your operation!