Fish not eating

[UP UP AND GUPPY]

Well on Saturday I bought some Kenyi African Cichlids. They havent been eating, or at least to my knowledge, every time I put food in the tank they run away from it. They dont have a bloated stomach and they are swimming fine, what can it be? Oh and my tank is recycling if that helps, the parameters are:

pH:7.4-7.6
Nitrite: 0 ppm
Nitrate: 0 ppm
Ammonia: 0.25 ppm

 

[exhumed07]

well I have no idea. I have one swordtail female that aint eating but it is sick. I never heard of this without something being wrong with the fish.

 

[UP UP AND GUPPY]

Could it be the water parameters, unless its internal, and if thats the case should Itreat the for internal parasites,?

 

[YahooFishKeeper]

i wouldnt treat for parasites unless you are sure thats what it is. what have you been feeding?

 

[UP UP AND GUPPY]

Well I fed them cichlid pellets and a little bit of White Mosqitoe Larvae.

 

[YahooFishKeeper]

since you have only had them since saturday, they might not be ready to eat. my puffers wouldnt eat for about a week.

 

[UP UP AND GUPPY]

So what should I do put a little food in, and see what happens every morning and night?

 

[YahooFishKeeper]

i would put it in for a few minutes, and watch from far away, and if they dont eat it, take it out. try this maybe 2 times a day, they will eventually get hungry enough.

 

[UP UP AND GUPPY]

Thanx, I'll do that. Another thing, could they be possibly eating the Pleco wafer disc at night when I'm sleeping?

 

[YahooFishKeeper]

they might, i dont know much about those species, but some are herbivore, or omnivores. if they are, then that might be what they are doing.

 

[UP UP AND GUPPY]

Yeah because they get curious when I drop it in the tank.

 

[YahooFishKeeper]

try holding off on the wafers for a couple days, but still try the pelets, then they will start eating the pellets, and leave the wafers alone.

 

[UP UP AND GUPPY]

Ok, will do.

 

[Nightswimmer]

Your kenyi may just be shy and taking time to get used to their new environment. Kenyi get very territorial. Mine now thinks he owns the tank.

When I first introduced my Malawi cichlid variety into the tank it took them several days to realize what the pellets were. Once they get the "hang of it" they will go crazy over their food. Just watch out for stringy clear poo. It can be a sign of internal parasites-bloat.

Most Malawi are sensative to food high in protein. I made the mistake (in the beginning) feeding them krill and lost a few to bloat.*SICK* So I now stick to pellets, algae wafers, and spirula flake. I also read the protein content on all food before I buy it, looking to keep protein under 50%.