Anyone successfully keeping a mandarin and sand-sifting goby in a 55

[drewdog82]

I really want both a mandarin and a sand-sifting goby for my 55. I know that most people will say 1 or the other, but I know their are some sand-sifting gobies that primarilly eat other things than pods....so, I was wondering if their was anyone out their having success with keeping both of these fish in a 55 gal. tank????

 

[drewdog82]

anyone?

 

[candycane]

Yes

 

[drewdog82]

Originally Posted by candycane
Yes
Thanx, by the way....
What kind of sand-sifter?? Also, do u have a fuge?? How much LR in display??

 

[candycane]

Both, I hate refugiums (outside of halimeda) and and about 4700 pounds

 

[1journeyman]

No chance you'll keep a Mandarin and a sand sifting Goby in a 55. None.
In fact I'd be willing to put money down with good odds that without supplemental pod replacement you couldn't keep a Mandarin in a 55 period unless you had a fuge or a crazy pod population without any other predation (and many, many fish will eat pods if they get a chance)
Mandarins eat pods.. look closely at the mouth and you'll see why. They are also slow swimmers. The can't compete for foods with faster fish.

 

[candycane]

I have sold 371 of them. I think 2 of them did NOT eat Tubifex worms and they died because their eye flew out of their head, so it had nothing to do with eating (black worms). Other then that, nearly all of them LOVE Tubifex worms. Just gobbled them right up, mandarins, spotted, yellow and psychadelic and dart.

 

[puffer32]

Originally Posted by candycane
I have sold 371 of them. I think 2 of them did NOT eat Tubifex worms and they died because their eye flew out of their head, so it had nothing to do with eating (black worms). Other then that, nearly all of them LOVE Tubifex worms. Just gobbled them right up, mandarins, spotted, yellow and psychadelic and dart.
This post doesn't make sense :notsure: Mandrins need pods, not worms to live.

 

[geckopsu]

Originally Posted by candycane
...nearly all of them LOVE Tubifex worms. Just gobbled them right up, mandarins, spotted, yellow and psychadelic and dart.
Hey Candycane, do the Tubifex worms have to be alive or will freezedried work? What do you recomend?

 

[1journeyman]

Originally Posted by candycane
I have sold 371 of them. I think 2 of them did NOT eat Tubifex worms and they died because their eye flew out of their head, so it had nothing to do with eating (black worms). Other then that, nearly all of them LOVE Tubifex worms. Just gobbled them right up, mandarins, spotted, yellow and psychadelic and dart.
Ok, taking all of that at face value.
How is a Mandaring going to compete for the worms? Are you going to drip worms in the tank 24 hours a day?

 

[candycane]

No, I have a mandarin that is about 3 years old in a 39 gallon with a HOT 1 skimmer on the back. Let's not split hairs here. These little things build caves, which they defend. 3-5 times a week you squirt some live or frozen tubifex worms right outside of it's cave area. It comes out and eats them.
Let's see how long this post goes on for. Anyone want start making bets? Tubifex worms actually have the same nutritional value if not more then pods.

 

[1journeyman]

I wasn't trying to split hairs. My point was that any food you put in the tank is going to get grabbed by something faster than the Mandarin.

 

[puffer32]

Mandrins build caves??? Never had one, or heard of one building them, most of the time they are busy cruising the rocks looking for pods, think you have them mixed up with a different fish.

 

[candycane]

Mandarins can BOOKE IT!!! when then need to. Havent you ever seen one get chased? The may not have swim bladders, but gobies dont have the best swim bladders either.
If you sprinkle it in the tank and just let it sink to the bottom, then yeah. Somethine else would probably eat it. But if you have one of those 4 foot long turkey basters (how do you spell that?) like I do, then you just shoot some right in their cave. Then if there is a fish in that tank that would go after the food even being right in front of that the mandarins cave, then that fish probably shouldnt be in the tank. That would need to be an EXTREMELY agressive fish. And mandarins are peacefull. I mean obviously, LOOK AT EM!!! They look like they are high all the time. I think someone dropped something in the evolution bubble.

 

[candycane]

Originally Posted by puffer32
Mandrins build caves??? Never had one, or heard of one building them, most of the time they are busy cruising the rocks looking for pods, think you have them mixed up with a different fish.
They have little areas where they hang out and a lot of the time will dig a small area from out underneath of the rockwork. Either way that you look at it, they should be able to be fed without any problems.
This is like the 16th post. Did anyone have 16?

 

[1journeyman]

Originally Posted by candycane
This is like the 16th post. Did anyone have 16?

I need to make a run down to Corpus Christi and grab me some pods. My tank is just not outproducing the pig of a 6 Line Wrasse I have. Once I get some I'll buy a Mandarin and check out the worms.

 

[candycane]

My wrasses all eat pellet food. So do most of the mandarins come to think of it - I mean tubifex worms are good and all.
who had 18?

 

[puffer32]

Originally Posted by candycane
My wrasses all eat pellet food. So do most of the mandarins come to think of it - I mean tubifex worms are good and all.
who had 18?
I think you are very wrong, now they eat pellets???? And my mandrin doesn't book, he is a slow eater. He will eat one or 2 live brine shrimp when I feed them to my fish occasionally, but no matter where I squirt it, mandrin moves to slow to eat more then afew. Don't know, you are saying everything the opposite from my experience, which is 25 yrs :thinking:

 

[1journeyman]

Originally Posted by candycane
My wrasses all eat pellet food. So do most of the mandarins come to think of it - I mean tubifex worms are good and all.
who had 18?
My wrasse eats everything. What size pellets you using? I've never seen a prepared pellet small enough for a any but the largest Mandarin to get in it's mouth.

 

[candycane]

Hikari MarineS works pretty well. My mandarin is like a vacum. Maybe yours is depressed? Do you talk to him regularly? Yeah I only have like 25 DAYS of experience. Every one that I have was a slow eater at first, and then they gobble. Maybe yours is Mentally Retarded, have you taken him to a vet?