Has anyone kept a Red Sea Cleaner Wrasse successfully?

[nina&noah]

I've had mine for about a week. He is a HUGE eater. He is eating pellets, mysis with garlic, pureed silversides, and even picks at my tang's seaweed strips. He doesn't just eat, he devours his food. After researching, it looks like the little guy is supposed to eat SPS coral. Will his nutritional needs be met with what I am feeding him? Is there anything I can do for this little guy to keep him alive? He is not cleaning the other fish at all, so I am assuming that he is already in his adult stage.
The fish acts healthy now, I just want to keep him that way. I really like him. Everyday he comes right to the glass to see my 1.5 year old son and my son screams "fishy!" So now if I kill the fish I will be double sad!

 

[srfisher17]

Originally Posted by nina&noah
http:///forum/post/2940358
I've had mine for about a week. He is a HUGE eater. He is eating pellets, mysis with garlic, pureed silversides, and even picks at my tang's seaweed strips. He doesn't just eat, he devours his food. After researching, it looks like the little guy is supposed to eat SPS coral. Will his nutritional needs be met with what I am feeding him? Is there anything I can do for this little guy to keep him alive? He is not cleaning the other fish at all, so I am assuming that he is already in his adult stage.
The fish acts healthy now, I just want to keep him that way. I really like him. Everyday he comes right to the glass to see my 1.5 year old son and my son screams "fishy!" So now if I kill the fish I will be double sad!
Not trying to be harsh, but when you ask a question in this manner (Has anyone kept a Red Sea Cleaner Wrasse successfully?) You'll always find someone, somewhere who has kept everything imaginable. Long-term success is another story. According to every source I know, cleaner wrasse have one of the worst survivability rates of all the fish we import.They seldom live more than a few weeks; yes, I know there are a few exceptions.Bob Fenner (The Conscience Marine Aquarist) also makes a very good case for leaving them in the ocean. It seems that they may be one of the very few species (IMO) that should not be collected at all; because of the service they preform on the reef. I'd gather some source material and take it back to the lfs and ask him to pay more attention to what he's selling. Also; you'll do much better in the hobby, and with your kids, if you avoid impulse buying and research fish before buying. To non-hobbiests, we must seem like idiots because we get so attached to fish. But we do, and its hard to lose them or have to return them.
BTW; I love the way you list your occupation (in your profile) as "Mom" Mine is "Dad, the best job I've ever had---usually.

 

[nina&noah]

Ok, I know I deserved that.
The reason that I titled it that is because if there is someone who has kept one, than I want to know how they did it. This isn't a regular cleaner wrasse. I bought him on impulse because he was eating pellets at the LFS. Now I find out that they are only cleaners as juviniles and that in their adult stage they eat SPS corals. So what I was asking is if the diet he is currently eating will satisfy his nutritional needs.

 

[stanlalee]

they almost ALWAYS eat just fine and still drop dead. I've seen some in huge highly populated reef tanks (like 400+ gallon) but short of that I dont think they are long term proposition.

 

[petjunkie]

They are obligate feeders, unless you are feeding it's natural diet it will probably die. I had a regular blue streak that ate fantastically and died after six months. Kinda like idols, eating is no guarentee they will survive, they were designed to feed on a very specific food and just can't adjust. Did you try feeding it sps? Buy some cheap colonies and see if it eats that is your best chance.

 

[nina&noah]

Originally Posted by petjunkie
http:///forum/post/2941025
They are obligate feeders, unless you are feeding it's natural diet it will probably die. I had a regular blue streak that ate fantastically and died after six months. Kinda like idols, eating is no guarentee they will survive, they were designed to feed on a very specific food and just can't adjust. Did you try feeding it sps? Buy some cheap colonies and see if it eats that is your best chance.
I'm willing to try to feed it sps. When you say "cheap colonies," what do you mean? What sps would be considered cheap?
Returning him to the LFS wouldn't do much good at this point, because it would still result in starvation or malnutrition. Do they sell some sort of vitamin supplement that I could add to its food?

 

[rcreations]

My cleaner wrasse is doing great but I've only had it for 3 months or so. There are people on these boards who've had them for 1+ year. Personally I see no indication that it'll die anytime soon. Eats everything I put in the tank, it's active, cleans the fish, unless it just drops dead all of a sudden, which I find unlikely.

 

[tfolke1]

I've had mine at least 6 months and he's still going strong. Sometimes he chases the cleaner shrimp around the tank. He will also eat just about anything that I put into the tank. I haven't seen him picking on any coral yet, but its there if he needs it.
He even survived a little vinyl surfing last weekend. I'm not sure how long he was out before I discovered him, and he breathed heavy for a couple hours once I got him back in, but he survived it.

 

[petjunkie]

Colonies that aren't doing too well or brown ones would be your best bet. Mine showed no signs of problems and then stopped eating entirely and disappeared over the course of a couple days, before that he ate great and colored/fattened up, he was originally very close to death when I was given him and being attacked by another cleaner.