Lion fish not eating,

femmeartist51

femmeartist51

Member
Well went to the store, to try n get ghost shrimp. They do not carry it. I can buy frozen silverside, but then again that is frozen food. So I know gold fish are not good for the lion. The store said just use it to make him eat something. Well after two going into tank, the other fish love them. The lion could care less. He is one hard fish. I tried on the stick to feed him stuff like the guppy made it look like it was alive. Tried getting the gold fish by his face, no go. He moved away. Been only about 3 days, so not too worried. Guess he will have to starve more. Oh he won't take brine shrimp. Help pls want him to eat soon. Oh tried various things suggested to me nothing works on this fish. Stubborn fish for sure. So what else. I can't get ghost shrimp can get frozen silver side. Thanks for any advice.
 
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saxman

Guest
You can try small fiddler crabs, or small crayfish (I generally de-claw these before feeding them out).
Don't give the fish anything that's too large...try to keep whatever it is your feeding the lion about the size of its eye, or the distance between its eyes.
You need to tempt the fish...don't simply shove food into its face, as it will usually simply back away. Let the fish see the food coming...make it "dance" if you can do so. Also, many lionfish prefer to strike the food that is moving AWAY from them, as this lets them "stalk" it. I also STRONGLY recommend making a "stealth stick"...it has been responsible for successfully weaning more fish than any other method we've tried.
Finally don't give up...Renee (my wife, Cranberry here on SWF) likes to say "if your arm isn't going numb, you haven't tried long enuff", and believe me...she's the "queen of wean" at our house.
 
saban2013

saban2013

Member
How long have you had your Lion Fish? Did you ask the facility where you purchased him what they were feeding? I have found that in many cases, the lion is simply in a state of shock. You can use a specimen container on the outside of you tank to tempt him. Try multiple things in the container to see what might spark his interest. Don't give him anything right away. Let him start acting aggressive to the bait food you offer before feeding it to him. I have gotten several of these finiky fish to start or switch to different things this way.
 
mjtech12

mjtech12

Member
I can tell you when I had my lion along time ago I fed him large freeze dried Krill now live food is better for him but when stuff isn't available you use what you can get he loved it then I slowly weaned him onto silversides hopefully he will eat good luck
 
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saxman

Guest
I'd stay away from FD krill...it's one of the worst foods you can give your fish, add to that the fact that fish tend to eat them exclusively once they've been on a steady diet of them. They are completely devoid of vitamins, particularly vitamin C, and their shells contain inordinate amounts of fluoride. Vitamin C deficiency and fluoride overdosing can lead to malformation/deterioration of the mandibular structures, often resulting in lockjaw or cessation of feeding.
 
mr-led

mr-led

New Member
My wife and I do use FD krill as part of their diet. My trigger and my wife's eels love them. My wife does more often than me, pre-soaks them in vatamins. Would this still not be recommended? Any suggestions for alternatives and getting the the eels to switch if needed?
 
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saxman

Guest
I'm not sure what size tank you have, and which species of lionfish and triggerfish you have, but with the exception of planktonic-feeding triggers in larger setups, lions and triggers don't mix, as triggerfish generally harass lionfish to death, often nipping their dorsal spines off. It's entirely possible that your lionfish is being kept from feeding due to your triggerfish being a bully/chow hound.
Adding vitamins helps...vitamin C is super important, however, if what you're feeding out contains thiaminase, adding B1 won't help as the fish won't process it correctly. You pretty much can't do anything about the fluoride content unless you peel the krill, which is tuff to do even with frozen krill.
SW fish flesh (salmon, tuna, etc), shrimp, squid, scallops, etc. are all good foods. They can generally be had pretty cheaply in small amounts at your grocer's seafood counter. For instance, they often have 6 oz salmon filet pieces for $3.99, which last awhile considering 3 meals a week. We cut the stuff into about 1" - 1.5" pieces, lay them on a small cutting board with a layer of plastic wrap over them, and freeze them. Once frozen, we toss them into a zip-loc and date it. Anything over 3 mos old, we toss.
HTH
 
femmeartist51

femmeartist51

Member
Been awhile since I posted about my Lion fish. He is a pig, always begging for food. I know he is begging, he stares at me. If I ignore he he will actually yawn at me. My desk is by the tank, he is staring at me now and all the time. He does bully some fish in the tank, but generally leave him alone. He has grow really fast. I am feeding him fresh shrimp. Also fed him silver sides. He loves them both. I will try the salmon. We purchase salmon for ourselves to eat, so I will pinch off some for him. How much or how often should the lion fish eat, I have backed off to every other day. Is that not enough?? thanks for any help
 
femmeartist51

femmeartist51

Member
Good that was what I was doing, then read that some folks feeding their fish, like yellow tang and clown, along with angels, at least once a week. Some are feeding their fish several times a day. I thought that was too much, so I am doing something right lol. Thks
 
jay0705

jay0705

Well-Known Member
Lol yes I feed my tang,clowns,fox,ECT daily. But lions Eat such large amounts at one time a few feedings a wk is good.
 
S

saxman

Guest
Quote:
Originally Posted by femmeartist51 http:///t/394366/lion-fish-not-eating#post_3535274
Been awhile since I posted about my Lion fish. He is a pig, always begging for food. I know he is begging, he stares at me. If I ignore he he will actually yawn at me. My desk is by the tank, he is staring at me now and all the time. He does bully some fish in the tank, but generally leave him alone. He has grow really fast. I am feeding him fresh shrimp. Also fed him silver sides. He loves them both. I will try the salmon. We purchase salmon for ourselves to eat, so I will pinch off some for him. How much or how often should the lion fish eat, I have backed off to every other day. Is that not enough?? thanks for any help
4-6 eye-sized pieces of food 3x a week is plenty.

I wouldn't be surprised if your lion starts spitting water at you to get your attention since you sit so close to the tank...they can be surprisingly accurate. LOL
 
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