moorish idol issue

bergamer

bergamer

Active Member
ok ok,
I know it is not going to survive, but there is nothing I can do. MY g/f loves them and I really have a bad fealing that I am going to come home and find one in my tank.
I have told her that it is going to DIE!!
she does not care and wants to try anyway:nope:
(I hate seeing dead beautiful fish)
I felt so bad when my naso tang did not survive HLLE
and my first thought would be to take it back, but I have 2 problems with that.
1. first, I doubt that a lfs wants it back
2. I dont have a reciept
3. it would just die at the fish shop
4. if I find a good home for him to live out his few months, then I am sleeping on the couch!
so please, besides yelling at me or telling me to dump her- as she has contributed to my fishtank habit significantly (like buying my tank, 90lbs of LS, filters, skimmer, ect)
what is the best way to take care of this critter?
thanks and wish me luck
 
andrew78

andrew78

New Member
My brother has had one for about six months now and it eats like a pig. When he first introduced him into his tank he got some empty snail shells and stuffed them full of a variety of foods then soaked them in garlic. Im not too sure on what exactly he fed them but I think it was prime reef, mysis shrimp, krill, and formula two. Then he just placed them in the rocks and let him find it. It seems like they do better when they have to search for it. Place a couple of them in there because if you have any shrimp they will find it too. Then after two months or so he was eating with all the other fish. I really hope this helps.
 
ophiura

ophiura

Active Member
The experience I had was with one that ate ANYTHING. So getting it to eat wasn't the issue for us. I would say diverse and quality foods. It ain't goin' to be good on flake alone, if you catch my drift. But I would feed it lots of different foods to sart. The one I worked with was real tough, but died, like many of the "survivors" appear to do, shortly after a year. :(
 
bergamer

bergamer

Active Member
im am sending her pictures of copperband butterflys, hopefully she will really like those too, as I only have space for 1 fish- as I am giving my fox face lo away
 
T

tizzo

Guest
Having a fish die even when it's deemed "tough" is sad... But whats even sadder...
[she does not care and wants to try anyway:nope:

bergemer, I feel for you... I understand a difficult gf/bf, I hope you guys can work it out..
Maybe you can give it away then tell her it died!!
Good luck!
 
T

tizzo

Guest

Originally posted by bergamer
im am sending her pictures of copperband butterflys, hopefully she will really like those too,
Those don't have the best track record either!!
 
ophiura

ophiura

Active Member
I am not sure that a relationship is worth killing such a fish for. :D Its just telling. I would hope she would be less demanding, and more understanding. Not to be negative toward your GF or something, I just hope that this attitude of "I want it and don't care about it dying" doesn't spread to other areas!?!?! :eek:
 
paulcoates

paulcoates

Member
if she wants that look, tell her to look at a Meyeri Butterfly, Heniochus Butterfly, or Raccoon Butterfly. they look close enough to a Moorish Idol and it may satisfy her
 
bergamer

bergamer

Active Member
well, did research on the copperband, and did not see much neg. stuff on the critter.
and I just got her to agree to not buy a moorish idol, but I had to promise to buy a copperband.
she is a lawyer, I am a lawstudent (for 2 more weeks- yay graduation)
we have good fights, although it still applies that she always has to win- and I have learned that it is better to let her win, even when I am correct. (just smile and say. yes honey)
any suggestions on the copperband?
atleast there is a chance of the copperband surviving! unlike the moorish idol
 
bergamer

bergamer

Active Member
I was originally going to get a benner butteryfly and she loved it at first, until she asked me to pull up a picture of a moorish idol to compare.......
enough said, she thought the bannerfish looked too freshwater
 
bergamer

bergamer

Active Member
paulcoates
nice choices and I think she would love them, but I have a reef.
originally she wanted me to put a lion in there
 
paulcoates

paulcoates

Member
I just ordered a Copperband today myself
along with a Coral Beauty and a Lomgnose Hawkfish
for my 55 g reef
Best of luck with the selection
 
fishamajig

fishamajig

Member
bergamer
watch the coral beauty in the reef, I have one and when I have smaller frags in the tank he tends to nip at them. he is great at going after algie, but if you put smaller softies in there you might want to see if yours does the same thing.
 
bergamer

bergamer

Active Member
my coral beauty has been in my tank for over a year and thank god has not touched 1 coral.
he mostly pecks at the tank walls and rocks all day long
 
shawnts106

shawnts106

Member
Just wondering, because Ive heard so many different opinions on this subject... Are Morish Idols Reef Safe for the most part?... if not why?
 
shoreliner11

shoreliner11

Active Member
You can compare the "reef safeness" of a moorish idol to that of a dwarf angel. Sometimes they're reef safe, while other times they're not. In the wild moorish idols are omnivores feeding on sponges, small crustaceans, invertebrate life, and some marine algae. Some might also pick on sps while others might nip on leathers, its all a fish to fish basis.
Aaron
 
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