My lion won't eat
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jr8budcar
Member
man i am feeling your pain. I have a dwarf I got 1 week ago and he still wont eat. I have tried from live fish , frozen fish but keep trying. Look down a couple of threads from yours. Says "feeding my new dwarf lionfish" that was me asking and people have had alot of good ideas and helpful hints.
lion_crazz
Active Member
It may be very difficult to train your lion to take frozen food, but if you follow my method below, I think you will find it very simple.
The way that has worked for me, and many others, including people that I have helped is as follows. Buy your live ghost shrimp. First, make sure he accepts ghost shrimp and eats them pretty quickly. Feed him only one at a time. Once he eats the first, put another into the water. If he does accept and eat them quickly, feed him a few days straight of just putting them into the water and allowing him to grab them quickly. Feed him until you see a slight bulge in his stomach. Then, after a few days, begin to feed him every few days. The lion will start to recognize you as the food source and he will periodically swim to the top of the tank when he sees you. When it comes time to feed him, take out one ghost shrimp and instead of just dropping it in the water, hold it between your fingers and make him want the food. Drag it along the surface and make him follow you fingers. Please though, be careful not to let him get too close to you! After he follows your fingers for a few seconds, release the food and allow him to eat it. Continue to feed him this way for a week or so. In one week, he should very readily accept frozen silversides this same way without any problem, because he will recognize in his brain that your fingers mean food. Then, after a week or two of doing it with the silversides, feeding him should not be an issue.
Hope this helps! This has proven to be very successful for me, and many that have come to me with finicky lions!
The way that has worked for me, and many others, including people that I have helped is as follows. Buy your live ghost shrimp. First, make sure he accepts ghost shrimp and eats them pretty quickly. Feed him only one at a time. Once he eats the first, put another into the water. If he does accept and eat them quickly, feed him a few days straight of just putting them into the water and allowing him to grab them quickly. Feed him until you see a slight bulge in his stomach. Then, after a few days, begin to feed him every few days. The lion will start to recognize you as the food source and he will periodically swim to the top of the tank when he sees you. When it comes time to feed him, take out one ghost shrimp and instead of just dropping it in the water, hold it between your fingers and make him want the food. Drag it along the surface and make him follow you fingers. Please though, be careful not to let him get too close to you! After he follows your fingers for a few seconds, release the food and allow him to eat it. Continue to feed him this way for a week or so. In one week, he should very readily accept frozen silversides this same way without any problem, because he will recognize in his brain that your fingers mean food. Then, after a week or two of doing it with the silversides, feeding him should not be an issue.
Hope this helps! This has proven to be very successful for me, and many that have come to me with finicky lions!
lion_crazz
Active Member
Guppies are not a good idea to feed lionfish on a regular basis! You are much better going with ghost shrimp to feed him.
If he just sits on the bottom, that is okay. Just throw a few ghost shrimp in the tank and make sure he eats. Continue this practice for a few days, and then, take a day or two off. The lion should recognize that you are his source of food, and should start to swim more to the top looking for food. This is when you begin the practice I explained to you.
If he just sits on the bottom, that is okay. Just throw a few ghost shrimp in the tank and make sure he eats. Continue this practice for a few days, and then, take a day or two off. The lion should recognize that you are his source of food, and should start to swim more to the top looking for food. This is when you begin the practice I explained to you.
lion_crazz
Active Member
Relax, ks.
I was not insulting what you said, but what the lfs says is not always right. It's a different story if you have to feed your fish a freshwater fish because that is all they will take, but most (90%) of lions will take ghost shrimp very readily and it is a much less fatty temporary food to give them.
Just because the fish will take it does not mean it should take it. A kid told me today that he was feeding his lion goldfish and rosies and the lion "loved it". Well, that obviously is not right, but the lion is not smart enough to realize the health concerns in eating the freshwater fish. (Then again, humans are the same way with a lot of the things they put in their body.
)
I was not insulting what you said, but what the lfs says is not always right. It's a different story if you have to feed your fish a freshwater fish because that is all they will take, but most (90%) of lions will take ghost shrimp very readily and it is a much less fatty temporary food to give them.
Just because the fish will take it does not mean it should take it. A kid told me today that he was feeding his lion goldfish and rosies and the lion "loved it". Well, that obviously is not right, but the lion is not smart enough to realize the health concerns in eating the freshwater fish. (Then again, humans are the same way with a lot of the things they put in their body.
)