proggress of dying sebae

[unleashed]

I have given advice on the issues of force feeding shrinking anenomes I get alot of debates on how it cant or should not be done so I fugured the best way to share my results with this is to show the effects that it has made so far.this is not to say it will always work but is more to say its a chance to save a dying anenome if the issue arises for anyone.first pic is 2 days after purchase sorry pics kinda small but this anenome fully open was over a ft in diam almost 2ft .next pic was after a couple months of force feeding this anenome before these feeding began it shrank to the diam of 2 inches all tenticals almost completely gone gained about 3 inches diam tenticals starting to reapear.
last pic is as it looks today.its now about 7 inches in diam.no longer force feeding I spot feed daily with alternate diet small amounts of cyclopseze ,phlanton ,mysis shrimps.and periodic feedings of chopped shrimp and chopped squid.it has moved to the very top of my rocks to get maximum lighting but it does make spot feeding much easier. thought id share this with everyone.we still have a long way to go until the anenome is back to 100% so far it has taken 6 months to get to this point.if you hadn't noticed silverslides are not in its diet I have a few friends that have made this hobby a profession and was advised that they are not recomended as proper diet because it takes the anenome too long to digest them and they are more likely to be regurgitated than digested ,more so than not.

 

[thegrog]

Looking good, keep up the good work!

Didn't see, how much lighting do you have?

 

[unleashed]

ty lighting is 2 96w pc 10,000k 50/50 2 150w HQI mh 10 k

 

[speg]

Just fyi I use nothing but silversides to feed all 6 of my BTA's. Havent had a single problem. I am actually currently raising anemones that are literally defying death Like for example the one that has been stuck in my overflow box without light for over a month(he is doing fine by the way). I notice a day or so after feeding them it that they'll spit out the spine and some of the skin/scales. The rest mysteriously disappears

 

[thomas712]

I really like the pics.

Now on to the meat and potatoes so to speak.
Could you elaborate more on the forced feedings?
I'm not closed minded and would be happy to listen, always willing to learn or here of someone else's experience.. In my mind the anemone itself will decide if it has had enough to eat, it will either stick to the food offered or will simply let it go, or in the case of having eaten to much will regurgitate what it can not digest. I can esily agree to fine chopped morsels instead of whole siversides. I have always believed also that feeding was no substitute (least not long term) for lighting. Its the lighting that gives health and nutrition to the xooxanthellae that resides within the anemone, and the anemone draws nutrition from that, as well as occasional feedings. Least that's what I have always learned.
I just want to be clear on what you mean by force feeding. Your observations and results are of interest to me.
Thanks for sharing.
Thomas

 

[unleashed]

I had a feeling they would be thomas due to our past post we have quite a few differences of oppinions but we both share the same quest for knowledge and healthy tanks. as you know anenomes have a sticky substance that helps catch food so its able to feed itself depending on its health .even a beached anenome can feed itself if fed properly and will retain its stickyness.in this case force feeding isnt even an option or thought of feed it better much easier digested foods and good lighting it will come back to full health if all of its requirement are met. servere cases of bleaching not only causes the loos of color it also causes the lack of sticky substance in which it needs to feed properly and protect itself.whe it can no longer catch it food results are pretty simple starvation which is just what happened to mine I fed it it ate it shrank and shrank.after a little research I found the article by robert fenner on force feeding.
the proccess if fairly simple much less evasive than it sounds but time consuming it does require long term dedication
using a syringe like used in test kits I use a 5 mil size easier to handle
fill the syringe with thawed cyclopseze and mysis or phlankton. I filled up to the 1 mil mark
gently place the syringe tip directly into the anenomes mouth not far at all just enough to the mixure to not float out.gently press the plunger slowly until all the mixture is gone.
some of the mixture may float out but it will get most of it.at times the mouth would gape open and expell some of it.but still not all of it I did this 2 times daily for about 3 months
which shown progress in pic #2
as time went on of this feeding I was able to move the syringe farther out from the mouth and the anenome would accually hug the syringe as i fed it keeping in more and more each time.now as pic #3 shows tenticles are more abundant and some stickiness has returned.I feel a tingle when my fingers get too close now.and before I could fully touch it with out any change to the touch.
I now spot feed once a day alternating between aboved mentioned diet.and fish are finding it harder to steel its food
if the anenome can hold some of its smaller foods force feeding as discribed for pic 2 is more than likely going to be beneficial and less evasive.hope that was discriptive enough to help put light on the prossess.

 

[unleashed]

well i started this thread back in dec of 2005 I just wanted to give everyone here an up to date report on how the anenome is doing.as of new yrs day we set up a 300 semi aggressive reef and broke down the 120 pictured above where he stayed until i set up a new reef tank for him and other corals.... here are a copule pics of him around april of this yr.notice his placement at the top of the tank in high water flow.

 

[unleashed]

here is he within the last couple weeks
now in a 150 gal 72x30x18 under 2 400W 20k mh ans 2 96 w actinic VHO placed about 20 inches from the top of the tank. he is fed daily thera+A pellets by spectrum which he and my clown eat.and fed 3 times per week a mixture of chopped meaty foods soaked in selcon and garlic extreme..periodicly i still spot fed him cyclopseze about 2-3 times per week
2nd pic under just actincis
just thought id share

 

[dogstar]

I will post a simular experiance with my BTA..
A couple years ago it was huge and healthy and then normally pulled under the rock and split in two and both sections moved back out and was fine.
But, after a week. one section became limp and would not grab food or open/strech up to the light any more. It was not pulling in or closeing up or bleaching. It had so much zooxanthellea that it was almost black in color but it just would be limp and the tenticals would just droop straight down as if the anemone had no control. The foot did hold to the rock fine. Both sections had healed the tear but the other one was happy and streched out over the rock for sun bathing and would take food fine. The Clowns would still try to go in the sick one but after a while would not.
When feeding, the sick one would would seem to roll out its gut to suround food as normal when it felt me place the food in its tenticals but it could not stick the food to its tenticals and could not move it tenticals or bring food to its mouth......so, I would place the food ( nomally a peice of krill ) in the tenticals and swish it some to stimulate the animal and then hold the krill lightly at the mouth and wait till the gut would open enough that it would suround it some and then I would lightly push it deeper and then the anemone would swallow and bring its gut back inside and never saw it regurgitate the food. I did this about every other day for about a month and then slowly it seemed that the anemone was getting better and holding up and controling its tenticals and holding the food itself. After about another week it was much better and feeding itself and became just as healthy as its other clone and grew too large and I had to sell it to a LFS.... afterwards the one I had kept has since split nomally and all sections can right back healthy....
I have no idea what was wrong or why with the sick one and did not know if it would live if I fed it...It just did not ever look like the normal ugly turning inside out or bleaching like nomally sick ones you see..If any one knows why it seemed to just have no control, please enlighten me...