Lubbocks Fairy Not Eating (that I can tell)

JaaxReef

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Good afternoon,

My new Lubbocks Fairy just came out of QT with my other two Fairy wrasses and seemed completely healthy beyond his seeming lack of appetite. I treated with two rounds or General Cure during QT.

Color is good, doesn’t seem too terribly skinny that he looks sick, and there is no way it made it though 14 days of QT without food while still looking the way that he does, right (see photo)? Maybe he was sneaking some food during QT? He hid quite a bit and was very skiddish during QT. I’m hoping the full tank environment with sand/rocks and other fish eating will help spur on the appetite and show a more active eating response… Any tips to get him more excited about food? Should I try to get some live food?

Thanks!

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Wyvern

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Selcon coated mysis is like crack for my wrasse, mine are picky eaters.

What are you feeding?
 

Neptune 555

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My fish ALL go crazy for live black worms and clams. I purchase clams from the grocery store and feed. I cut them up and also drop in the shells also w/ pieces of food stuck to the shell. This creates several feeding stations and all fish and inverts get a chance to feed.
 
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JaaxReef

JaaxReef

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Selcon coated mysis is like crack for my wrasse, mine are picky eaters.

What are you feeding?
Garlic soaked Hikari Spirulina Brine, Krill, and PE Mysis as well as Masstick and a homemade food mix that my other fish go nuts for… so far just some minor interest. Maybe I need some selcon.
 

vetteguy53081

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before jumping on foods, lets see what has changed starting with water quality.
What is current. . . Ammonia-nitrate-ph-salinity and water temperature?
Are you using RODI water or tap water from the faucet?
Any tank aggression in which wrasse is being intimidated?

For foods, selcon is a great product but will not entice a fish to eat. No fish at least most do not turn down brine shrimp.
Other foods are copepods, and mysis shrimp or even small plankton.

To determine if aggression is the issue, set your phone on video mode. Place it at tank for about an hour and drop a little food and walk away. You MUST walk away as fish know your presence. Come back and review video and see if has attempted to eat but is being bullied or chased at feeding.
 
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JaaxReef

JaaxReef

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before jumping on foods, lets see what has changed starting with water quality.
What is current. . . Ammonia-nitrate-ph-salinity and water temperature?
Are you using RODI water or tap water from the faucet?
Any tank aggression in which wrasse is being intimidated?

For foods, selcon is a great product but will not entice a fish to eat. No fish at least most do not turn down brine shrimp.
Other foods are copepods, and mysis shrimp or even small plankton.

To determine if aggression is the issue, set your phone on video mode. Place it at tank for about an hour and drop a little food and walk away. You MUST walk away as fish know your presence. Come back and review video and see if has attempted to eat but is being bullied or chased at feeding.
Haven’t had an ammonia reading in 18 months (established tank with medium bio load). No aggression from tank mates now while feeding, but some chasing initially for the first hour or so. Never ate in QT, but no aggression there either and ammonia stayed at 0.

Salinity is at 1.026 in both QT and DT. PH is 8.1 in DT. 0 TDS source water and top off water from a 6 stage filter.
 
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JaaxReef

JaaxReef

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Ouch….. yeah maybe it’s trying to get used to the tank. Is anyone bullying it?
Initially a little chasing from my exquisite wrasse, but that seems to have stopped and the Lubbocks is swimming around freely. I’ll see how things go after lights on today.
 
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JaaxReef

JaaxReef

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Have you tried garlic guard or live blackworms? - kali
No live black worms… good suggestion. I’m using Garlic as a soak, yeah.

I think I’m going to the LFS over lunch today to get some live food and some frozen calanus if they have it. Just don’t want this little guy to starve!
 
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JaaxReef

JaaxReef

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Good luck.

Fairy Wrasses from what I’ve gathered aren’t a kind of fish many people have long term success with. A bit touchy but so beautiful.
I’m hoping I can keep them long term. I just love them…
 
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JaaxReef

JaaxReef

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I saw some light picking of a mixture I put in this afternoon! Maybe he’s on his way to eating! I mixed Reef Blizzard L from Brightwell with garlic, chopped mysis, and spirulina brine.

They had Calanus and baby brine at the LFS and I picked up a bottle of Selcon too… fingers crossed that as I keep dumping food in the tank today more interest is sparked!
 

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