my fish is afraid of me :(

[drewdb]

hello r2r,
i bought a court jester goby off algae barn last week and it has shown no signs of stress, it’s been sifting the sand and has even built a cave for itself. however, when it sees me, it farts away into its cave. i’d this a sign of stress, or does he need time to get used to me?

 

[ZipAdeeZoa]

He needs to get used to you, it will happen over time, how much time varies from fish to fish but a flighty fish like a small goby could take a while. When I had my Plectranthias inermis he started to tolerate me about 2-3 months into his quarantine (not bolting as soon as I entered the room). Once they start to associate you with food they become much more friendly ;Hilarious

 

[PilotOfSubmarines]

You are lucky. When my diamond watchman is doing something and I tap the glass right in front of his face he just laughs at me.

 

[Garia666]

It’s not just the fish ;)

 

[Aardvark1134]

get a clown they aren't afraid of anything and will bite you every chance they get

 

[homer1475]

I added some rock to my tank last week and really shook up the tank.

Every time I walk past the tank now, the fish dart into the rocks. They used to associate me with food, now they associate me with destruction. lol

 

[Bam327]

My Midas Blenny hid from me for a couple weeks. I thought he was going to be a shy fish forever more but he snapped out of it and follows me around the tank begging for food now all the time. He will even eat out of my hand now. Just keep doing your thing and he will get used to you eventually, hopefully