New Snowflake Eel "Parent"

[rhitee93]

I have been contemplating a Snowflake eel since I started building my tank almost a year ago. At first I thought it was an unreasonable goal for a first-timer, but after reading and re-reading the posts on here from the likes of @lion king I started to believe it wasn't that crazy.

I walked into my LFS yesterday and there was a 12" snowflake looking at me. I had just gone through a 2nd bad experience ordering fish online, and had pretty much resigned myself to only get fish I can personally pick up from now on. I wouldn't have called myself ready to take on an eel yet, but I took this as a sign as the selection at this store is usually just damsels and clown fish.

I have it in my small observation tank for now. No meds yet, but it seems like running general cure is a wise move. I'll start that in a couple of days once it gets settled in.

I am very happy (and relieved) to report that it ate some fresh salmon today off a bamboo skewer. This was about 18 hours after I put it in the tank. I let it settle in overnight before trying food. I was nervous at first because it wouldn't approach the salmon when I put the tip of the skewer nearby. However, after a couple of attempts, I touched its snout with the fish, and it immediately ate it.

It ate 5 strips about 1/4" square and 1/2" long. Then it showed no more interest. I'm assuming/hoping that was the end of its gorge cycle. I'll leave it alone tomorrow and try again in a coupe of days.

Here is a short video clip of it shortly after feeding:


I've gone back and re-read many of the posts/articles from the forum grey-beards on the long term care of these eels and predators in general. My head is swimming a bit, but I'm relieved it ate salmon so quickly. Hopefully the next few weeks go smoothly so I can get it out of the little observation tank quickly. The eel is a awfully big for a tiny 10gal tank.

 

[lion king]

Good job! I'm glad you took the time to do some research. Eels aren't necessarily difficult, just different.

 

[Indymann99]

You need to make sure your tank is covered. They will go carpet surfing.

 

[littlefoxx]

Yay! I love him! Yeah my snowflake, Ghost, is shyer with food and I have to touch her on the nose to get her to take food where as my jeweled, Ivar, doesnt need that prompting lol. Him eating is a good sign! I was the same way with eels but saw Ivar at a LFS and decided to bring him home. So glad I did! Good luck with your eel, he looks pretty healthy too! Very happy for you

 

[Glenner’sreef]

Congrats! Almost purchased one this year myself. Everything pointed to sure success except for one thing. It would more than likely devour my Pistol Shrimp. I’m not willing for that to happen. I know they grow quite quickly so plan for that as well. Good luck and yes cover tank and overflow.

 

[rhitee93]

Thanks all! The tank is an Innovative Marine AIO and came with a tight fitting cover. I've been wondering about weighing it down though...

My display tank is only partially covered right now, so that is one of the things I have to take care of while my newcomer is in observation.

 

[rhitee93]

So far things are going well. This eel has quite an appetite. I've been feeding every 2 or 3 days which seems too often based on what I've read. However, I've notice it starts prowling around the tank after a couple of days as if it were hunting almost in an agitated state. After feeding, it seems to curl up in the rock work for a day or two with the occasional cruise around the tank. I'll see how this goes for a while.

Diet so far has been strips of fresh salmon since I already had that on hand. I picked up some fresh tuna yesterday as well as a couple of scallops. I cut all of that into small strips, anf flash froze it on a cookie sheet. Once frozen I bagged it all up. Sort of a DIY version of IQF sea food

I'd like to include some live food but am still looking for mollies locally.

I know these guys frequently come with internal parasites. I haven't treated with GC yet. Should I do that prophylactically even though the appetite seems to be good?

 

[lion king]

Snowflakea are pebble tooth eels, which means the dominant part of their diet will be crustaceans. While they do eat small fish, in captivity if you want to offer them something live, try ghost shrimp and fiddler crabs. Make sure the fiddlers are small enough. They will also eat mussels and clams, small whole shrimp. It's good you are feeding fatty fish, as fats are the number one defiencency many eels face in captivity. The shells of whole shrimp are also vital, just in case your tank is a fowlr and you don't monitor the elements, maintaining reef levels of ca and mg are also a good idea. Fish absorb elements from the water column, mg is good for healthy digestion.

 

[rhitee93]

The shells of whole shrimp are also vital...

Thanks for your help

I have some small, raw, whole shrimp I was planning to try, but they sill look a bit big for the size of the mouth. I will probably try to quarter them along their length to get the size/shape more appropriate.

I was holding off on the shrimp because I remember reading that shrimp can lead to thiamine issues, but that may have been for lion fish and not snowflakes. I've read so many posts/articles that they are running together.

All of the bi-valves I have found at the fish counters have been huge relative to the size of this eels mouth. Do you have any tips on what to look for to find tiny mussels or clams? I can slice up the meat easily enough, but I'm assuming the shell is important too.

I have the same issue with a small puffer in my DT. I put an oyster on the half shell in there so it could wear down its beech on something hard, and it literally swam over to oyster and then to the glass and looked at me as if I was a dolt.

 

[littlefoxx]

Thanks for your help

I have some small, raw, whole shrimp I was planning to try, but they sill look a bit big for the size of the mouth. I will probably try to quarter them along their length to get the size/shape more appropriate.

I was holding off on the shrimp because I remember reading that shrimp can lead to thiamine issues, but that may have been for lion fish and not snowflakes. I've read so many posts/articles that they are running together.

All of the bi-valves I have found at the fish counters have been huge relative to the size of this eels mouth. Do you have any tips on what to look for to find tiny mussels or clams? I can slice up the meat easily enough, but I'm assuming the shell is important too.

I have the same issue with a small puffer in my DT. I put an oyster on the half shell in there so it could wear down its beech on something hard, and it literally swam over to oyster and then to the glass and looked at me as if I was a dolt.

You would be surprised how big of a shrimp that an eel will eat lol. Thought the same when I was feeding my puffer a whole shrimp on tongs and Ghost my snowflake comes up and steals the whole shrimp and into the cave it went!

 

[lion king]

Thanks for your help

I have some small, raw, whole shrimp I was planning to try, but they sill look a bit big for the size of the mouth. I will probably try to quarter them along their length to get the size/shape more appropriate.

I was holding off on the shrimp because I remember reading that shrimp can lead to thiamine issues, but that may have been for lion fish and not snowflakes. I've read so many posts/articles that they are running together.

All of the bi-valves I have found at the fish counters have been huge relative to the size of this eels mouth. Do you have any tips on what to look for to find tiny mussels or clams? I can slice up the meat easily enough, but I'm assuming the shell is important too.

I have the same issue with a small puffer in my DT. I put an oyster on the half shell in there so it could wear down its beech on something hard, and it literally swam over to oyster and then to the glass and looked at me as if I was a dolt.

Thiaminese is a major concern for eels as well. Thiaminese binds vit B1, what does that mean'; that they must receive more vit B1 to mitigate the effects of thiaminese. Fresh shrimp frozen in small batches and used within the best recommended time, will retain more viable B1. Shrimp does contain some B1: but old, improperly frozen shrimp will have much less. As with any food, unless you are feeding a live diet, which is complete nutrition, the addition of other foods are necessary. A diet dominant in shrimp would be very bad. Mussels contain a high amount of B1. Whole shrimp with shells and guts are a valuable "addition". Cut the shrimp into manageable pieces and trim any edges from the shell. They don't eat the shells from mussels and clams, these shells are likely too hard for them to digest. In the wild they crack these open and eat the meat inside, shrimp have soft shells.

 

[rhitee93]

The eel has continued to eat well every few days. Yesterday it ate most of a small shrimp (41-50/lb size) and a couple of slices of scallop.

I noticed it is twitching or shaking its head several times a minute today so I just dosed PraziPro and added an airstone. Is there anything other than flukes I should be looking for in this case?

 

[lion king]

The eel has continued to eat well every few days. Yesterday it ate most of a small shrimp (41-50/lb size) and a couple of slices of scallop.

I noticed it is twitching or shaking its head several times a minute today so I just dosed PraziPro and added an airstone. Is there anything other than flukes I should be looking for in this case?

What you are seeing may just be the natural way they pull water across their gills. Flukes are possible and pp would be the right choice and safe to even use prophylactically. Sounds like you understand dosing pp by adding the airstone, and making sure to dose to water volume not tank size. Internal parasites is also a concern with eels, but him eating well would discount that, as not eating would be a signal to possible internal parasites.

 

[rhitee93]

Thanks @lion king . I dosed PraziPro today per my water volume. If I don't see a change in the head twitching in 3 days I'll try to capture a video. Either way I'll dose PraziPro again in a week.

I've held off on dosing GC since it was eating, and I'd prefer not dosing unless there is evidence of a need. What are your thoughts on prophylactically treating for internal parasites in this case?

 

[rhitee93]

Ok, the eel presented itself nicely for a video just after my last reply. You can see it twitch a couple of times in this clip:

 

[littlefoxx]

Ok, the eel presented itself nicely for a video just after my last reply. You can see it twitch a couple of times in this clip:

My eels do that occasionally

 

[lion king]

Thanks @lion king . I dosed PraziPro today per my water volume. If I don't see a change in the head twitching in 3 days I'll try to capture a video. Either way I'll dose PraziPro again in a week.

I've held off on dosing GC since it was eating, and I'd prefer not dosing unless there is evidence of a need. What are your thoughts on prophylactically treating for internal parasites in this case?

Prophylactically dosing gc is also not a problem, same method as dosing prazi, to water volume and aeration. Gc does contain prazi, and also contains metro, so it is the choice for a broader range of internal parasites. I prefer prazi pro when it comes to.potential flukes. The shaking I would associate with flukes would be more of a shaking, not just an isolated twitch. I have seen that before but can not give an answer to if it's something you to be concerned of, others that I have witnessed do that have never indicated any decline. Since they are eating well, there really is no reason to dose gc at the moment. If they go off eating for a couple of weeks in the next few weeks, you could then dose. Refusing a meal or two will not be a concern, it has to be prolonged. They can come in eating a nd still have internal parasites,, it just takes a while to advance to a dangerous stage. Since they have already come in eating well, if they did exhibit signs of internal parasites, you would have time not to worry, and treat appropriately.

 

[rhitee93]

Thanks for the input.

Having it in an observation tank makes all this much easier to navigate. I'll see how the next couple of weeks plays out but will still do the 2nd Parazi dose since I am "Already there" so to speak.

 

[rhitee93]

Well, it is hard for me to judge causality vs correlation on this, but two days after the 1st Parazi dose, the head twitching has stopped. I have no way of knowing if it was flukes, or just a coincidence.

As I said, I'll do the 2nd dose next week regardless. I'm just reporting back here for the sake of providing data.

The eel continues to eat well. It consumed several slices of shrimp, scallop, and salmon today. It certainly knows what it means when I come to the tank with a bamboo skewer. Hopefully that makes feeding in the DT easier when the time comes.

I'll do a water change in the observation tank tomorrow. I monitored the ammonia levels early on to make sure the biological filtration was keeping up. I'll measure nitrates before the water change to see just how much this little monster is going to add to my DT.

 

[lion king]

Well, it is hard for me to judge causality vs correlation on this, but two days after the 1st Parazi dose, the head twitching has stopped. I have no way of knowing if it was flukes, or just a coincidence.

As I said, I'll do the 2nd dose next week regardless. I'm just reporting back here for the sake of providing data.

The eel continues to eat well. It consumed several slices of shrimp, scallop, and salmon today. It certainly knows what it means when I come to the tank with a bamboo skewer. Hopefully that makes feeding in the DT easier when the time comes.

I'll do a water change in the observation tank tomorrow. I monitored the ammonia levels early on to make sure the biological filtration was keeping up. I'll measure nitrates before the water change to see just how much this little monster is going to add to my DT.

Could be, you could have caught it right at the onset. As I mentioned earlier I usually associated more of a shaking with possible flukes. The shaking might just be as it progressed, and an initial twitch may just be the beginning. Good call and either way, no harm with a proper dosing of pp.