Ribbon Eel, care and feeding ?

[merlberg]

So I just went to my LFS and asked about the rosy barbs and they are way too big. I asked for the smallest one and I knew off back there was no way he would go after it :/ so I bought a fish called rosy red instead since they were smaller along with some live brine shrimp to see what happens since they didn't have glass shrimp *sucks! I will try another place tomorrow and see if they have rosy reds instead.

Hmm how think... He is not that thick to be honest... He is barely an inch.

 

[merlberg]

Lol haha I didn't look at it as a good thing since he spit it out but yes I guess it's a great thing that he at least did show some interest.

Haaaa I know my name Merlberg sounds like a guys name but I'm a female lol

 

[427HISS]

lol,. no I mean that when I prayed for you and your eel, I did not know the eels's name, so I just told the Lord, you know, merlberg's eel !
So know I can tell the Lord tonight, praying for,....."Spinny" !!! :bigsmile:

 

[merlberg]

Lml ok I see. Yes keep praying Lml maybe a miracle will happen soon!

 

[427HISS]

Think positive,...."eat Spinny,....eat Spinny,....eat Spinny" :lol:

 

[merlberg]

Ok great newssssssss. It worked! I wish I could put a video clip but it seems like I can only do pictures. Ok so one of you guys told me to try feeding it a dead live fish and I did and Spinny kept on coming for more . The 3rd one was pretty big for him and he was having trouble eating it but then he finally positioned himself in a way and scooped it right up from the things I was holding. I got so excited I decided to go get a frozen silverside but I soaked it in garlic for a few and then tried feeding it to him. Ahhhh he looked liked he wanted it and then he just turned away [emoji23][emoji24] but I'm getting closer to my goal thanks to you guys who helped out giving inputs here and there. Thanks so much because I would of never thought to try n feed it a dead fresh fish at first to try to get him to eat frozen. I put out another piece of silverside out for him so I can try in a hour or so because after those 3 rosy reds he is still coming out of his tube looking to get more food.

I doubt I'll be so lucky tonight where he actually eats a frozen silverside but I'm crossing my fingers. Thanks again everyone [emoji173]️

 

[tyler1503]

Think positive,...."eat Spinny,....eat Spinny,....eat Spinny" :lol:

Merlberg, don't eat Spinny. I don't think that would be good for him or you haha

 

[tyler1503]

Awesome news!
Sorry, I missed your post just a moment ago.
This is a crucial time to stick to a strict feeding schedule. Don't push him to eat anything that he doesn't want to just yet though. Keep feeding the dead feeders if he'll accept them and in a few weeks try freezing some of the feeders and see if he'll take those.
This is great news!!

 

[merlberg]

Lol eat [emoji24] def won't happen!

Yes isn't it great news *dances and flips* Lml I figured that I should def stick to a routined schedule from now on which I will.

Hmm ok I'll keep doing tht dead feeders for anout another week and then I'll freeze them to see what happens.

Ok so do you or anyone else knw if the Rosy red fishes are a little better for him to eat than the guppies are?

 

[427HISS]

Merlberg, don't eat Spinny. I don't think that would be good for him or you haha

lol,.....out of context though !!! :bigsmile:

Try Sardines in a can, in water NOT oil.

I just sliced a length a few minutes ago, and Merlin came out a foot, to grab it !
I'm sure it was the SMELL......!

I won't feed him that very much, as it fell apart and went all over the tank. Thankfully I have a great skimmer ! lol

Anyway, we're all excited for you two !!! :whoo: :cheer2:

 

[merlberg]

Ok promise I will not bug you guys again about Spinny but this forum just brings me luck with him.

Ok 1st off dnt judge me [emoji24][emoji23][emoji24] I am a beast and he was still searching for food lol so once I was done cleaning the tank i said Hmm let me try a silverside. He was all over the tank like he was still hungry I had no choice guys lol. So anyways I took the silverside out, quickly put it in warm water and used a tong to feed it to him.

He looked at it but didn't go for it and it was prob. Because his body was fully out. He quickly went in his pvc pipe and stuck his head out to see if the fish was still there. I used the tong again and put it in his face but nothing. Altho I can tell he wanted to eat it but I wasn't sure why he wasn't going for it.

So I put the fish down and said I will leave it there for maybe 2 minutes. 2 minutes was up, I picked up my tongs to take it out and my Spinny grabbed it real quick and ran inside his pipe.

PRAISE THE LORD lol... I feel like I keep rambling about him now lol but everything you all told me worked! I'm so relieved .

 

[tyler1503]

Awesome!
You know the best part about that? The hardest part is nearly over!! At least now you know he'll accept prepared food on occasion. You just have to keep trying until he'll do it every time. I'd still take it slow for now though. You don't wana rush him! Also, don't worry if he doesn't accept it again for a while. Ribbons can be weird like that.
Don't worry, your not rambling. I love eel talk! The more the better

 

[merlberg]

Yikes really... Ok so he might not accept it for a while again lol. It's so weird because originally I was set to feed him every other day and now it seems like he wants food everyday. Whenever I feed my fishes he comes out to look for his food like this morning lol.

I won't rush him tho. I will try feeding him a few this evening and hopefully I jump for joy again. I've been tending to Spinny so much for the last few days that I realize there is something wrong with my yellow tang I just got like 2 weeks ago [emoji30][emoji19].

For a newbie I actually really really enjoy this but it really sucks when something happens to one of your fishes and you don't know why or how to help them.

Hopefully I can figure this one out too!

 

[tyler1503]

Perhaps feed him until he's satisfied for now, but after a few days slow down to every 2 or 3 days if you can
Sorry to hear about your tang. Maybe start a new thread with some info on what's happening? Why you think something is wrong, any change in behaviour, strange colouration, water chemistry etc. Hopefully someone can help you. I'll help out the best I can, but I don't know much about tangs.
Haha yea it's so much fun in this hobby! Especially when you get new livestock

 

[merlberg]

Yea Thts exactly what I was going to do and then slow down on the feeding lol. I feel like this is a miracle lol.

Thanks and yes more poor tang. I started a new thread already with all the deets. Guess we will see what happens and thanks [emoji4].

I'm curious do you know of any other app you can download that is similar to this app and just as good. People respond pretty quick and I love that it is an app !

 

[427HISS]

Awesome Spinny ! :tea:

What happened with your Tang ?

We have a Purple Tang (third one) and love him. Their extremely,.....handsome !!!

 

[merlberg]

Yes.... I'm happy for Spinny but sad for my yellow tang. I have no idea what's wrong with him. He just stopped eating, is getting pale, and does not move.

I think it might be stress from me upgrading my tank recently but everything else in my tank is doing fine besides him. I dnt think its ich because he has no spots at all on him. Well not that I can see but I will put him in a QT and hope for the best for him.

Yes Tangs are great and so active. One of the reasons I choose him .

 

[tyler1503]

Yea Thts exactly what I was going to do and then slow down on the feeding lol. I feel like this is a miracle lol.

Thanks and yes more poor tang. I started a new thread already with all the deets. Guess we will see what happens and thanks [emoji4].

I'm curious do you know of any other app you can download that is similar to this app and just as good. People respond pretty quick and I love that it is an app !

Just saw your other thread. Sorry to hear about your tang Ammonia can be very dangerous. It should drop naturally over a week or so if it was caused by the upgrade. There's a product called Prime that converts ammonia into a non toxic form of ammonium. It's always good to keep some on hand.
Also, no there is no other app or forum as good as R2R. When it comes to fish keeping, this is the best place on earth!

 

[427HISS]

I haven't read the tang thread, but why is there ammonia ?
For the first time, I used Dr. Tim's starter to cycle my wife's tank, and it was ammonia & nitrite free in 3 days.
If it's a new tank you're cycling, I would give it a shot.

 

[merlberg]

Thanks tyler1503... I didn't know ammonia could be tht lethal for fishes so quick :/. He was doing so well prior to the upgrade smh.

Yes I always have prime here and have been using it.

Haha ok thanks... I luv this app so far so it's cool
427HISS idk why there is ammonia in a new tank to be honest, so hopefully someone can answer tht question which is def something I'd like to know myself.

What in 3 days!!! Sheesh Thts pretty fast! How big is her tank again?