Zebra moray eel suffering shipping stress. Help/advice requested.

[Jay Hemdal Verified Community Expert]

It has now been almost a week and I've not been able to get him to take food yet. He's still moving though, mostly when other tankmates or me with my hands up to my elbows in the tank prod him, but not much of his own will.

Hunger strikes are really common with this species - sometimes for months, and it can eventually prove fatal.

Try searching for hunger strike + zebra moray, I’ve heard people overcoming this, but I can’t recall the details. In some cases, they were able to start them on live crabs.

 

[Monadologist]

I finally got him to eat a little something, just a little frozen block of mysis, by feeding the snowflake eel (who is a little greedy guts) off tongs right in front of his nose. We'll see how well I can replicate this feat going forward.

 

[Jay Hemdal Verified Community Expert]

I finally got him to eat a little something, just a little frozen block of mysis, by feeding the snowflake eel (who is a little greedy guts) off tongs right in front of his nose. We'll see how well I can replicate this feat going forward.

Aren’t mysis too small once they thaw out? I usually start these on raw shrimp tails with the shell removed.

 

[Monadologist]

I was feeding the (tiny) 7" long snowflake eel next to him the mysis and the zebra reached over and took a chomp and I just let him have it. The snowflake has a crazy appetite but his head is only maybe 1cm wide so he cant take in anything big yet. I've been tong feeding him while distracting the puffer with krill and clams at a feeding station at the other end of the tank.

 

[Monadologist]

He just ate a big diced-up chunk of a jumbo shrimp, so I'm officially not worried about his appetite any more. It seems mostly that he's just generally phobic of the tongs. Thanks for all your help!

 

[Justdabubbletip]

How’s the guy doing?

 

[Louis Z]

Yes want an update ! I feed mine chunks of blue crab and whole shrimp . The smaller mine was in the beginning he ate maybe every 5days to 7 days , I knew when he was hungry he would come out when I fed the others . If not hungry he would stay in his hole nonetheless less peek out to see , Now after having him for year and a half he has definitely gotten thicker and longer . He now eats about every 3days with multiple chunks of crab and sometimes two whole pieces of shrimp and shell . I need to go to the coast and go crabbing and shrimping to catch for him