Going on 2wks without eating...When should I start to worry?

[Jaysuuun]

Hello all, this is my newest addition. She's about 3.5inches long.



Currently she is in a 90 Gal with 6 other discus. She seems to be really healthy behavior and appearance wise. She has a very thick body and forehead, quarrels with the other discus, fins are always stretched out and open, color is very bright and never stressed out or dark. Immediately after introducing her into my display tank, she even took a liking to my blue diamond and they started to "shimmy" together. She has no bullies in the tank.

The only time I've seen this fish eat was during quarantine and even then she didn't eat that much, but she did eat a few bloodworms. In the quarantine tank she was very shy/skittish always leaning on her side, but when introduced into the display tank she turned into a completely different animal. lol

Currently I feed my fish Freeze dried CBW, frozen BH, OM1 Color Flakes, Ken's BH flakes, Tetrabits and frozen bloodworms as a treat. However I've been feeding frozen bloodworms everyday to see if I can get her to eat, but she just lets the worms float by her face. The other discus gorge themselves.

Water Parameters:

Straight Aged Tap
pH 7.8
ammonia 0
nitrite 0
nitrate <10
TDS 350ppm
Temp 86-87
WC 50% every other day

It's going on 2wks now in my display tank and I have yet to see her eat one single morsel. I don't know what else to do. I would like her to begin feeding soon because I don't want her to get stunted. Should I worry or will she just eat when she feels like it? Any advice/help would be appreciated.

Thanks
Jason

[LizStreithorst]

Have you seen her poo? What color is it? Two weeks is a bit long, IMO.

[Jaysuuun]

Have you seen her poo? What color is it? Two weeks is a bit long, IMO.

Her poo is dark colored the last time I saw it in the quarantine tank. I agree that 2 weeks is a bit long, that's why I'm starting to worry. Other than that she seems to be doing great in the tank.

[LizStreithorst]

I don't know if I have the answer for you or not. There's no way to know for sure without a scope. IME if a fish eats and looses weight it has worms. If a fish doesn't eat it has hex.

[Jaysuuun]

I don't know if I have the answer for you or not. There's no way to know for sure without a scope. IME if a fish eats and looses weight it has worms. If a fish doesn't eat it has hex.

Hmmm...I'm tempted to treat for hex, but I'm not 100% convinced that she needs to be treated quite yet. I'm wondering if I should wait for another week?

[Floppy Fin's]

Have you checked with the breeder of this fish and found what it was eating before?? I would try some FDBlackworms very soon.
Even the most finicky will start on these, IMO. Try a small bag for starters.
Even a cube or two if someone will give them too you.

[Jaysuuun]

Have you checked with the breeder of this fish and found what it was eating before?? I would try some FDBlackworms very soon.
Even the most finicky will start on these, IMO. Try a small bag for starters.
Even a cube or two if someone will give them too you.

The breeder raised this fish on frozen bloodworms. I feed FDBlackworms to my fish twice a day. I've also been feeding frozen bloodworms once a day in hopes that she will eat. I fed my fish some FDBlackworms a few hours ago. I stuck them to the front of the tank and all of the other fish came rushing in to eat. She trailed behind slowly to see what the commotion was about, got up to the front, saw the worms and turned away. She stayed with the group until they finished eating and then went back to her favorite stump.

I would feel a lot better if she took some food in and spit it out, but she won't even do that.

[Jaysuuun]

Hmmm..Temp is at 87 right now. Thinking about cranking it up to 90-92 hoping to jump start her appetite. Good or bad idea?

[Eddie]

2 weeks, I'd let her settle a while. Just keep the temp at 87. It can take a while for a newcomer to start eating. I've known plenty of folks who's fish have gone months without ANY food and the fish never lost any weight and acted totally normal. Eventually the fish end up eating. I think the longest my fish went without any food was 30 or more days because I wasnt there to feed them. I'll have to dig up the thread but the fish were all fine and ate when I returned. Give it some more time.

[Jaysuuun]

2 weeks, I'd let her settle a while. Just keep the temp at 87. It can take a while for a newcomer to start eating. I've known plenty of folks who's fish have gone months without ANY food and the fish never lost any weight and acted totally normal. Eventually the fish end up eating. I think the longest my fish went without any food was 30 or more days because I wasnt there to feed them. I'll have to dig up the thread but the fish were all fine and ate when I returned. Give it some more time.

Whoa "months" without eating and no weight loss?! I didn't see your post til later, but I went ahead and bumped the temp to 90 and added salt to the tank at a dose of 3/4 cup per 10 gal for preventative measure. Well she still hasn't eaten yet, but the least likely thing happened. She laid EGGS! I thought for sure she would have built up an appetite after laying the eggs, but she's still on her hunger strike.

Thanks for the reply. I feel more reassured now that she'll come around. She acts like a discus in every way except eating like a pig. I'll keep this thread updated.