What do you do with a poor eater?

[Dave27]

I have 1 fish in my Juvee group of 8 3"- 3.5" fish that at times eats very good but other times when all the others are hungry he acts like he doesn't care. He picks at little food when larger stuff floats right by him.
He is not starving, thin or afraid to eat with the others, he just doesn't have the aggressive appetite that the others do and I can see his growth rate is not as rapid as the others.
The other fish are always hungry.

Feeding 5 times a day, BW, BS & several omega flakes. Fish eat it all.

Would you do anything with this fish to boost his appetite?

[CraigG]

There is a Garlic Supplement that is supposed to aid in eatting and it does help I've noticed finky eaters go for food more regularly. Eventually I don't have to use it but I do still use it cause its suppose to aid in other stuff as well.

Here is the link

http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?pcatid=5016

[Apistomaster]

I usually end up culling a discus that isn't eating well and falls too far behind it's tank mates size. They will just gang up on a runt and not much can be done to save many runts.

[CraigG]

I usually end up culling a discus that isn't eating well and falls too far behind it's tank mates size. They will just gang up on a runt and not much can be done to save many runts.

Not always true. There are a few things that can be done sure its not always 100%.

Garlic can help Its helped me in the past. Also a "grow out tank" has a chance to work. Once they get big enough or start feeding enough they can be put in the main tank.

I agree sometimes nothing can be done, but trying is never a bad idea. In the past I've had "runts" actually be the nicest looking fish in my tank.

[Dave27]

Well, this is a borderline runt of the tank but he is growing ok.
What I tied tonight is to slip a plexiglass divider in the tank separating him from the others. I feed him BW and let him eat until he was stuffed.
I think he ate more than he normally would so I am going to continue this and hope he eventually grows an appetite.

He is the best looking fish in the tank.

[CARY_GLdiscus]

Cull It!

Most Weak discus that are being treated and tend to do better end up going down hill again (AKA Relapse) within weeks.
HTH
cary Gld!

[MostlyDiscus]

Hey Dave, You are feeding BW?? Black worms of frozen blood worms? I agree with GaryG though on culling due to the fact that weaker fish tend to become more prone to pathegens and disease. Hard though if its your nicest fish. What temp is your tank atm? I would raise it to 88 and see if that increases the feeding for the little guy. Ed

[Dave27]

This fish isn't sick,
he eats, he is just more finicky than the rest and doesn't stuff himself like some of the others. He is also not as excited about flake food as the others, Frozen Blood W & Brine S he eats like crazy.
No reason to cull him at this point that is for sure.
He is thick & growing with the rest.
I'm feeding them more omega one marine flakes as it has garlic in it with the hopes it gives him a better appetite for non frozen food.
I can't say enough about Omega one, it is tops.
I'm using the
Marine Flakes
Super Kelp
Super color
and they eat it like crazy!

Tank temp is 86 F

[Don Trinko]

I had a fish that would only eat FBW. I tryed many things. Its tankmates are now 6"+ . It evantualy ( 1.5 years) got skinnier and skinnier and died. Don T.

[CARY_GLdiscus]

Dave,
Nothing wrong with Trying! We only want to help! In my case I have many Discus so its a little easyer for Me to cull them without missing them to much : ) But really My main reason for posting was so say that weak discus are allways weak there is no cure or food in the world going to change that!

Takecare
Cary Gld!

[Dave27]

Thanks for all the help.
I'm curious, when you say cull them , what do you mean?
What do you do?

[CraigG]

Thanks for all the help.
I'm curious, when you say cull them , what do you mean?
What do you do?


Culling
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This article is about culling animals. For culling in 3D graphics, see Back-face culling.
"Cull" redirects here. For the surname, see Cull (surname).
Culling is the 'selection' (removal and killing) of surplus animals from an animal population. In a wild population the selection is often done by killing the animal immediately. In a domestic or farming situation the culling process involves selection and the selling of surplus stock. The selection may be done to improve breeding stock, for example for improved production of eggs or milk, or simply to control the group's population for the benefit of the environment and other species.

Culling for population control is common in wildlife management, particularly on African game farms and in Australia in national parks. In the case of very large animals such as elephants, adults are often targeted. Their orphaned young, easily captured and transported, are then relocated. Without proper elephant socialization, young male elephants are believed to become unruly and dangerous to other elephants, wildlife and humans.[1] Culling is controversial in many African countries, but reintroduction of the practice has been recommended in recent years for use at the Kruger National Park in South Africa, which has experienced a swell in its elephant population since culling was banned in 1995.[2]

In fishing tournaments, culling refers to releasing smaller fish that won't be used to count towards an angler's total weight. For instance, if an angler is allowed to weigh in only 4 fish, he might keep his first four 2 pound fish in the livewell until he starts to catch bigger fish. As he catches bigger fish, he can release (or cull) the smaller fish.

Also, in the United States, game animals such as elk may be informally culled if they begin to excessively eat winter food set out for domestic cattle. In such instances the rancher will inform hunters that they may "hunt the haystack" on his property in order to thin the local herd to levels that do not excessively impact the winter feed supplies. Other instances include issuance of extra hunting licenses or additional "special seasons" during harsh winters or overpopulation by state fish and game agencies.

In certain cases culling may also be undertaken to check outbreak of certain viral or other infections and diseases among animals or birds. This has become widespread in India and some other East Asian countries where there are outbreaks of the deadly Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 among poultry. Huge number of chickens and some other fowls are being culled (as of January 2008) in order to contain spread of the avian flu.

Culling would require a lot of safety steps to be maintained in such cases of culling animals/birds since even a minor fault can cause the infections to spread out from the effected animals/birds to the population at large. Safety measures may include wearing special protective clothing and breathing apparatus to keep the workers culling the affected animals/birds from getting infected.

Chick slaughtering is the culling of newly hatched male chickens for which breeders have no use. In an industrial egg-producing facility, about half of the newly hatched chicks will be male and would grow up to be roosters, which do not lay eggs and therefore there is no incentive for the breeder to keep alive. Most of the male chicks are usually killed shortly after hatching.



I would never do that to a fish. I'll try to keep it alive if it dies on its own that is fine with me but atleast I tried.

[dwilder]

for those of us with plenty of tank space and a limited supply of discus i dont think it hurts to try i had a runt that was a poor eater that eventually came around and is almost as big as the rest now but if i had as many discus as some of the breeders and needed the space i would definitely cull

[Peachtree Discus]

Discus should be cooked whole. Several vertical slices should be
drawn across the body prior to cooking. The meat comes off very easy after
cooking and that also removes the lateral bones along the belly. Unless you
pick them out, the fillets will have the belly bones. Fully grown, they are
a perfect dinner plate sized meal.

show'em how it's done

[Darrell Ward]

I've tried to rehabilitate weak or runted fish in the past with mixed results. On occasion they grow and come around, most times they never do. I'm with Cary. I'd just cull it, or "throw it out in the yard" as I tell my wife. :D

[Dave27]

Like I said, he is the smallest in the tank, But, NO WAY is this a fish you cull. He eats, just not a pig, and he /she is amazing looking.
Separating the over eaters from the under eaters then feeding them properly is the answer.

I'm not a breeder, just a hobbiest, this fish is healthy and in a couple of weeks will be as big as the others.