[Eldachleich]

*He is eating only flake food now.. Why?





It's been 4 days now. He doesn't attach to plants or glass or anything really. He just sits on the sand. He wont eat any veggies or any wafers or food of any kind. He's super active, and swims around all day going from place to place... or rather from sandy spot to sandy spot... I tried making a slurry for him as was suggested to me but he ignored it. I got him for free from my LFS as he was the only one left after 4 months... They get a new shipment of them in on tuesday, so I'm going to get him at least two more friends... He is really skinny and I would like to get him to start eating... What can I do?

 

[Patriot]

Try turning the lights off to see if he eats at night. It could be shock to a new environment.


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[mistergreen]

Make algae for him. Put some large river stones in a bucket of aquarium water. Leave it out in the sun for a week.

Put the stones in the tank for him to feed on.

I've noticed some otos won't touch veggies. It isn't their natural diet. Honestly, I've never seen my 2 otos feed. They get by with the algae and maybe dead leaves in my 75G. They looks fit and plump.

 

[jasonpatterson]

If I leave a blanched spinach leaf in the bottom of the tank it's got all kinds of holes sucked in it when I wake up. Dunno if you've tried something like that rather than blanched zuccini, but mine like it, and the shrimp are happy to clean up the leftovers. (I caught the fish in the act of feeding on it, so I know it's not just the shrimp eating.)

I hope it doesn't happen, because they're wonderful fish, but some of them just never seem to settle in and wind up starving to death. If it can survive for a month, it will probably last for years. Hopefully if you can get fish #1 some companions it will see them eating and do the same. Most fish will try eating what they see others eating.

 

[Amazonfish]

When you put in veggies, otos usually won't touch them until a day or so later, when they're mushy and half nasty looking. I just got some new otos and they seem to really like romaine lettuce. I attached a leaf to a river stone with a rubber band, and they didn't even look at it until about 24 hours later. It's been 2 days now and they're loving it. I hope this helps!

Good luck!

 

[150EH]

It takes a week or two for Oto's to settle.

 

[Eldachleich]

I'll have to keep trying with different things than. I'm sat here worried about my oto dying, and I woke up to a dead cory. Don't know where I'm going to buy just two leopard cories..

 

[james0816]

I tried making a slurry for him as was suggested to me but he ignored it

How did you do this if I may ask?

 

[Eldachleich]

How did you do this if I may ask?

Its s blend of algae wafers and veggies... in my food processor... I added some in and made sort of juice... I drop a little at a time near him. He ate a little of it today, but for the most part he ignores any food...

 

[Coursair]

I had one I was sure wasn't going to make it. This is probably coincidence BUT I used Fenbendazole to kill some Planaria as I was expecting shrimplets. Within an hour my Oto was active and eating. Weird. No idea why.
He's still around.

 

[Eldachleich]

I had one I was sure wasn't going to make it. This is probably coincidence BUT I used Fenbendazole to kill some Planaria as I was expecting shrimplets. Within an hour my Oto was active and eating. Weird. No idea why.
He's still around.

He is super active, alwasy swimming.... I guess my biggest concern is that fact that he is always attached to the sand and not rocks, plants,or the glass... And he ignores all food... I don't think there is enough algae in my tank to actually support him

 

[Cardinal Tetra]

My otos never eat "food" if that makes you feel better. You're better off not putting in more slurries too... you're probably causing lots of pollution and dirtying the water more than anything which kills fish faster than starvation. I have 6 otos in my 20 long and I see no algae yet they always have fat bellies and keep living so they're going. I doubt the oto will just drop dead if it was alive at the lfs for 4 months. Otos can drop like flies when first brought into a store but the ones that make it past a week or 2 will usually live.

 

[Eldachleich]

My otos never eat "food" if that makes you feel better. You're better off not putting in more slurries too... you're probably causing lots of pollution and dirtying the water more than anything which kills fish faster than starvation. I have 6 otos in my 20 long and I see no algae yet they always have fat bellies and keep living so they're going. I doubt the oto will just drop dead if it was alive at the lfs for 4 months. Otos can drop like flies when first brought into a store but the ones that make it past a week or 2 will usually live.

I was going to wait a week actually lol... just to let some of them die off.... Well he seems happy so... lets hope hes eating something...

 

[Eldachleich]

Ok just found out what he's eating.... Flake food.... He's been going about searching for algae on plants for the past hour. But as soon as I dropped in some flake food for my guppies he went for the nearest one to him. He is going absolutely insane over it. Is he just used to eating it for survival from the LFS?

 

[Eldachleich]

Bump... oops... I'm sorry... I thought waaaaaay more time had passed....

 

[lauraleellbp]

My Otos will eat everything else the rest of my fish do- mysis shrimp, bloodworms, flakes, wafers, but they do love (and IMO need) their veggies, too.

 

[Eldachleich]

My Otos will eat everything else the rest of my fish do- mysis shrimp, bloodworms, flakes, wafers, but they do love (and IMO need) their veggies, too.

Well thats good to know... at least hes surviving.. I wish I could get him interested in eating veggies though....
Maybe when I get him a few friends he will start eating and acting normally...