# Fish Not Eating At All



## thedon624 (Apr 14, 2008)

Whats going on everybody??

I've been having a problem with feeding my gold spilo. 
He is about 4-5 inches I'd say and used to eat a piece of shrimp or tilapia
everyday. For the last month tho, He hasen't ate anything at all, not even a bite. 
I'm very worried because the water parameters are fine and the temp is around 78. 
I tried feeding a pellet as well and wouldn't go near it. I have tried his usual shrimp 
and tilapia and nothing works. It has been a little more than a month with absoultely no eating.
I am thinking about buying a feeder fish or something to see if he'll eat that so at least have something 
in his stomach. Also could it be maybe that there is nothing in the tank at all besides gravel, because the
plants I had in the tank became covered in algae so since it looked terrible I took them all out. 
Can Someone please lead me in the right direction. Some tips or help would be greatly appreciated. [/font][/font][/font][/size]


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## xeloR (Jan 2, 2009)

i would bump the temperature up to 80 and continue to offer food every other day or so. removing or rearranging decor in the tank could definitely cause him to not eat. he wont starve himself, so just offer it for a few minutes at a time, then just remove/ start over the next day. GL


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## Ba20 (Jan 29, 2003)

Im going to agree with xelor removing the plants/changing his habitat, could of easily taken away his safety blanket so to speak. But not eating for a month is rather unusual, though not recommended have you tried feeding him with the lights off ?


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## FEEFA (Nov 19, 2007)

thedon624 said:


> Whats going on everybody??
> 
> I've been having a problem with feeding my gold spilo.
> He is about 4-5 inches I'd say and used to eat a piece of shrimp or tilapia
> ...


What are your water params exactly? Not eating for a month is very unusal


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## Trigga (Jul 1, 2006)

Probably just the change in his surroundings causing him to be a little apprehensive about eating... Have you tried feeding him at night? If you drop in some food before you go to sleep, there should at least be a few bites out of it when you turn the light on in the morning


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## thedon624 (Apr 14, 2008)

Ba20 said:


> Im going to agree with xelor removing the plants/changing his habitat, could of easily taken away his safety blanket so to speak. But not eating for a month is rather unusual, though not recommended have you tried feeding him with the lights off ?


Thanks for replying. I just checked my parameters right now,
My pH is 7.0-7.2, amonia is 0ppm, and I don't have a tester
for nitrates, so I couldn't get a read on that. The temp is 
now around 80-81. Here is a pic of my fish as well, its a little 
old but it will do.


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## Ba20 (Jan 29, 2003)

great looking gold







any Full tank shots ?


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## Grosse Gurke (Jan 3, 2003)

A month isnt a problem...and it isnt that unusual. I think he is just rebelling because you removed the plants and he was comfortable with his territory. When I took out the powerhead from my rhoms tank...he trashed the tank....forced all the sand to one side...knocked over driftwood....knocked off heaters....just trashed it. I put back the powerhead and he is fine. Also...although he hasnt done it in awhile....my rhom used to fast for a few months a year. He would just refuse food...and in a month or two...he would start eating again.

One thing you can do is not feed your fish daily. I feed all my fish once or twice a week.


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## Ba20 (Jan 29, 2003)

Grosse Gurke said:


> One thing you can do is not feed your fish daily. I feed all my fish once or twice a week.


I also do this !


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## thedon624 (Apr 14, 2008)

Ba20 said:


> great looking gold
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Thanks for the reply. I guess, I'll just have to wait it out and go from there.
I just wanted to make sure, he wasen't sick or anything. Now I feel more relieved.
Just removed the gravel to sand and will be adding plants as well, so I'm sure he'll 
be back to his normal self in no time.. I hope!!!










PS> I'll have full shots of the tank, when I add the plants
and the water gets clearer since I just added Tahitian moon sand.


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## Ba20 (Jan 29, 2003)

thedon624 said:


> I think the white sand looks great IMO.
> I like the black sand as well, but I already have black gravel so I
> am looking of going toward a more brighter tank style this time around.


Thought you weren't getting it


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## thedon624 (Apr 14, 2008)

Ba20 said:


> I think the white sand looks great IMO.
> I like the black sand as well, but I already have black gravel so I
> am looking of going toward a more brighter tank style this time around.


Thought you weren't getting it








[/quote]

Haha, I know I didn't think I was going to, but when I saw 
it at the store I just had to get it. Figured maybe the white 
will get dirty to easy anyway..


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## SERRAPYGO (Feb 4, 2003)

> Also could it be maybe that there is nothing in the tank at all besides gravel, because the
> plants I had in the tank became covered in algae so since it looked terrible I took them all out.


Definitely! Fish don't eat if they are not happy and secure in their surroundings. Removing, basically his whole environment, shook up his little world big time.



> One thing you can do is not feed your fish daily. I feed all my fish once or twice a week.


Yes!


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## thedon624 (Apr 14, 2008)

Picked up 20 ghost shrimp for 2 dollars 2 days ago, 
woke up today and none left. So at least he got 
something in his stomach now.


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## thedon624 (Apr 14, 2008)

thedon624 said:


> Picked up 20 ghost shrimp for 2 dollars 2 days ago,
> woke up today and none left. So at least he got
> something in his stomach now.


Finally ate a bunch of tilapia today! I feel so relieved.
I guess he is out of his phase...


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## corbypete (Jan 24, 2005)

the one safety net with these guys, underfeeding eventually gets them going again if theyre not sick/water paramters ok etc.

In the wild, they spend many weeks flapping on their sides in little more than mud and a few cm of water waiting for the dry season to cease, so they're almost designed to fast, and survive!

They're also very nervous, so change the tank and he probably thinks hes in new territory, he's thinking "is it his own space?", "are there any other predators in here bigger than me?" "where is my safey zone if it kicks off" and so on...


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