JDM Posted June 14, 2006 Report Share Posted June 14, 2006 i have tried: frozen misis shrimp, brine shrimp (live and frozen) nori, flakes, granules, fresh mussell! but no, he just aint interested. he picks around the rocks, eating feather duster worms and small aiptasia but there aint much left and he is very very thin. any ideas or sucess storys? he is my 3rd copperband and i really dont want to loose him Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cracker Posted June 14, 2006 Report Share Posted June 14, 2006 Copperbands are difficult to keep. Have you done much reading on them. They are an experienced reef keepers fish only. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TM Posted June 14, 2006 Report Share Posted June 14, 2006 Copperbands are difficult to keep. Have you done much reading on them. They are an experienced reef keepers fish only. This helps a.. Do you have any access to live adult brine shrimp or mysis shrimp, you could try those. They are a hard one to keep, where did it come from, was it eating there, did you see it eat? Do you see it picking at your rocks? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JDM Posted June 14, 2006 Author Report Share Posted June 14, 2006 i understand that copperbands are difficult to keep. i have read about them, never had problems with feeding them before, the others i have had were lost due to 1 eating somthing it shouldnt have and the other died the first day i got it, so not sure what his problem was(wasnt skinny though). "experienced reef keepers" i need some advise, whats the best method for getting them to eat? i know there probably not failsafe but im ready to give anything a go. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JDM Posted June 14, 2006 Author Report Share Posted June 14, 2006 hay tim, i got it from my lfs, it was ther for over a month possiably 2 months, it got white spot shortly after arriving at the lfs, it was eating most of the time (this is what i was told) and i asked to see it eat on many occasions, it did eat just before i brought him. i have tryed live brine but not adult, i have a few adult shrimps in my tank mot sure if they are brine or mysis or what but there is plenty if he was into them. he spends all his day picking at my rocks, not much left after 2 weeks. thankyou for constructive questions Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TM Posted June 14, 2006 Report Share Posted June 14, 2006 well if he is picking then you would assume he is eating something? just not enough. I would just keep offering him food and see how it goes. How long have you had him? 2 weeks? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JDM Posted June 14, 2006 Author Report Share Posted June 14, 2006 yeah, 2 weeks last sunday. i would agree on the eating but not enough. i would just like to be able to target feed somthing, maybe just to give me peace of mind really. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tel Posted June 14, 2006 Report Share Posted June 14, 2006 if you lost 1 to ''eating something he shouldnt have'', what was it he ate and how long had you keep him? also how similar is your setup now compared to when he was alive? (nos aiptasia etc) also has the latest got visibly thinner in these past 2 weeks? it doesnt sound like hes terminal but anyone got any aiptasia probs around you that you could hook up with? good luck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wasp Posted June 14, 2006 Report Share Posted June 14, 2006 JDM, if you leave him where he is and he runs out of natural food, it is almost 100% certain you will lose him. However it may be possible he is not eating what you are feeding him, because he is getting enough natural food. This may seem hard but the best way to save him will be to remove him and put him in a tank with no other fish, and only gentle current. Put plenty of live adult brine shrimp in there, and feed the brine shrimp on fish food. he will almost certainly be tempted to eat some of the brine shrimp, and thereby also consume the fish food in their gut. Once he is eating them readily, let a few frozen mysid float around, may take a while but eventually he will start to pick at them. If you can get to this stage, discontinue the live brineshrimp, and work on training him to eat other things, and also train him to eat from your fingers so you can target feed him if need be when he goes back with the other fish. Be ready for all this to take maybe 6 months, but it can be done. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Posted June 14, 2006 Report Share Posted June 14, 2006 JDM. For what it’s worth my second marine fish I bought about three months ago was a Copper band. I new this fish was recommended for experienced marine keepers but due to my apistasia infestation I hoped this fish would take care of the problem. Well I am pleased to say I have no apistasia left in my tank. After he or her cleaned up the fan worms he then started on the apistasia. Even though it looked like he was chewing on barbed wire he still kept eating the apistasia till it has all but gone. Now I am feeding him blood worms frozen mysis shrimp and frozen brine shrimp. Because my tank had only chromis in it he was able to settle in to the tank a lot easier. What I have read about the copper band though it seams like it can be the luck of the draw if they will eat other foods. If he did not eat I had planned to set up a small tank to selective feed him as Wasp has advised on this site. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JDM Posted June 14, 2006 Author Report Share Posted June 14, 2006 if you lost 1 to ''eating something he shouldnt have'', what was it he ate and how long had you keep him? also how similar is your setup now compared to when he was alive? (nos aiptasia etc) also has the latest got visibly thinner in these past 2 weeks? it doesnt sound like hes terminal but anyone got any aiptasia probs around you that you could hook up with? good luck. the first one ate a bristle worm that was too big for its mouth and it couldnt spit it out, unfortunatly i was away at the time and didnt find him till he was upside down and very ill. this was over a year ago so my tank has moved on quite alot since, there is less aiptasia now but everything else is similar, except for my fish that have been added, a clown tang and a yellow tang. he is visibly thinner, at least i think he is, maybe im looking at his tummy more now than i was but he dosnt look the best. im sure jansens could spare some of there aiptasia :lol: cheers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JDM Posted June 14, 2006 Author Report Share Posted June 14, 2006 This may seem hard but the best way to save him will be to remove him and put him in a tank with no other fish, and only gentle current. Put plenty of live adult brine shrimp in there, and feed the brine shrimp on fish food. he will almost certainly be tempted to eat some of the brine shrimp, and thereby also consume the fish food in their gut. Once he is eating them readily, let a few frozen mysid float around, may take a while but eventually he will start to pick at them. If you can get to this stage, discontinue the live brineshrimp, and work on training him to eat other things, and also train him to eat from your fingers so you can target feed him if need be when he goes back with the other fish. Be ready for all this to take maybe 6 months, but it can be done. this sounds like a good plan, and i have a tank set up and running only a 2 footer but its got live rock in it and a skimmer so its all good. where or how would i go about getting some adult brine shrimp? i have a hatcher for brine shrimp, do i grow them from this or can i get them another way? thankyou. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wasp Posted June 14, 2006 Report Share Posted June 14, 2006 Well first I should say that my previous post may have looked unnessecarily grim, as Mark has pointed out they can live perfectly well in a tank with enough natural food, plus learn to eat, several people have achieved this. Adult brine shrimp can sometimes be bought at an lfs, or if not they can be cultured from eggs. They will grow fastest in warm water but cold will do. Use a highly aerated container, they are best to be fed on what is called " Seamonkey Food", which can be ordered through the lfs, alternatively they can eat many things such as yeast, powdered spirolina, even powdered fish food. The main problem being keeping the water clean, rather than getting them to eat. Test the water for ammonia periodically & change if need be. However, if he was eating in the shop, it may be that without competetion from other fish he would again start picking at some frozen brine or mysis. Mysis will be a lot more nutritious for him than brine. A 2 foot tank will be fine as long as he is not huge. Sometimes they will not take the mysis from the water column, but will pick it off the rocks once they get stuck there. But live bite sized ones are your best shot. I'm actually feeling uneasy about giving advice because it may be if you just left him he will survive, and if you take him out you could still lose him. But if you feel all his natural food is now gone, for me anyway, I would remove him from the competition of other fish & see what can be done. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
puttputt Posted June 14, 2006 Report Share Posted June 14, 2006 Have you tries Frozen blood worm, have got some fussy eaters to eat with this?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
suphew Posted June 14, 2006 Report Share Posted June 14, 2006 You could try mosquito larve, they shouldn't be too hard to find and will live in salt water long enough to be eaten (they will actually live for days in salt water). The down side to them is they tend to say on the surface and most wild fish don't natually look there for food. Or whiteworms, these dont live for long in water but will sink to the bottom where the CB might be more interested in looking. Might also be worth thinking putting it in your sump. If you have live rock or refuge in there then there should be alot more food for it, you will just need to watch that you don't have pumps etc that it could get sucked into if its weak. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gregb Posted June 14, 2006 Report Share Posted June 14, 2006 Soak his food in garlic juice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JDM Posted June 15, 2006 Author Report Share Posted June 15, 2006 i havnt tried frozen blood worms, but i will get some today and give that a go. i will also try to rase some adult brine shrimp and put that in my display and see if he goes for that. he isnt weak at all really, he can still move very quickly if disturbed and is swimming as normal, im more trying to prevent him from starting to starve as apposed to letting him become starving and then trying to fix the problem. prevention rather than cure is my motto. where do i find white worms? thankyou wasp for you honesty, ill keep him in the display for a little while longer and if he dose not improve or switch to feeding on a regular basis i will move him and follow your advise on how to get him feeding. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JDM Posted June 15, 2006 Author Report Share Posted June 15, 2006 garlic juice, funny ive got some but didnt even think of using it. :oops: ill give that a go too. :roll: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
suphew Posted June 15, 2006 Report Share Posted June 15, 2006 where do i find white worms? A lot of fresh water fish keepers have them, or if you have compost heap you might find some in there. They are about a centimeter long, thin, and either white or very light tan colored. If you do find some dont feed them too often because I think they are high in fat. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tel Posted June 16, 2006 Report Share Posted June 16, 2006 how goes it?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
petplanet Posted June 16, 2006 Report Share Posted June 16, 2006 Any pet store can order you some in from Biosuppliers. The come in a pot of dirt. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JDM Posted June 16, 2006 Author Report Share Posted June 16, 2006 tried the garlic tonight, still not interested, :-? he seems to be finding stuff to pick at on the rocks, well he is still picking at least. :-? im prepareing some brine shrimp for hatching tonight, im gona try to grow some adaults and see how that goes. for now not much has changed, still active, still picking at rocks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
suphew Posted June 16, 2006 Report Share Posted June 16, 2006 You could try cyclopseasy, most new fish I get seem to eat it early on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JDM Posted June 16, 2006 Author Report Share Posted June 16, 2006 You could try cyclopseasy, most new fish I get seem to eat it early on. cheers, but what is it and where do i get some? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
suphew Posted June 16, 2006 Report Share Posted June 16, 2006 Just went and got y tin out, Cyclop-eeze, freeze dried micro-crustaceans. Not sure where you can get it, Pies ordered in a box full and I got mine off him. But plently of people use it, someone up there must sell it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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