I have 3 Striped Peacock Eels. I bought them about a week ago. I have not yet seen them eat, I guess they could be eating but I don't know. Any suggestions on how to make sure they are eating. I feed frozen bloodworms, live tubifex worms, fz brine shrimp and flakes. I also don't know if they will scavenge off the bottom, however there is probably not a whole lot there as the fish they are with are pigs and eat everything in sight. Any ideas?
2007-11-01 03:12:18 · 4 answers · asked by Serena01 3 in Pets ➔ Fish
It is a 55 gallon tank with plants and yes other hiding places. They actually seem very happy. 1 is very active and swims around all the time, one hides in a cave but comes out now and again, the 3rd one I don't see very often.
2007-11-01 03:48:01 · update #1
You might want to switch to live foods to be sure they're eating. Depending on their size, you could give them redworms (may have to cut these up) or ghost shrimp (choose by size to fit your eels). Feeder fish is another possibility, but these are better to breed yourself - ones from stores may introduce parasites to your eels.
Once you know they're eating the live foods, gradually add some of the frozen food at the same time. Not all eels will eat items that aren't alive (the movement triggers their feeding response), but others will eat commercially prepared foods. You could also try frozen fish or shrimp (from grocery) or frozen krill - cut into appropriate sized pieces/strips and skewer onto a piece of bamboo (like what are used for grilling) and wave it in front of your eels so it looks alive.
2007-11-01 04:06:18 · answer #1 · answered by copperhead 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
I agree with copper's answer with the different foods to try. One thing you could also try, get a turkey baster, and use that to distribute the food directly to the area the eels are at. Especially if they're hiding in a cave. And, I do believe they're more nocturnal, so try feeding them towards the evening time.
One thing I'd recommend, don't use the tubifex worms anymore. I had read a few articles(don't remember where I saw them) that they commonly transmit either a bacteria or a parasite(can't remember which now) to your tank/fish. They said even the freeze dried wasn't good, that the bacteria/parasite was surviving the process. Best bet is to stay away from tubifex worms, stick with meal worms, blood worms, earth worms.
2007-11-01 11:21:57 · answer #2 · answered by tikitiki 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Put some guppy fry (actually any kind of baby fish) in the tank. If some are missing the next day and no other carnivorous or omnivorous fish are in the tank, the eels are eating.
2007-11-01 14:29:04 · answer #3 · answered by TopPotts 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
my brother likes biker eels they like t eat live worms, the long ones from a back yard, just go dig some up and try to dangle them in the water, if they don't come, just drop them, also they wont eat if their tank sucks, is it big enough, tunnel rocks?
2007-11-01 10:16:02 · answer #4 · answered by White Fire 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋