ORA Picassos not interested in food, for the second day

slojmn · #1 12/17/2007, 05:27 PM

Hi all,
I picked up my little baby ORA Picassos on Saturday, they came into the LFS on Friday. He fed but not sure if they ate. They looked very healthy and spunky in the tank at the LFS. Seemed to acclimate greaat Saturday afternoon. Tried multiple types of food (Formula2 flake, Formula one frozen, small sinking pellets, mysis cut up very tiny, freeze dried cyclopeeze, Arctic Pods) with no luck on Sunday. Tried flake and Frozen Formula 1 thus far today, no luck.
They are both hanging out near the top in the back, one looks to be a little less active than the other. Both are staying in same area with no interaction from tank mates. Tank mates never paid them any attention since they were introduced. What do you think??? Should I be worrying?? My helfrichi pair ate the next day when I added them to this tank. Usually fish will eat within 24 hours for me. This has me worried. They seem to have no interest at all.

oct2274 · #2 12/17/2007, 05:50 PM

clownfish can be sensitive to changes in their living space. mine didn't eat for two weeks when I got them from my friend who breeds them. All of a sudden one day they started. Two days is nothing.

slojmn · #3 12/17/2007, 05:57 PM

Thanks for your reply. One thing though...My main concern is that these are young Picassos, expensive little things at that. They are probably a little over an inch and a half. Can they go for 2 weeks? Seems like a long time for babies.

racerw · #4 12/17/2007, 07:20 PM

Hey Alicia your new babies are very nice looking

I wouldn't worry yet, when I first got mine they didn't eat for several days. They now go crazy for Rod's food, cyclopeeze & rotifers.

slojmn · #5 12/17/2007, 07:29 PM

Hey Stacy, I've been thinking about you. I hope all is well. They are cute little buggers but completely uninterested in food. I am on the hunt for Rod's food locally. Maybe I will get lucky and find it tomorrow.

GSMguy · #6 12/17/2007, 07:35 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by slojmn
I am on the hunt for Rod's food locally. Maybe I will get lucky and find it tomorrow.

http://www.rodsfood.com/lfsmap.php

there are also places that ship it.

racerw · #7 12/17/2007, 08:11 PM

Alicia you have a PM

Tom-Kat · #8 12/17/2007, 08:42 PM

go to petco and get ora glow pellet food they will eat it

slojmn · #9 12/17/2007, 08:47 PM

You know, I almost picked up a little package of that when I picked the clowns up but I have Spectrum small pellets and I figured they were similar enough. I will get some tonight at the local Petco if they have it. It can't hurt.

Tom-Kat · #10 12/18/2007, 12:27 AM

yea i think that is ur best bet cause that is what they were raised on

OkiNano · #11 12/18/2007, 08:13 AM

I agree with GSMguy, get some Rods Food...mine go crazy over that stuff

LargeAngels · #12 12/18/2007, 09:27 AM

As long as their fins aren't clamped don't worry about it.

Freshly hatched brine shrimp are usually hard for small clowns to resist. Turn the pumps off so they can see them moving.

GSMguy · #13 12/18/2007, 10:13 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by LargeAngels
As long as their fins aren't clamped don't worry about it.

Freshly hatched brine shrimp are usually hard for small clowns to resist. Turn the pumps off so they can see them moving.

+1
i had great success getting my tiny onyx to eat with live BBS.

slojmn · #14 12/18/2007, 10:48 AM

Well, one of the pair didn't make it through the night

. The other one seems fine this morning. I'll see if they have any brine shrimp eggs at the lfs and I'll set up a little brine shrimp station in the garage with a soda bottle, it is simple enough to do. I thought of this myself last night as a last ditch effort if I can't get the little guy that is left to eat today. The closest Rod's Food is a fairly long drive but I may end up going and getting it as it sounds like good stuff.

traveller7 · #15 12/18/2007, 11:20 AM

If ORA clowns are not aggressively eating prepared foods, i.e. flakes and pellets, there is something wrong.

Have pictures?
Were they swimming unusually in the tank, clamped fins, head pointed down, head up, etc.?

Once captive bred clowns are put into a mixed LFS system, they get exposed to all sorts of bad stuff.

slojmn · #16 12/18/2007, 11:29 AM

These two were in the tank overnight at the lfs, long enough to get exposed I am sure. The lfs owner said he had treatments in the tanks just in case, maybe some copper. The one that did not make it was definately swimming with head up, a little listed to the side as well since Sunday mroning. No clamped fins on either. The other seems to do this a bit, the head up thing but mostly swimming normally. I noticed the one left has been exploring the tank a lot more than the other one did. Mostly they hung out together. Here is a shot of both of them the night I acclimated them to the tank. They looked good that night. The one on the right without a tail bar is the one that did not make it. I did notice a white dot on her and some slight white dusting here and there. I have a leopard wrasse that kicks up sand like no tomorrow so there had been a lot of sand flying around in the tank. It was hard for me to know if it was a problem or just some bits of sand on her. Maybe a problem. i have not seen anything on the little guy that is left. I am much more worried now that you mention they should be eating aggressively

. I hope he takes something today.

racerw · #17 12/18/2007, 02:24 PM

sorry about that, it stinks losing a fish

OkiNano · #18 12/18/2007, 03:27 PM

same thing happened to my ora picasso pair about a week ago...I'm tempted to contact ORA and ask them why I'm seeing these picasso's not doing well....

LargeAngels · #19 12/18/2007, 03:34 PM

Like traveller7 stated. Once at LFS they get exposed to all kinds of stuff.

Contact your LFS and see what they will do. CB fish shouldn't die within a week.

But it also inforces that anything from the LFS should be quarentined.

slojmn · #20 12/18/2007, 04:16 PM

Stacie, Thanks...it is always a bummer ot lose one. I hate that sinking feeling when you realize it didn't make it.

okinano, Intersting...I've also noticed a few threads about ORA Picassos not making it in the past few motnhs. But in the scheme of things I wouldn't know if that constitutes problems or just those of us unlucky few. Tank params are all good so hard to know. Probably just a little to much stress. What happend with yours??

Large Angels, True that. I am setting up a little quarantine for the next ones I get in...I am going to keep them in their own little tank for a month or so and see if they fair better. I have yet to talk with the head guy at the shop...it appears the other two I did not pick are doing fine and eating only live brine for now. I cannot find any live brine until tomorrow afternoon so I hope he can hang on since he is still uninterested in food thus far today. He is still motoring around failry normally in his little area he has staked out. If need be I will transfer him to the little holding tank if he looks to be struggling more. Thus far I don't want to stress him anymore with another move unless I really have to. I am setting up some brine to hatch as well just for the heck of it. That may help as well adn when I get the other one in next week that I ordered from Bones I'll have baby brine ready to go. In the meantime I am crossing my fingers for this little guy I have left.

Mikigo · #21 12/18/2007, 05:58 PM

IME. Piccasos are more sensitive to medication. They don't tolerate copper and other dipping meds as well compare to other wc clowns. I don't know if this is in the breed or not.

slojmn · #22 12/18/2007, 09:07 PM

Hmmmm, well their may have been copper in the holding tank at the lfs but the other pair that are still at the fish store seem just fine. I decided to set up a nice little quarantine nursery tank for the little fella. He is now hanging out all snuggled up in his flower pot in a dim tank all to his own. It was a very easy transfer. He avoided the big black net and swam easily into my holding container and then moments later easily swam out in the new tank. He is no longer hanging out by the top like he was in the big tank. He seems very content in the flower pot wiggling about. I should have some baby brine hatching by tomorrow night or the next morning and hopefully some large live brine by tomorrow evening whenever the lfs finally gets it in. If he can just muster up the energy to snag some brine tomorrow we should be all good. I hope he lasts that long. I figure if all is well and he perks up I will keep him in this nursery for a month or three.