need help with a copperband

TOURKID · #1 10/08/2007, 10:24 AM

so, I bought a copperband off what I now know as a pretty shady store. (doh, even the The yahoo reviews warn agianst it, but I dident know.

anyways, the copperband was eating on the store, brine but thats ok.
really heathy, no sign of disease

Well it is on major hungerstrike

I've tried brine mysis flake
Hatched live brine
live clam
live mussel

3 days and nothing

I tried to return it, and getno moneyback
they won't take it (they only take damsels back)

so I'm thinking my only option may be to add it to the reef and hope for the best (in two days because 5 days no food is a long time)
i only have like 2 aptasia tho, decent amount of fan worms

opinions, advice? Cracking open the clams was nasty, I'll try anything I guess

MarineFishGuy · #2 10/08/2007, 01:59 PM

Check out his link, it sounds helpful.
http://wetwebfotos.com/talk/thread.j...message=260903
Good luck,
Ken

TOURKID · #3 10/08/2007, 02:12 PM

oi. Bloodworms? The mussel looked awfully apitising in fish terms.

I kinda want to put it in the reef.... But what if its apitite is lps? It would be hard to catch.

I often feel like the red headed girl in finding nemo

MarineFishGuy · #4 10/08/2007, 02:30 PM

I would not add it to the reef if it is not eating well. The QT tank is your best bet to acclimate it to frozen/prepared food.

Maybe move one of your well seasoned live rocks to the QT tank to give it some natural food to forage on for now.

Once a fish is in the main tank it may mean a full tear down to remove them unless you have a large fish trap.

I have heard of people using barbless hooks with some success to catch problem fish too.

At his talk Joe mentioned that some of his fish Nip at the polyps without doing major damage. As long as it does not develop a taste for them.
In gardening we trim plants back to stimulate growth so it makes sense this may also work for corals.

HTH,
Ken

TOURKID · #5 10/08/2007, 03:19 PM

I just tried a fuge rock with prime reef shoved in the holes. No luck. Def stressed out, it swims back and forth inceccently on the small part of the tank.

I mean, we made some progress, he's not scared of the turkey Bastet anymore and he doesent hide when I come into the room.. Thats somthing I guess

I try feeding it about 5 times a day with duff foods

I tried nori and cyclops, garlic enhanced, zoecon, everything but bloodworms and 'crustation flesh' I guess I can go try frozen bloodworms tomorrow ( know where to get live ones?)
I was also thinking the fishstore owner fed it with a bar of sanfancisco bay brand brine and just shook the bar in the tank a lil, ive been using a diff brand thats seems a tiny bigger

I dont want to put a reef rock in the qt, been copper in it in the past.

szwab · #6 10/08/2007, 03:22 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by MarineFishGuy

In gardening we trim plants back to stimulate growth so it makes sense this may also work for corals.

HTH,
Ken

maybe if corals were plants let's not forget they are animals

copperbands are tricky. Moving to the reef may prove stressful and delay eating even further. Then again a more comfy home might entice eating but your other fish are at risk. It's a choice that only you can make. feather worms will most likely become a meal. (mine did) If it were me I'd make sure water quality is good in the QT and keep trying different foods and keep stress down.
Just curious though, you mentioned a concern for LPS eaating or not you would be taking the same chance after QT.

Paul B · #7 10/08/2007, 03:26 PM

Copperbands eat worms and should be fed them. Not blood worms which are not really worms but insect larva but real live worms. I have always fed them live blackworms and the fish live for years. All the stores in NY sell them live but I don't know about Ohio.
Copperbands are a tough fish to keep because many of them are still caught with cyanide which will cause them to stop eating.
Don't waste time on flakes which they will very rarely eat. After you get them eating worms they will eat most meaty foods like mysis, brine, plankton but only if it is small enough. You can try clams but you should chop them into bite sized pieces that the fish can eat whole.
If he does not eat live worms, he probably won't eat anything
Paul

szwab · #8 10/08/2007, 03:34 PM

Maggie another thing to chek is if it's mouth is injured. can you see any damage? If so it usually makes it real difficult/ impossible for them to eat.

TOURKID · #9 10/08/2007, 03:54 PM

szwab- no, mouth looks good. it doesent seem to even notice all the food floating around (i remove it after a half hr and do a water change each day)

where could i get blackworms? we have a crazy fishing/hunting/gun store here.

thanks paulb, Ill find them if they are indeed alive around here.

TOURKID · #10 10/08/2007, 04:11 PM

ok all the baitshops think im crazy, and that i must mean 'wax worms' and the petstores think im gross. lol

what are these sold for?

jh2pizza · #11 10/08/2007, 04:43 PM

Hey Maggie, ours did that once and the only thing I could get it to eat was something Sedar had in the frig. Red and in a bottle. Cant remember what it was, but I was to the point of just frying it up for dinner when he talked me into trying it.

itZme · #12 10/08/2007, 05:38 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by jh2pizza
Hey Maggie, ours did that once and the only thing I could get it to eat was something Sedar had in the frig. Red and in a bottle. Cant remember what it was, but I was to the point of just frying it up for dinner when he talked me into trying it.

Sounds like Arcti-Pods to me. They are orangey-red and a bit bigger than copepods.

http://www.reefnutrition.com/arctipods/index.htm

szwab · #13 10/08/2007, 05:40 PM

i think jack's carries black worms.

Arctic pods are a bit pricey. You can have some of mine, so you cantry before you buy if you like.

TOURKID · #14 10/08/2007, 05:47 PM

szwab, thank you

are they like cyclops?
i live 40 miles from c bus now, jpizza may evwn live closed lol
mind if i get a little at the swap if its still... Swimming? (they can go about two wedks without food right?)

I called 1 jacks and they said no.

I just bought and tried dried tubifex worms and frozen bloodworms

No deals

Anyone know how long clams stay alive in the fridge? Like if they leave they're mouth open a lil did they die?

szwab · #15 10/08/2007, 05:54 PM

sure remind me to bring it. they are like big copepods

keep trying to feed him in the mean time!

TOURKID · #16 10/08/2007, 06:28 PM

will do. Thanks agian

jh2pizza · #17 10/08/2007, 10:07 PM

Quote:

Sounds like Arcti-Pods to me. They are orangey-red and a bit bigger than copepods.

thats them.

Do you have any rock with Aptasia on it?

TOURKID · #18 10/09/2007, 09:27 AM

not really. i have 2 aptasia in the whole tank

(not sure if im happy or sad about it lol)

still not eating.... wanna add it to the reef, but im not going to. im not concerned anout disease, just not being able to catch it if it starts staving, or eatting coral.....

hollback · #19 10/09/2007, 03:19 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by TOURKID
...mind if i get a little at the swap if its still... Swimming? (they can go about two wedks without food right?)

Maggie,
Arcticpods are actually not alive so it won't matter when you get them.

TOURKID · #20 10/09/2007, 03:48 PM

I ment... if the fish was still swimming, like... alive

Stoneyscoral · #21 10/09/2007, 07:09 PM

I would put him in the reef. You mentioned that you had a healthy population of fan worms and Copperbands just love them. It will wipe them out but it may buy you time to get him eating mysis.

My Copperbands did develop a taste for micromussa and acanthastrea so beware of that.

Good luck.

TOURKID · #22 10/09/2007, 08:11 PM

mmm. my 2nd and 3rd fav corals

interestingly. i put a rock in the qt yesterday, size of my fist maybe

and today it was showing alot of interest in it. pecking at it a lil too (no fan worms on it tho)

Hes either getting hungry or he needs to go in the reef. im waiting it out for now. i try all sorts of stuff diff foods with differerent stuff on it, etc Im trying my best thats for sure

Treg · #23 10/09/2007, 09:50 PM

I wouldnt sweat 3 days too much...

I had an angel fish go over a month with out eating. Shes a pig and a half now. Even eats from my fingers.
A potters I picked up awile back went a good 2 weeks before he ate for me. He eats anything and everything now.

If the fish ate and looked healty when you bought him, chances are he just needs some time to relax. Leave him be for a bit, keep your hands out of his tank... Try feeding him with the room lights off so that he cant see you. If you seen him eat brine I would keep after him with brine and mysis.

ReefWidowed · #24 10/09/2007, 10:26 PM

I would keep it out of the reef.....if it turns out to be some sort of illness you don't want to spread it to the reef....sort of defeats the purpose of a QT tank...I would raise he!! with the store, threaten them with the BBB

Good luck, hope everything turns out ok in the end

TOURKID · #25 10/10/2007, 06:45 AM

whats a bbb? that store is shady

I bought a brine shrimp kit and he said i HAD to buy the egg packs too.. I wasent paying attention, the kit came with them. wont take back the extra packets either

It certainly seems like the healthist fish ive ever bought and qt'ed. literally perfect. just a panicy nervous little thing

treg... thankyou. that makes me feel alot better. Ill continue with trying to feed it.
It doesent mind me coming around, and the baster doesent even bother him...