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View Full Version : HELP!!! Naso Tang just won't eat, getting worried


my2rotties
12-26-2008, 03:21 AM
My hubby brought Naso tang home last week and she just won't eat anything I have tried to feel her. I have tried all the frozen foods, mysis, nori and soaking the food in garlic. She comes out when I feed the other fish, but lets the food bounce off of her, and just won't eat. She is hungry and looks for food, but it is never what I feed her. She eats the hair algae off of the rock wall, but there is not near enough to sustain her.

I was not with hubby at the LFS and he did not ask for them to feed her so he could see if she ate. This poor fish is starving and hungry, but just won't eat anything I try to give.

Any comments or suggestions would be greatly appreciated... I don't think she has very long to live. How do the LFS stores teach their fish to eat prior to sale?

HELP!!!

RonPeter
12-26-2008, 03:44 AM
Have you tried nori sea weed?

my2rotties
12-26-2008, 03:48 AM
Yes I have both the red and the green, both with or without garlic. I have tried putting it into the rock wall at the back where she tires to eat hair algae, to fool her to no avail... I have home made fish food from a member, the forzen herbivore formula, the pellets, the flakes, mysis, and everything else under the sun. She comes to feed with the other fish, but then she does not even take a bite. It is so frustrating because I know how hungry she is and there is nothing I can do.

Have you tried nori sea weed?

xtreme
12-26-2008, 04:14 AM
I have a Blonde Naso which ate fine at the LFS but wouldn't eat when I got him home. I feed Nori, pellets, frozen mysis as well as the frozen homemade mix and he would show interest when I fed but not actually eat anything. It took a week or two but he started eating and hasn't stopped since. I know I'm not offering a solution but time may be all she needs to get settled in before she is comfortable enough to eat.

my2rotties
12-26-2008, 04:46 AM
Thank you so much for the reply. I am freaking out a little since it seems whatever I do is a failure. She is such a nice fish and is always swimming around where I happen to be. She was terrified when she came home, and laid flat under a rock in the rockwall. I have added a Sohal tang since she came, so she is not the new kid on the block, and the Sohal keeps to himself. She doesn't get bullied or dominated by any other fish.

I am keeping my fingers crossed that she eats since she is getting so skinny. She is grazing on the hair algae but there is not enough for her in reality.

Thanks for letting me know. It is appreciated a great deal.

I have a Blonde Naso which ate fine at the LFS but wouldn't eat when I got him home. I feed Nori, pellets, frozen mysis as well as the frozen homemade mix and he would show interest when I fed but not actually eat anything. It took a week or two but he started eating and hasn't stopped since. I know I'm not offering a solution but time may be all she needs to get settled in before she is comfortable enough to eat.

ShrimSkin
12-26-2008, 05:29 AM
Thank you so much for the reply. I am freaking out a little since it seems whatever I do is a failure. She is such a nice fish and is always swimming around where I happen to be. She was terrified when she came home, and laid flat under a rock in the rockwall. I have added a Sohal tang since she came, so she is not the new kid on the block, and the Sohal keeps to himself. She doesn't get bullied or dominated by any other fish.

I am keeping my fingers crossed that she eats since she is getting so skinny. She is grazing on the hair algae but there is not enough for her in reality.

Thanks for letting me know. It is appreciated a great deal.


When I brought my Naso home it also didn't eat. But after about a week of soaking with garlic and the Naso seeing the other fish in the tank go after the food it now will not stop eating. Once you get it started tangs are eating and pooping machines!! Just stay patient, keep feeding with the variety you are using, oh and I have yet to meet a fish that wouldn't take cyclopeeze grab some if you can fish love this stuff.

naesco
12-26-2008, 05:36 AM
Is it an adult size naso?

my2rotties
12-26-2008, 05:53 AM
I also tried the cyclopeeze and no deal with her. She is about 5" long so she is nothing like the really large ones I have seen at a couple of LFS. I think all the Naso tangs I have seen have been her size on average.

She has a feeding response but just does not eat anything yet. I will keep my fingers crossed, keep the garlic going as well as the buffet of different foods I have been feeding. The other fish are happy about it. I do hope she sees the others and joins in. Thanks for the advise.

marie
12-26-2008, 05:51 PM
For the first year and a half that I had my Naso, all he would eat was nori. He always had a fat belly and grew 3" in that time so I guess he was meeting his basic nutrition needs but I was very relieved when he finally started to eat everything I put in the tank

naesco
12-26-2008, 07:00 PM
Adult naso tangs, like adult angels, go on a hunger strike and often refuse to eat. They eventually just starve to death in the reefers tank.
I don't know why LFS continue to import them.
Follow the advice re: variety of foods and garlic extract.
Avoid to much contact with the tank as you will just further stress the fish.
Check your water parameters to make sure it is not a water quality problem and ensure you have lots of oxygen in the tank by placing a powerhead 8 inches below the water line.
Good Luck

my2rotties
12-27-2008, 03:27 AM
I didn't think she was an adult since she is about 1/3 of the size of the large tang at the other store. I wasn't with the hubby when he bought her, and have told the hubby to call and complain. I don't know if it will help or not.

I hope all the advise proves true in this case, and she starts eating soon. I am thinking it is too late now.:sad:

Adult naso tangs, like adult angels, go on a hunger strike and often refuse to eat. They eventually just starve to death in the reefers tank.
I don't know why LFS continue to import them.
Follow the advice re: variety of foods and garlic extract.
Avoid to much contact with the tank as you will just further stress the fish.
Check your water parameters to make sure it is not a water quality problem and ensure you have lots of oxygen in the tank by placing a powerhead 8 inches below the water line.
Good Luck

Red Deer Reptiles
12-27-2008, 04:06 AM
try new life spectrumax finicky fish formula or uncooked prawns remove shell after 30 mins feed little bites. quick ? new fish is he being bullied.

my2rotties
12-27-2008, 05:24 AM
I tried both since I have them on hand and my puffer eats prawns. She is not being bullied at all to be honest. Everyone leaves he alone and she is so peaceful in general. I am at a loss of what to do and really hope she follows all the other fish and eats like they do. Thanks for the advise.

try new life spectrumax finicky fish formula or uncooked prawns remove shell after 30 mins feed little bites. quick ? new fish is he being bullied.

Red Deer Reptiles
12-27-2008, 05:32 AM
can i ask were you got the fish? bye the way myself included.when it comes to people in the saltwater. i find there there pretty good to deal with.

my2rotties
12-29-2008, 06:08 PM
Well I was about to lose all hope for this fish, but she is nibbling at the nori I have been putting out for her. She is not eating very much of it, but she is eating something!!! I had the option of bringing her back to the LFS to get another one, but I didn't want to do that to her. I felt that bringing her back would stress her out way too much. I know she cost some money, but she is our pet and I wanted to chance it. It seems that she likes the new rabbitfish and was watching her eat.

Hopefully just picking at the nori will turn into feeding shortly. She is dreadfully skinny so I know we are not out of danger just yet. Thanks for all the advise everyone.

fishoholic
12-29-2008, 06:26 PM
I'm glad she's eating something, I know how much it sucks to loose a fish because it just wont eat. I lost my flame angel that way :sad: If she's eating the nori she should end up eating the other food too, eventually. My black velvet angel I got on boxing day had me a bit worried, but as of last night he finally ate some mysis. Hopefully your naso will too.

my2rotties
12-31-2008, 12:33 AM
I'm so sorry you had to watch a fish die like that. I hope I never have it happen to me. As long as they are alive, we can keep trying. My Naso would almost have me tears since she would look around for food even though it was bouncing right off of her...

Congrats on the new fish you lucky devil... I feel the same way as you... just one more fish:biggrin:

One of our members, Razz gave my an awesome rabbitfish which has befriended the Naso. They swim together and when the rabbitfish went to the nori the naso would watch. Yesterday she picked the nori but today she is munching. Now I make sure the nori is always there. I'll let the skimmer pick up most of it since it get pulled off. I know things still can take a turn for the worse, but I am glad that I did not bring her back to the LFS.

THANKS RAZZ!!!!:mrgreen:

Still keeping my fingers crossed.

I'm glad she's eating something, I know how much it sucks to loose a fish because it just wont eat. I lost my flame angel that way :sad: If she's eating the nori she should end up eating the other food too, eventually. My black velvet angel I got on boxing day had me a bit worried, but as of last night he finally ate some mysis. Hopefully your naso will too.

Alberta-newb
12-31-2008, 05:46 AM
Happy to hear she's eating nori..that's an excellent sign!:biggrin: If you happen to have some Selcon, you might want to try soaking the nori in it before feeding just as an extra boost of vitamins. I do this time to time to help supplement my fish's diet.

How do you feed your nori? I tried the algae clip that came with one of my packs but found that too much would tear away and end up going into the overflow so I switched to a feeding stick ( a piece of 1/2" PVC). Just wrap a sheet around and and hold it on with several elastic bands. Now there is very little waste and my hands don't get wet:mrgreen: I drop in the stick before leaving for work (well before the fish wake up), so my fish have something to nibble on until I get home for their regular feedings.

Francis

my2rotties
12-31-2008, 08:02 PM
I use the clip which I hate, since it does always get wasted. I do soak in selcon and garlic but usually it floats away...

I have lots of PVC pipe and that is the best idea ever!!! How do you attach it to the tank or do you let it drop down? My tank is 30" deep and it is hard to get to the bottom on a good day.

I will do this right away since more nori goes into my overflows then anything. Thanks for ther tip it is awesome!!! My Naso is looking so much better today! Her stomach isn't imploded anymore and is almost smooth with the rest of her now. She is swimming around catching little tidbits now, but still won't eat when I am feeding. However, she is much better off. I was at the LFS the other day for a boxing week sale and mentioned my Naso that hubby bought elsewhere. He said Naso are the worst to get eating and he lost 27 of them the last shipment. He said she was probably going to die soon. I brought my newest and final additions home and it seems she thinks the more the merrier. The rabbitfish came a couple of days before, and then the new fish really spurred her appitite. My last fish will be a foxface from another wonderful member and we are doen for fish now. Next will be soft corals and such...

I am glad we have made it through the hardest oart of the build and can enjoy the fun part now. These forums have been the best tool for knowledge and friendship for me, and I don't know what I would do without them!!!

Happy to hear she's eating nori..that's an excellent sign!:biggrin: If you happen to have some Selcon, you might want to try soaking the nori in it before feeding just as an extra boost of vitamins. I do this time to time to help supplement my fish's diet.

How do you feed your nori? I tried the algae clip that came with one of my packs but found that too much would tear away and end up going into the overflow so I switched to a feeding stick ( a piece of 1/2" PVC). Just wrap a sheet around and and hold it on with several elastic bands. Now there is very little waste and my hands don't get wet:mrgreen: I drop in the stick before leaving for work (well before the fish wake up), so my fish have something to nibble on until I get home for their regular feedings.

Francis

Alberta-newb
01-01-2009, 03:58 PM
...I have lots of PVC pipe and that is the best idea ever!!! How do you attach it to the tank or do you let it drop down? My tank is 30" deep and it is hard to get to the bottom on a good day.

Sounds like a 33" piece is in order! It's not pretty to look at but I pull it out when company comes:mrgreen:

These forums have been the best tool for knowledge and friendship for me, and I don't know what I would do without them!!!

Absolutely! As a newb myself, this forum has helped me learn more than any book or LFS!

reefermadness
01-01-2009, 06:52 PM
I hope things turn around for you.

One question though. How does calling the LFS and complaining about a fish you bought that is not eating help?? I mean it is nice to get a fish that is eating before it leaves the store (that is why we like to see them eat before purchase) but it's not the stores fault if a fish refuses to eat once placed in your tank.

Of course this is just my opinion and maybe others see it differently.

naesco
01-01-2009, 07:02 PM
I hope things turn around for you.

One question though. How does calling the LFS and complaining about a fish you bought that is not eating help?? I mean it is nice to get a fish that is eating before it leaves the store (that is why we like to see them eat before purchase) but it's not the stores fault if a fish refuses to eat once placed in your tank.

Of course this is just my opinion and maybe others see it differently.

Most reefers, for some unknown reason are too timid to ask the LFS clerk to feed the fish they are interested in. They think they will **** the clerk off.

Sometimes the clerk will tell the reefer that the fish had just been feed.

Experienced reefers would never buy ANY fish without actually seeing it eating in the LFS.

Experienced reefers would never buy large angels and naso tangs, ribbon eels, Copperbands, dragon, tamarind, pencil and leopard wrasse and other difficult to feed species because the success rate is so low that they are better left in the ocean.

my2rotties
01-01-2009, 07:09 PM
Because my husband has given him a lot of business in the past. My husband called for advise and the guy said to bring the fish back for an exchange... I guess it depends whom you do business with. We didn't want to bring her back since that would probably stress her out even more and kill her. She is our pet and "yes" we paid good money for her, but still sometimes it is not about the money...

Hubby forgot to ask to see her eating, and now he knows better. It was a stressful lesson to learn, but it didn't end in failure this time.

The Naso is fine now and is eating nori with a vengence. Many fish are isolated with a few other fish in stores. Perhaps she was overwhelmed with my community tank and the boisterous eating. She kept to herself until I brought he new rabbitfish home. The two seem to hang out together and the Naso staring following the rabbitfish in eating patterns. She is still not eating pellets or food I put in, she will chase it but it seems she has to get the hang of catching food as it is floating around. Now she chases nori when it comes off of the clip, so it is just a matter of time now.

I hope things turn around for you.

One question though. How does calling the LFS and complaining about a fish you bought that is not eating help?? I mean it is nice to get a fish that is eating before it leaves the store (that is why we like to see them eat before purchase) but it's not the stores fault if a fish refuses to eat once placed in your tank.

Of course this is just my opinion and maybe others see it differently.

Ken
01-02-2009, 04:16 AM
Hi, glad to hear that your new naso tang is starting to feed, sometimes other fishes in the tank will help teach new fish to eat and then they follow suit. I found in the past of owning many Naso tang \naso lituratus, they perfer brown algae, a few years ago I had an aquarium that had quite a bit of brown algae growing on the rocks and sides of the tank, namely lobophora brown algae, they were fairly leafy and I could reduce the population by picking them off the rocks to keep them under control. As soon as I added a Naso tang, the algae population was reduced. Try a brown seaweed product. My Naso ate both the brown and green and I never tried the red alage but perfer to grazed off the rocks instead of feeding off the seaweed clip with the rest of the tangs. It always tense seeing your new fish not eating or socialling with the rest of the fish at first but hope for the best, fish are not disposable item but good on you for trying many food and experminting, you will always be a better aquarist with that attitude. Regards Ken

marie
01-02-2009, 04:32 AM
...

Experienced reefers would never buy ANY fish without actually seeing it eating in the LFS.

Experienced reefers would never buy large angels and naso tangs, ribbon eels, Copperbands, dragon, tamarind, pencil and leopard wrasse and other difficult to feed species because the success rate is so low that they are better left in the ocean.

I guess I've got a few more years before I'm experienced then :wink:

reefermadness
01-02-2009, 04:43 AM
Because my husband has given him a lot of business in the past. My husband called for advise and the guy said to bring the fish back for an exchange... I guess it depends whom you do business with. We didn't want to bring her back since that would probably stress her out even more and kill her. She is our pet and "yes" we paid good money for her, but still sometimes it is not about the money...

Hubby forgot to ask to see her eating, and now he knows better. It was a stressful lesson to learn, but it didn't end in failure this time.


Good on you. For sure bringing the fish back to the store would have meant almost a positive death for the Naso. My remark was not meant to put down the fact that your husband forgot to ask to see it eat (although the best practice) because lets face it the fish has a better chance of eating in a good hobbyists tank vs. a standard LFS. My point was only that if you buy a fish and it's not eating when you get it home, that is not the LFS fault per say (by the way watching them eat at the store does not mean they will eat when you get them home.) Some fish will just not eat no matter how hard we try...just one of the reason why I don't like to the idea of importing fish for the aquarium trade that have poor success rates. Naso's are not impossible and I wish you luck.

Hi, glad to hear that your new naso tang is starting to feed, sometimes other fishes in the tank will help teach new fish to eat and then they follow suit. I found in the past of owning many Naso tang \naso lituratus, they perfer brown algae, a few years ago I had an aquarium that had quite a bit of brown algae growing on the rocks and sides of the tank, namely lobophora brown algae, they were fairly leafy and I could reduce the population by picking them off the rocks to keep them under control. As soon as I added a Naso tang, the algae population was reduced. Try a brown seaweed product. My Naso ate both the brown and green and I never tried the red alage but perfer to grazed off the rocks instead of feeding off the seaweed clip with the rest of the tangs. It always tense seeing your new fish not eating or socialling with the rest of the fish at first but hope for the best, fish are not disposable item but good on you for trying many food and experminting, you will always be a better aquarist with that attitude. Regards Ken

I also had a brown waffer algae (lobophora) and I had read that a Naso would be one of the only things that would eat this algae as they eat mostly brown algae in the wild. Well I got a small specimen that eat and eat and eat the lobophora. It eat so much that it looked pregnant and I thought it was going to explode. It was a healthy fish for the month that it took to demolish this algae from my tank. At that point I had not been paying close enough attention because even though the fish was not skinny by any means it passed away a week or two after the algae was gone. I wish I would have been more keen on these things and I'm sure had I been a more advanced hobbyist at the time things could have been different.

Anyway I'll stop rambling but you might want to try some sort of brown algae like Ken suggested.

my2rotties
01-02-2009, 05:36 AM
Thanks for the kind words, but I don't think I could live with myself if I brought her back... Its not her fault she is in her situation. I was mad at hubby for bringing her home, but he thought since she was midsized, she was not mature.

I have all sorts of algae for her to snack on, but right now she is pigging out on the nori. I'll start tossing different things with it shortly. I'm just glad to see her eating lots now, and her belly is already nice and fat. Before it honestly looked like it was imploded.

I know I have a lot to learn about the hobby, and this is the placed to be to learn most of it. Mind you I have made a few mistakes that I needed to make on my own in order to be in a better place with this hobby.

Hi, glad to hear that your new naso tang is starting to feed, sometimes other fishes in the tank will help teach new fish to eat and then they follow suit. I found in the past of owning many Naso tang \naso lituratus, they perfer brown algae, a few years ago I had an aquarium that had quite a bit of brown algae growing on the rocks and sides of the tank, namely lobophora brown algae, they were fairly leafy and I could reduce the population by picking them off the rocks to keep them under control. As soon as I added a Naso tang, the algae population was reduced. Try a brown seaweed product. My Naso ate both the brown and green and I never tried the red alage but perfer to grazed off the rocks instead of feeding off the seaweed clip with the rest of the tangs. It always tense seeing your new fish not eating or socialling with the rest of the fish at first but hope for the best, fish are not disposable item but good on you for trying many food and experminting, you will always be a better aquarist with that attitude. Regards Ken

marie
01-02-2009, 05:41 AM
Thanks for the kind words, but I don't think I could live with myself if I brought her back... Its not her fault she is in her situation. I was mad at hubby for bringing her home, but he thought since she was midsized, she was not mature.

I have all sorts of algae for her to snack on, but right now she is pigging out on the nori. I'll start tossing different things with it shortly. I'm just glad to see her eating lots now, and her belly is already nice and fat. Before it honestly looked like it was imploded.

I know I have a lot to learn about the hobby, and this is the placed to be to learn most of it. Mind you I have made a few mistakes that I needed to make on my own in order to be in a better place with this hobby.

If yours is eating nori then he'll do fine. As I said before my naso lived for a year and a half eating only Nori before he decided to try new things and in the 2 1/2 years that I had him (I sold him to someone with a bigger tank) he easily tripled his size.

rkelman
01-02-2009, 10:18 PM
Congrats on getting your naso to eat. I currently have one in QT. I find feeding then leaving the room helps. They don't like being watched it seems.

my2rotties
01-02-2009, 10:34 PM
She's come a long way in the past two weeks. She comes and grabs the nori from my hand while I try to put it into the clip for everyone...

Congrats on getting your naso to eat. I currently have one in QT. I find feeding then leaving the room helps. They don't like being watched it seems.

nondan
08-17-2013, 07:29 AM
Hey guys, this thread is very old but it did help me.

I have a Naso that we have had for over 18 months and he got ill due to a PH problem as we discovered, he initially stopped eating, after we discovered what the problem was, and rectified it, he still remained unwell even though all the other fish were doing well.. 2 Blue tangs, a flame angel and 2 clowns.. He was on the brink of death, so we quickly set up our old quarantine tank to isolate him as the others were beginning to pick on him.

He began to show improvement although still not eating, he was swimming around again. After about 3 days in the quarantine, now 7 days without eating, we put him back in the main tank in a hope the others eating would inspire him!

It took another 3 days in the main tank before he did realise it was in his best interest to copy the other guys and he once again ate!!

He has been doing really well since and is back to his normal self.. :biggrin:

IanWR
08-17-2013, 01:33 PM
G'day and welcome to Canada, eh? :)

The Guy
08-17-2013, 04:06 PM
She's come a long way in the past two weeks. She comes and grabs the nori from my hand while I try to put it into the clip for everyone...
My Naso took a couple of weeks to get comfortable in my tank, hardly ate much at all. I think they are a shy natured fish, but now comes out and is at the nori clip before my hand is even out of the tank along with all my other tangs. Is now eating everything I put in, pellets, frozen Mysis etc. I think yours will be just fine.