Leopard wrasse getting very thin

[Coralgurl]

I have the cutest leopard wrasse who is so sweet, but she's getting very thin. The person I got her from fed pellets and I feed frozen, she goes after the food and seems to eat, but I've noticed she spits food back out. I feed plankton and mysis. She's not aggressive when it comes to feeding and hangs out on the sidelines when I feed.

What are some other food options I can try? I've thought about moving her to the other tank but don't want to stress her either as she's so thin, but I think the fish in the other tank would be better mates. Thoughts?

[arash53]

How many times you feeding?, it must be at least 3 times a day, otherwise they loose weight and die.

[MarkoD]

i've had mine for over 8 months in my 180 and i dont feed it anything, lives just fine off what it finds in the tank

[Coralgurl]

Oh dear, I only feed one time per day, I will increase immediately. Oh I feel so bad :sad:

[SeaHorse_Fanatic]

Only the very rare Leopard wrasse does well in a tank with aggressive tank mates. You will have to squirt food in its direction and hope it gets enough to eat. Far better off to catch it out and into a calm tank.

My pair of red leopards live in my clownfish tank with a few clowns, fairy/flasher wrasses, Bangaii, and gobies.

I just got a Black leopard from Island Pets that was net caught in Vanuatu and had survived in the shop for 6 months. It lives in the main tank and is fast enough/aggressive feeder enough to compete with the Naso and other fish.

[Coralgurl]

I do squirt food in her direction, and it's obvious there's not enough in the tank to sustain her as she's so skinny. I will try to catch her, I've only got 2 chromis and an angel in the other tank.

[reefme]

Doesn't matter how many times you feed the fish is a tank mates that is matter. I only feed once a day.

[toytech]

try feeding blood worms , or brine shrimp . Anything meaty and different . I would strongly recomend treating for inestinal worms they are quite prone to them i use pirazipro its reef safe .My leopard ate everything and would compeat with 2 other wrasses and a bunch of other agressive fish it just takes time and food they like . And i only fed once every 2 days once he was eating well but for now try and feed more.

[Skimmerking]

How many times you feeding?, it must be at least 3 times a day, otherwise they loose weight and die.
Sorry but I don't agree with you statement. Leopards are also finicy. Eaters and lots of times when u get leopard wrasses they are shy and scared lots of times they won't eat you have to entice them to eat. With live brine shrimp.. I use blood worms soaked in Welcome and never had a problem. Butif u have a mature tank like Mario has stated then there is no need to feed imho

[Coralgurl]

I just went through this article....should have read it sooner....
http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2002-07/hcs3/index.php

I don't know if she has worms as she was fatter when I got her. I agree with the tank mates and she's in the wrong tank. I'm going to see if I can find some live food for her tomorrow, and focus on direct feeding her.

[ScubaSteve]

I might be missing something here but there is an obvious factor here: the food. You said the previous owner fed pellets but you are feeding frozen. If it ate pellets but is spitting out frozen, feed pellets. It may actively pursue the food more.

My Potters Leopard is fairly ambivalent to most frozen and live foods and will only nibble when there, if at all. But damn it loves pellets. It will out compete my anthias for pellets.

If your other fish are mostly pelagic feeders, you could try making a seafood/pellet mush and smearing it on a small rock, then freezing it. Put it in the tank the next day and the wrasse can pick off pieces as it thaws at its leisure without needing to compete with tank mates. This works well if you don't have many other fish that feed off the live rock.

[reefwars]

i have a bunch of nls pellets if you want to try to see if it likes it:P cyclopeeze is another good idea too:)

[Aquattro]

I might be missing something here but there is an obvious factor here: the food. You said the previous owner fed pellets but you are feeding frozen. If it ate pellets but is spitting out frozen, feed pellets. It may actively pursue the food more.


That's the most sensible thing. My Leopard was a pig with pellets and eventually mysis, and aggressively competed with the rest of the tank for food.

[ScubaSteve]

i have a bunch of nls pellets if you want to try to see if it likes it:P cyclopeeze is another good idea too:)

I've never had my leopard so much as look at a cyclopeeze, barely even touch baby brine.

Another food I had success with was fish eggs (capelin roe). They, for the most part, aren't pelagic feeders so. They mostly go after stuff on rocks and larger floating particles about 1mm in diameter.

[Coralgurl]

I have pellets which I have dropped in, not on a regular basis tho. If she's out before I leave I will throw some in this morning. I will try all the suggestions to see what works.

I did mixed some cyclopeeze in with the food last night, she was still spitting back out.

The 180 has been going since March this year, not a mature tank, but the 55 has been up for over a year. I don't think I have much time to turn this around so will try a bit of everything.

[daniella3d]

I feed mine with live white worms once a day and she's growing bigger and fatter. She's just a little bably but growing fast on that diet. She was so tiny when I got her, less than one inch and now she's doubled in size at least.

I have mine for 2 months, feeding her once a day during the week and twice a day during weekend. She is doing very well on white worms diet. The live white worms and fish roe are the only things she eats. I tried cyclopeeze, PE mysis and she won't eat that.

I have the cutest leopard wrasse who is so sweet, but she's getting very thin. The person I got her from fed pellets and I feed frozen, she goes after the food and seems to eat, but I've noticed she spits food back out. I feed plankton and mysis. She's not aggressive when it comes to feeding and hangs out on the sidelines when I feed.

What are some other food options I can try? I've thought about moving her to the other tank but don't want to stress her either as she's so thin, but I think the fish in the other tank would be better mates. Thoughts?

[daniella3d]

soaked in "welcome"? what exactly is welcome?

I use blood worms soaked in Welcome and never had a problem.

[toytech]

auto correct speak for selcon. They can put a man on the moon but cant invent a phone that dosent screw with you.

[Coralgurl]

I feed mine with live white worms once a day and she's growing bigger and fatter. She's just a little bably but growing fast on that diet. She was so tiny when I got her, less than one inch and now she's doubled in size at least.

I have mine for 2 months, feeding her once a day during the week and twice a day during weekend. She is doing very well on white worms diet. The live white worms and fish roe are the only things she eats. I tried cyclopeeze, PE mysis and she won't eat that.

I'm going to see what I can find now. She wasn't out when I left this morning, but I usually don't see her get up until later in the day.

I think the soaked in "Welcome" is Selcon - gotta love spell check.

[Casey8]

I'm going to see what I can find now. She wasn't out when I left this morning, but I usually don't see her get up until later in the day.

I think the soaked in "Welcome" is Selcon - gotta love spell check.

Don't waste your money with Selcon. This is the quality of the Selcon after this bottle didn't get moved around for 1 month and the actual "fat" content is 1/10 of the bottle. I felt really ripped off with the quality that I used to believe its "very nutritional" for your fish.
What a joke !
http://i1259.photobucket.com/albums/ii557/DanoLuCasey/DSC00260.jpg

[Coralgurl]

Well I'm not sure where to get live white worms from, oceans and golds don't carry them. She ate tonight, both frozen and pellets and was in with the other fish eating, and not spitting it out. I dropped extra pellets on the sand as she picking them out.

I don't think the net trick will work to catch her and as soon as I dropped the baster in she swam away. If I can get her out I was thinking even the sump for a while so no competing with anyone.

Where can I get roe from?