Teresa Posted August 6, 2015 Share Posted August 6, 2015 Hi Everyone, I purchased three new Banggai Cardinal fish three days ago and they are refusing to eat. They will put the food in their mouth and then immediately spit it back out. I have tried mini pellets (that my clown fish love), thawed mysis shrimp (chopped and whole), the tab you stick on the side of the tank (that my clowns also love), larger pellets, and flake food. It's not a matter of interest, because they will try each item. However, they always spit it out. Ideas? Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BBMarlin Posted August 6, 2015 Share Posted August 6, 2015 Try cyclop-eeze. I think the dome has some left. -brett Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mFrame Posted August 6, 2015 Share Posted August 6, 2015 You can also try brine shrimp. I've yet to see a fish avoid eating live prey. There's not much nutritional value unless you gut load them with selcon, but if you mix some mysis with the brine you might trick them into eating the frozen once their eating behavior is triggered. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Teresa Posted August 6, 2015 Author Share Posted August 6, 2015 I think I have some brine eggs left over that I can hatch. I wonder if they'll go for the babies. I didn't think this type of fish was a picky eater. Is this normal for the cardinal fish? Sent from my SM-G900P using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FarmerTy Posted August 6, 2015 Share Posted August 6, 2015 My cardinal was super picky and only ate mysis. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Makena95GT Posted August 6, 2015 Share Posted August 6, 2015 Ive only had one cardinal out of I think 5 actually eat pellets. Mine refuse to eat anything but frozen food. Brine and mysis they like. They seem to enjoy the squid as well. I ended up getting the "Saltwater Multipack" of frozen cubes that had four different types of food so I could see what they liked and what they disliked without wasting money on a whole pack of one food Sent from my LGLS660 using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Teresa Posted September 2, 2015 Author Share Posted September 2, 2015 I didn't realize they were so picky. Two of the three died . The remaining one is the only one I could get to eat frozen mysis. Do I need to worry about him being on his own? I liked the number three but I'm not interested in jumping through hurdles to get them to eat. I can leave well enough alone for now as well. Thoughts on whether I should have more than one of these Cardinals in my 55 gal? Sent from my SM-G900P using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mFrame Posted September 2, 2015 Share Posted September 2, 2015 He'll be fine on his own but I always preferred them in groups. Odd, I never had a problem getting mine to eat. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joshdmartin Posted September 2, 2015 Share Posted September 2, 2015 Make sure there tank raised! Wild caught banggais are hard to transition to tank life! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Teresa Posted September 3, 2015 Author Share Posted September 3, 2015 I got them at petco, so probably wild caught. Lesson learned. Will I have an issue adding two more later on down the road? I.e. territory aggression from current cardinal? Sent from my SM-G900P using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Makena95GT Posted September 3, 2015 Share Posted September 3, 2015 That'll depend on what gender your current one is and what gender your future ones will be, typically. Seems common for males to duke it out. It can be a bit of a pain to sex them though. Much easier to do when they're fat and recently fed Fish Gallery normally has tank raised Banggai. The sole one I have left put of I think 4 came from PetCo. Little survivor. Sent from my LGLS740 using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Teresa Posted September 4, 2015 Author Share Posted September 4, 2015 Thanks! I'm glad I'm not the only one. I've been feeling so guilty. Sent from my SM-G900P using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mFrame Posted September 4, 2015 Share Posted September 4, 2015 I got them at petco, so probably wild caught. Lesson learned. Will I have an issue adding two more later on down the road? I.e. territory aggression from current cardinal? Sent from my SM-G900P using Tapatalk Size also seems to matter, go small with any you add. Take a pic of the one you have and take it to one of the better LFS. They can usually sex what you have so you know what to buy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mFrame Posted September 4, 2015 Share Posted September 4, 2015 I got them at petco, so probably wild caught. Lesson learned. Will I have an issue adding two more later on down the road? I.e. territory aggression from current cardinal? Sent from my SM-G900P using Tapatalk Size also seems to matter, go small with any you add. Take a pic of the one you have and take it to one of the better LFS. They can usually sex what you have so you know what to buy. Of course, the other alternative is to take it with you and just trade it out as credit for a group of the ones you want. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FarmerTy Posted September 4, 2015 Share Posted September 4, 2015 Sexing cardinals is really hard. The best way to identify them is to feed the heck out of them and the male will have two protrusions near is anus and the female will only have one. Don't believe the longer dorsal fin as an indicator of sex... It's not conclusive. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Teresa Posted September 4, 2015 Author Share Posted September 4, 2015 I like the idea of trading it in. You know the best part? I bought the three fish because they were on sale for $15 a piece. In the end, I ended up paying $45 for one . Sent from my SM-G900P using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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