[Hannibal]

Just put 4 little 1" babies in the tank yesterday. They seem to be moving all around the tank, the tope of the tank and the bottom of the tank. I havent really seen them eat yet. I have some blood worms and brine shrimp, I tried feeding them brine yesterday and one of them bite some and then spit it out and kept doing it over and over. :veryangry:

So should I try and feed them like only 3 or 4 times a week or what? They also havent showed any signs of ggressiveness towards the each other or the guppy they have in there with them.

 

[Neoplasia_old]

Daily. Juvis eat a fair amount I've observed. I had fed them 2-3 times a day, but soon enough you'll notice their feeding habbits and you can adjust the frequency/amount accordingly. They might not feel comfortable eating in front of you yet, this isn't unusual so don't get discouraged. Just give them a little food and 'hide' somewhere to watch.

As they get older you can feed less frequently, mature fish can be fed a couple times a week, but that's largely a personal preference. They go lengthy spells in the wild without food so a few days won't hurt them one bit. But don't do this with juvis, they grow fast and will need to be fed daily.

 

[Judazzz]

It usually takes some time before newly introduced fish start eating, wheter it's a piranha, a goldfish or whatever fish...

When I got mine (at about the same size), it took some 5 days before they were properly eating. I found out they really liked frozen mosquito larvae and your average fish flakes. After they reached about 2", they gradually demanded more meaty stuff, like red fish fillet, small feeders (neon tetras), small pieces of shrimp etc.

 

[Hannibal]

thanks for the help, I have had reds before but when I got them they were already about 2+"

 

[Judazzz]

I started with 1-inchers, but they've all grown to 4-5".
Sometimes I miss those small buggers; the look really cute

 

[Neoplasia_old]

It is fun watching them grow isn't it? I'm getting some larger ones hopefully next week, kinda wish I was getting juvis, but that's ok. Maybe I'll get some fry and keep a few.

 

[Judazzz]

To me, raising them from scratch (well, almost...) is the real stuff: it really makes them your boys/kids/hooligans/... Buying beautiful, large fish is cool as well, but it's just not the same.

A couple of weeks ago, I saw some 0,5-1cm. redbellies at my lfs. I'd never seen reds that small before, and I must admit my fingers really started itching when I saw them swimming around in their tiny (10g?) tank that still looked huge

I resisted the temptation, but it was a close call...

 

[Neoplasia_old]

Yeah I've had to stop myself from whipping out the plastic whenever I see babies in the store. I saw some about that size a few months back, they were too small for me I thought, especially in a 72 gallon tank! Lol.

 

[Judazzz]

Hehe, you would have needed at least 200 or 300 of those mini-p's to see anything moving in a 72g :laughlong:

 

[Neoplasia_old]

No kidding. Man that'd be awesome, but I'd probably have to sell half my stuff for it though.

 

[Judazzz]

True, but that's the very point were the boys get seperated from the men (well, the hobbyists from the fishaholics ).
But, after a couple of months you'd only have about 10 fat-ass p's left (the rest being snacked), and an empty house with no furniture or anything... :laugh:

 

[Neoplasia_old]

True, I do have limited floor space as it is....hmmm..... And I wouldn't have to feed them for a while, they'd feed themselves!

 

[Judazzz]

So, what are you waiting for

Sell your stuff and get your ass to that lfs!
Run Forrest, run :laughlong:

 

[Neoplasia_old]

They're all gone.

Probably just as well, my gf would likely leave me. :

:

 

[Judazzz]

They're all gone.

Probably just as well, my gf would likely leave me. :

:

True, but that's the very point were the boys get seperated from the men (well, the hobbyists from the fishaholics )

I have nothing to add...

 

[Neoplasia_old]

Burn!

That's ok, I'd rather "get some" than have an empty aparment with only a fish tank and maybe my lava lamp...hmm, now that I think about it, if things don't work out with us that doesn't sound half bad....

 

[Judazzz]

lol :laughlong:
It's wise/good to have something as a backup in case shiz hits the fan with your g/f

But I agree, "getting some" is better than getting some more fish...

 

[Hannibal]

just threw some brine shrimp in and the little guys still arent eating it. Guess it will take some more time

 

[Guest]

when my rbp's were at around one inch i fed them guppies but since they where in with my larger rbp's there where already feeder goldfish in there and the lil one inchers would eat the small goldfish also... so i would say i had fed my two one inchers a half of a small goldfish a day.. i say half becuse they fight over it and they both end up getting only like half a goldfish each... it worked great...

 

[Neoplasia_old]

Forget the brine shrimp, try flakes and maybe some small feeders.