Anthias question

[jmills104]

I recently got a square anthias and my 29g is him a maroon clown and a damsel

I had been feeding the clown and damsel silversides and frozen prawn but in the 2 days ive had the anthias, he wont eat either...

what foods should i be feeding the anthias to get him to eat?

[sedor]

Give him time...he's in a brand new world and sometimes it takes time for them to start eating with the rest of the group. Other times we get lucky and they chow down like pigs from the get go. You could always find out what the LFS was feeding and try the same food to wean him onto your food more gracefully.

[Ohiomom]

Depending on what type of damsel you have him housed his with..not to mention the clown, those are both pretty aggressive fish, they may be bullying the new "peaceful" fish. The tank really isn't all that big for it to find a safe spot..keep an eye on it.

[SBGRAD24]

Your tank is less than half the recommended size for that fish, so I figure that is a big part of why he is stressed. With that said, I've had good luck with cyclopeeze in the past.

[Nanook]

You need a bigger tank.

[jmills104]

I undetstand the tank is somewhat small but that doesnt help me now...I just want to ensure he eats bc i had a coral beauty who did not eat and died...

what type of food should I feed the Anthias?

[Nanook]

Mysis shrimp and find someone with a bigger tank if you want it to live.

[ChadTheSpike]

Square anthias are deeper water fish. Try shutting your lights off or pulling all bulbs but a single actinic for a couple of days and offering a variety of things such as mysis, cyclopeeze, bloodworms or similar small whole foods stay in the water column for a bit. I find it unlikely that anthias would accept silversides or prawns unless it were very finely chopped. I have had good luck with anthias (although I never tried square because they are deepwater fish and dont belong in a brightly lit reef and they get larger than most other anthias, ~6" if I remember right), in all the times that I have kept them, they have never accepted food that is not in the water column.
In the short-term though, you ought to be looking for a larger tank if you are going to keep the new aquisition.

[gtptom]

I agree with the other posts that your tank is to small and likely causing the anthias to stress. It is always a good idea to ask to watch a fish eat prior to purchase for this reason. Anthias can be weaned to eat most anything floating in the water column, try mysis or brine.

[SBGRAD24]

I undetstand the tank is somewhat small but that doesnt help me now...

The obvious solution is to return the fish to the LFS and find one that's more appropriate for your setup.

[wrott]

I would try finely minced(with a razor blade) raw scallops and shrimp. Shave a few slices off while still frozen, then chop as fine as possible w/ the razor blade. Put in a small cup, add a few spoonfuls of tank water, crush and swirl until most chunks are broken up. Spoon in only few pieces at a time until the Anthias knows it is for him--continue spooning for 3-5 minutes.
You have to do this 4-5x/day. When it starts eating, add frozen mysis(Hikari) and New Life Specrtum Grow pellets(tiny) to ween it off of such a laborious menu. This has worked for me w/ Anthias.
Good luck--a pic would be nice (and dimming the light a bit at first is a good idea).

[tkeracer619]

The obvious solution is to return the fish to the LFS and find one that's more appropriate for your setup.

[Ohiomom]

What type of damsel do you have in there?

[Patroklos]

Small mouth, small food.

[runyonh]

Try live brine shrimp, and if you can not get that frozen brine or mysis.