# Clown Feeding questions?



## Ronin33 (Jan 26, 2009)

Just finished cycling a 125 lb tank w 150 lbs LR (Yeah..). Added a Maroon Clownfish yesterday (First fish in the tank). At first he was traveling around the walls. Tried feeding her frozen brine shrimp wout success. This morning when I turned the lights on, she was in a hiding spot amongst the rocks. Tried frozen brine shrimp but she didn't respond (between m filter and powerheads the food was distributed nicely, but didn't float past her). I also have Mega and Mega angel and frozen krill. Someone said put it in garlic? Store brand? Any recs?


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## onefish2fish (Jul 22, 2008)

welcome to the forum.

when buying a new fish you should QT it in a seperate tank to observe health and eating habbits. first off what is a 125lb tank? a 125 gallon? 
what are your plans for this tank because you do realise you just added the most aggressive clown first which is going to make future stocking plans harder. i strongly recommend moving at a slower pace. what are you exact water params? ammonia, nitrite,nitrate,ph,temp,SG (what are you testing with) cal, mag,alk ,what type of water, salt, flow, filter, sump, protein skimmer, and anything else you can include. 
i personally wouldnt stress over feeding it right away. i feed my clowns (if they are lucky) every other day but usually every 3rd day. i suggest if your using frozen foods to pre-wash them in RO water because the water they come in is high in phosphates a nutrient that causes bad algae. you can pre-rinse it in a fine mesh net or a paper coffee filter. once rinsed garlic will help stimulate appetite and i suggest also soaking the food in a nutrient enhancer like selcon. a mixed diet is important for health.

before taking any steps foward i strongly feel you need to do more research and ask more questions.


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## Ronin33 (Jan 26, 2009)

Sorry. Meant 125 gallons. Have between 125-150 lbs of cured LR. Between my filter (Wet/Dry) and 2 powerheads I'm turning my water over about 12-15X/hour. Have a Protein skimmer for upto 150 gallons and am using Chempure and Chempure Elite as a chemical filter. my Salinity is 1.023, pH 8.3, 0ammonia/nitrite or nitrate, Temp 77 degrees F. Not sure what else I'll add. Like Yellow and Achilles Tangs. Like Butterfly fish, but here they are hard to keep. Like Clown triggers, but here they are a bit aggressive for Clowns. Also like Lionfish, Angelfish, Eels but am still researching compatability. The Clown is what got me into Saltwater Tanks. :evil:


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## Kellsindell (Sep 15, 2008)

When you get a fish yes you need to quarantine it. Yes you only have one fish, but in the future not quarantining will be detrimental.

The reason you quarantine your new fish is because like Onefish said, you check to make sure health and whatnot, but the other reason to quarantine is because it gives you the chance to wean the fish onto your food and also for them to get aclimated to your presence. When you purchase your fish, look to see what the LFS is feeding the fish and have them feed before you take it home to make sure that it's healthy. You will also want to blacken the outside of the tank the side pannels and the back. Leave the front alone. You do this to both observe the fish for parasites and so that it'll cause less stress. You will also want to do light feedings and quarantine for at least 3wks(i know it sounds like a long time) 14day min.

When you get their food and say you want it to eat mysis shrimp. You mix the 2 foods together 20/80 at first then a few days later do 50/50 then go 80/20 and then 100% your food. It'll make the transition less painful for both your an the fish.

Since this guy is already in the tank, you should try to squirt the food, or release, the food close the where the clown is hiding. It's odd that a Maroon would hide, but it didn't have the acclimation to you phase so it makes sense.


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## Pasfur (Mar 29, 2008)

I think your Clown will begin to eat just fine. Fish normally are a bit stressed for the first couple of days and sometimes don't feed. This is even more common if they are the only fish in the aquarium. 

I want to reinforce to you the importance of using a quarantine tank. This is simply not optional if you want to be successful in the marine hobby. 

I do see one huge mistake you are making that can be very easily fixed and will not cost you a penny. You need to remove your bioballs from the wet-dry filter. They are HURTING your water quality by introducing Nitrate and Phosphate into the aquarium. Just take them out. Your live rock will do all the biological filtration that you need, and is much more efficient with much less Nitrate accumulation.


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