New ORA Mandarin

Maybe he is just eating up his preferred food source first. I don't really have any experience with mandarins at all, just what I have read.

 

Tried some brine and cyclo. I think he ate a brine shrimp but none of my other fish want anything to do with the brine.

 

It took my ORA Spotted a few days before he would eat in my DT. Ate at the store just like yours. Give it some time. Mine eats the NLS micro pellets and bloodworms.

 

I have tried feeding a few different foods. Not bloodworms yet, and still assuming his lack of eating is due to acclimation. However he did eat a frozen brine shrimp as well as some capalin but spit both back out. Has not nibbled on any mysis or cyclopeeze yet.

 

Finally got him to eat something and keep it in his mouth. Also noticed that when I feed with the syringe he is nibbling on what im squirting out so he must be catching some small particles or something.

The tang is giving him a hard time and seems to think I am always feeding her instead. She likes to push the mandarin out of the way and suckle on the syringe.

 

Improvement! Congrats and I want one!

 

take a mandarin sized jar and place it in his favorite 'hang out zone' on its side, then sqquirt a little food in there. The tang will be too big to get in it leaving him safe to munch when he wants to

 

I think the mandarin diner idea would work now that hes actually showing interest in the food, only problem is nass snails and hermits they will destroy any food I put in there.

 

Mandarin

I am at about the same place you are with my ORA Mandarin, kinda eats, kinda doesn't. Some additional info is that they will not compete with other fish. Were the Mandarins all together in the LFS or were there other fish types? I think this might be an issue. I do know that the blood worms need to be chopped which is easiest done while still frozen. I was also told that they do not like mysis. Keep the thread going and we will figure it out.

 

They were in small tanks with some inverts and 1 or 2 dragonets, the one I bought ate a piece of mysis before I bought him a few others went after whole blood worms. He still follows the food around while the tang tries to steal it and occasionally picks at it. At least he ate a piece of brine today. The mysis I am feeding is mini mysis btw.