Hi whats going on everyone? i am relatively new to fish, although i have had fish in the past, they were not cichlids. Well im am not going to bore you with a long drawn out story, but i have 4 small African cichlids in a 30 gallon tank. i put them in there 3 days ago and they just swim around the bottom and hardly come to the top or middle. So when i put the food in it just sinks to the bottom. I have been observing them and they have slowly started to shy away from the back and bottom of tank and come to the front and middle. I know it take some time to get used to the tank before they leave the bottom but i want a second opinion. Has anyone had any similar cases? Thanks
Fish not eating
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Thank you, and im happy tO be here. Yes, i have started the cycle over two weeks ago, and my tank is the standard 30 gallon kit from petco. And i do not know the exact species of cichlid, but its the standard fish that most pet stores carry. petco, choice pet supply, petsmart. But i did not get my fish from petco because every last tank has ich. BUt the fish are swimming around fine and are not showing any sign of stress, disease...etc. two of them are already establishing thier territory, by rubbing there bodies on certain logs, but not really swimming around the middle and top. Maybe i just need to wait just little bit more until they get used to the new tank. SORRY FOR ESSAY HAHA
Dont worry about posting long winded replies. Most people come here to read. Its a forum right?
They may be sick if you ask me. Rubbing on rocks can be natural. This is called "flashing" but when its done with regularity it's a definite sign of something bothering them. That combined with not eating is another sign of sickness.
Take a good look at their gills, are they red/pink at all? This would be a bad sign in most cases. The gills should be a similar color to the fish.
Also, take a look at their eyes. There should be no clouding. Note if there is.
You failed to answer all of CICHLUDED's questions, specifically the one where he asked if your tank has cycled yet? Do you understand this term? (Im not being rude, Im just not sure of where you're at as an aquarist so we need to ask questions)
There will be more questions to follow...but please answer these ones so we can get these little guys happy.
They may be sick if you ask me. Rubbing on rocks can be natural. This is called "flashing" but when its done with regularity it's a definite sign of something bothering them. That combined with not eating is another sign of sickness.
Take a good look at their gills, are they red/pink at all? This would be a bad sign in most cases. The gills should be a similar color to the fish.
Also, take a look at their eyes. There should be no clouding. Note if there is.
You failed to answer all of CICHLUDED's questions, specifically the one where he asked if your tank has cycled yet? Do you understand this term? (Im not being rude, Im just not sure of where you're at as an aquarist so we need to ask questions)
There will be more questions to follow...but please answer these ones so we can get these little guys happy.
I have to take another test of the water when i get home. As i stated before i am two weeks into the cycle, but i will post test results. But before i left my house none of the fish had the cloudy eyes, however one of the fish did have some sort of a bulge in his belly that was not there when i bought him from the store, but it went away. As far as the coloring in the gills i will check into that s soon as i get home. And the flashing is not a every 2 minute thing just the regular fish marking its territory. Dont get me wrong, its not as bad as i am describing it, they are all swimming around checking there new surrondings, its just that they are not acting like the fish i see in the fish store that are all over the place, for a lack of better words.
*** never really seen these type of fish mark their territory like a cat would by rubbing their body along it. Usually they just circle the area or are in the area if its a cave or something like that.
My fish flash too, usually could see em do it daily if you watched but not much at all. If its every hour its prob a problem. Definitely do some test results and see what it concludes. Cycling usually takes at minimum 2 weeks depending on how you did it. If you did a fishless cycle I think it'd be more like a month. If you seeded your filter with some established filter media it could be much quicker. So, how'd you go about it?
My fish flash too, usually could see em do it daily if you watched but not much at all. If its every hour its prob a problem. Definitely do some test results and see what it concludes. Cycling usually takes at minimum 2 weeks depending on how you did it. If you did a fishless cycle I think it'd be more like a month. If you seeded your filter with some established filter media it could be much quicker. So, how'd you go about it?
If the fish are dieing then there's definitely something wrong. What'd the tests show? I'd go to the fish store and get some established filter like a dirty sponge or something. Even dirty gravel and put it in a panty hose and then in your filter would help a bit.
Yea i got back to my house, tested the water and passed out, but all of the fish are doing fine. They are eating fine, not shy anymore. They are trying to hit water that has dripped on the outside of the glass. No more bloat, there feces is brown, but im still going to keep an eye on them. Thanks Ebola11 for the advice.
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