Carey's Bio Cube Build

[1Vampiregirl]

I got a scooter blenny! He is acclimating now so in a few hours I'll hopefully have pictures!

They were all out of sexy shrimp and peppermints. :-( And the cleanr shrimps were $24! eek

I looove those little guys! They're so cute! Can't wait to see some pics.

 

[Bettababe1011]

Aww, no sexy shrimps? That's a darn shame!

Pictures! The populace demands pictures! Without pictures, it hasn't happened!! Lol.

 

[carey]

Here we go! Shots of the first guy, the scooter blenny. i also wanted some opinions on the shells I have in the last picture. I was thinking on putting some in the cube for decoration, would that be cheesy ya think? They are HUGE, thats why i showed the soda can so you can see how big they are.

 

[Bettababe1011]

Hey, that's the same fish I had said I wanted in my cube but got a big nono! Hmm. But oh well.

It is amazingly cute. Thank you for the pictures. The populace is happy.

I'd say the shells would be fine, but get a second opinion on that.

 

[Glen-cowling]

The scooter is fab 

 

[Joyler]

Well he's precious! The shells are really cool, but IMHO I think they would look strange in the tank...I think smaller ones would be better...something that your hermit crab can use...jmo! But I think your tank will look great no matter what!

 

[Flake]

You got a nono because the scooters are in the same family as the mandarin. They typically only eat pods. They tend to be just as hard to keep as mandarins. They need the space for the pods.

Hopefully your guy is eating prepared.

 

[Bettababe1011]

You got a nono because the scooters are in the same family as the mandarin. They typically only eat pods. They tend to be just as hard to keep as mandarins. They need the space for the pods.

Hopefully your guy is eating prepared.

Yeah. I know. I wasn't saying that I wanted to get one. My stocking wouldn't allow for it either.

 

[carey]

I just fed him and he's eating food out of the sand. But he is also eating pods too I think. He's on my lr now.

Are you telling me I'm in the same predictament as if I had gotten a mandarin?

 

[Flake]

Pretty much.

 

[1Vampiregirl]

The scooter rocks! Is he the regular kind or red?

The shells are very pretty, but if you're going for the natural look you might be better off without them. Or put just a few, JMO.

 

[carey]

Lemme call the fish store and see what the deal is. The girl who sold her to me refuses to sell me a mandarin for another year so I find it hard to believe she'd sell me this without some warning.

 

[carey]

i talked to the guy and he said it will eat frozen food. I just fed a piece of a cube adn I can't tell if he ate any. He's busy picking through the sand. i tried an omnivore food. he also said he would eat flake. I have'nt tried that yet.

Should I immediately start my pod tank project? This store does NOT take returns for any reason I checked. Or can I move him into the 55g where there is already a pod population? I'm afraid I'd lose him there he is so small.

GRRRR...I was so specific too when i asked my questions. i know the red scooter is a pod eater but didn't know the regular one was too.

What am I gonna do? I shoulda just bought the ORA mandarin now that I know......

 

[Flake]

Like I said, I hope he takes the prepared.

I'd see if another store would take him back. Better to look for a new home than to hope you can keep him fed.

 

[carey]

I've got 2 sets of stores within an hour each way. We know the one already won't take em back. The LFS I know won't take anything, not even stuff they sell. So that leaves me with 2 other options. One is a store that doesnt even sell mandarins or dragonets and he's the one who sold me the killer snail. i will call but I doubt he will. That leaves the amrine biologist guy I got my ora clowns from. I know he has mandarins but they are handfed ones. I think I have a 50-50 shot with him.

I will make those calls but in the meantime what do I do? I can have a pod tank up by Friday if that's needed. But I'd have to order the pods tonight or tomorrow morning to make sure I get them b4 weekend.

I am beyond disgusted with myself. You have no idea. I am close to tears about this whole situation. i've never made a huge mis step yet and this is a really really bad time to start.

Opinions and options please. I know with my luck I won't be able to get rid of him and I wanna plan according.

:-(

 

[Joyler]

Here's my opinion...fwiw! Youre a great fish mommy! Stop getting so frustrated with yourself...I have every confidence in you so turn that frown upside down Missy!!

 

[1Vampiregirl]

Here's my opinion...fwiw! Youre a great fish mommy! Stop getting so frustrated with yourself...I have every confidence in you so turn that frown upside down Missy!!

+1

I believe in you!
The little fishy might not eat right away getting used to her new home. Keep trying. I know when I had my red scooter he ate frozen, but only the tiny bits that were on the sand/rock or very close to him.
Now you still have options: some pods in the cube, lots in your 55gal and in the meantime you can set up your pod tank. You can try and train your scooter on prepared foods too.
If she refuses everything but the pods, and you keep her, she'd be better off in you bigger tank though I think.

 

[thominil]

Try melting the frozen foods and dosing them with a little garlic. Shut the pumps off and use a turkey baster to get the foods close to the scooter. Try this repeatedly several times per day. Brine is usually the best to use to train IME because it looks similar to pods.

 

[carey]

I just tried that with the turkey baster, no luck he ran away. he looks to be very busy eating what pods I do have. Will I have better luck when he gets hungry enough or will he starve himself to death like a mandarin?

I have the 10g tank out and will be cleaning it up tomorrow. If my information is correct from an earlier thread I started I only need sand, some LR and a heater to get a decent colony growing. I was thinking on getting 3 bags to start with.

I figure even if he IS gonna eat prepared he clearly prefers the pods so far and it might not be a bad idea to have them readily available.

thanks for your responses guys, I'm just so out of it right now. I'm worried to death.

Would the 55g reef be a better place for him? I already have a lawnmower blenny in there....I know there are pods in there not as much as there used to be but still on my glass and rock

 

[thominil]

Grab 5 if you can, he will empty that tank in a hurry. Use three to establish the 10g, 1 to re-establish the tank itself, and keep one in reserve and ration it until the 10g starts colonizing. In the mean time, keep feeding the prepared foods. Sooner or later you will get a nip or two. Keep in mind that transferring pods between tanks will be a pain. Try using a rolled up plastic mesh scrubber that are used for cleaning dishes to tranfer pods. Cover it in live rock rubble, or you can transfer the rock itself, but you may have better luck with the scrubber.

With the 55g, I would worry that the blenny and goby would outcompete and/or abuse the scooter.