Do Target mandarins eat Tigger Pods?

[Seahorse]

I have one target mandarin that I had for more than one month.
But it seems like it has become skinnier.
I have bought tigger pods and kept feeding it once every other day.

Do Target Mandarins eat tigger pods?

Today, I was wondering about it and moved my mandarin into
another tank by itself and added a lot of tigger pods
but it seems like it is not eating them...

 

[thincat]

Yes, Mandarins eat Tiger pods. They don't fair well with competiion, and are easily out hunted by other fish. There needs to be so many pods that they are stuck in there face. They are really left behind when it comes to feeding.

 

[Seahorse]

Thank you for your reply. Yesterday, I put my Mandarin into another tank by itself and add some tigger pods but it seems like he's not eating any of them. Some pods were swimming right by him and he didn't eat them...

 

[thincat]

Do you see him milling about and munching on the sand or rockwork? How long has this new tank been setup? Tell me all you can about the mandarins tank and environment.

 

[Seahorse]

I just have the fish and my sister takes care of the water and all. The water condition is great. And two days ago, I wanted to know if my Target Mandarin eats tigger pods so I separated him from the tank to another tank which is only about 2gallons and add quiet a lot of tigger pods (with a live rock, plant, some sand)

He stays on the bottom or on the live rock or looks around the plant(salt water plant) where some of the tigger pods hide. But I see lots of tigger pods hanging on the bottom of the fish tank.

My sister's tank has been set up for 2-3months and I bought the Target mandarin because I didn't know it needs a HUGE environment....
The seller from the store didn't tell me about it and just told me that
I can feed him with tigger pods...

Um.... I heard that Target Mandarins are the ones who are likely to die fast
but I don't want mine to die....
Well Target Mandarins eat Artic Pods more...?

I tried to fee him prepared food because some people have mandarins that eat prepared food but mine doesnt

 

[Greenmaster]

The outlook isn't good... Your target will probably die... what size is the main tank and what other fish are in there? The 2g is too small even for a quarantine tank IMO. Depending on the situation of the main tank the fish might be better off in there. Sometimes if a fish is in too small of a tank they will go on a hunger strike.

If I was in your position I would probably buy a few different live foods to feed the tank so the Mandarin has some choice. Brine shrimp eggs are cheep... you could take a bit of tank water and hatch some eggs then dump it into the tank. What do you have available in live foods at your LFS?

Hopefully you will have learned a valuable lesson here. Before you buy a fish you should do some research and see if it is suitable for the environment/tank mates you have. But I have to say you made the right choice about consulting the forums.

Also Welcome to Aquarium Advice.

 

[thincat]

Your best bet at this stage is to see if the LFS will take him back in trade for another fish. This time research the fish and see what he eats, how big it gets and can it get along with other fish.
Yes they should eat Artic pods. Is his stomach pinched in? If so he is a going to die. It is hard to get a speical feeder to eat anything but what he normally eats in the wild. Not saying they can't because lots of people have some success with switching them over to mysis or other frozen foods.
Also always ask to see if it eats and what it eats, then buy that food along with the fish.

 

[Seahorse]

Yes... he is really skinny right now. His stomach is pinched in.

I only have tigger pods and the original tank is 10gallon with bunch of live sand and big and small lives rocks. There are two clown fish and one yellow tang so whenever I add tigger pods into the tank, the other fish eat them and my Target Mandarin is out of food... I see him getting something from the rocks but Im not sure if he is really eatings something...

I think I should see if the store will trade. I don't want him to die.
If the store can take care of him better than I can, then I think that would be much better

Thank you so much for your help guys! And thank you for welcoming me here

 

[thincat]

The truth is that your ten gallon is way overstocked with just the two Clowns. When ever you add a fish to your tank you should always find out what their adult size is, what they eat and how aggressive they are. Saltwater fish are way more aggressive then most freshwater fish because compation for food is a real fact in the ocean.

 

[Ziggy953]

Look for cyclops. I work at an LFS and all of our mandarins eat cyclops. It is perfect size for their mouths and if you get them started on it now you may salvage the fish.

 

[rob_mango]

i have a green mandarin and mine like to eat rotifurs and ova so that is what i feed mine give it a try

 

[thincat]

Ziggy, the OP has a mandarin in a 10g with 2 clowns and a yellow tang!!!!!

 

[Ziggy953]

I was focusing on the fish it's self. I was avoiding the obvious...

None of those fish should be in the tank they are in.

 

[thincat]

Right, but we have a moral oblication to point that out. How else are they to know?

 

[Seahorse]

So my Target Mandarin seems like it did eat Tigger Pods.

One problem, when it was in 10gallon, other fish ate Tigger Pods.
Is there any way I can make sure my Target Mandarin eat them?

 

[Greenmaster]

Get a 55g tank so there is room for the pods to hide and your Mandarin will search the tank over for them. In a 10g I would say that a pair of clowns is more then enough. If you want more "life" in the tank I would suggest getting hermits and snails. The only way to make sure your Mandarin can eat them is either to have enough space or to over feed your tank... (that could kill your other fish) Personally I would say get a bigger tank or bring back the fish.