Lonely Only Child

[itafx]

I got a batch of Giant Danios last fall. I bred them, but only 1 fry baby survived to adulthood. When he was big enough I kept him in a tank with angelfish, guppies, and a cory cat. This fall I introduced him to the 72 gal community tank that has six of his parent's generation. He's about the same size as them, but he stays in the far corner of the tank and won't interact with them or feed with the rest of the fish (danios, angels, neons, glass fish). I finally started feeding him separately through the heater hole in the other corner because I was afraid he would starve to death. How can I get this guy sociallized?

P.S.
I'm working on a second batch of danio fry. I have about 25 of them to the stage where they are eating crushed flakes.
ITAFX

 

[itafx]

After 10 days, he seems to be going with the school more...

 

[An t-iasg]

I've never raised any fry, so I didn't really know how to answer your question. But I'm glad the little guy is hanging out with the rest of the fish. Maybe he will respond well to the new group of danio fry also, if you put them in the community tank.

 

[itafx]

They're beating up on him again. He's about 90% their size, but somehow they treat him as an outsider...

 

[An t-iasg]

Oh no - is it the older school that he was beginning to do well with? Would it be possible to put him with the fry (if you did get a second batch of fry?)

 

[itafx]

I wish I could do that. The big guys are 3 inches long, he's 2.75 inches long, and the fry are 1 inch long.

 

[fijiwigi]

Try to rearrange your tank completely it may be a territorial issue. Does the fish have a good place to hide until he feels comfortable enough to come out and play??

 

[itafx]

There are plenty of places to hide. It's a heavily planted tank and I don't want to be moving the plants all around.

 

[jcarlilesiu]

I introduced a clown loach to a tank once, and he wasn't really accepted into the group. After a month, the only thing which actually got him accepted was me adding a Mono Sebea (sp?) which was big enough to scare all the loaches. They naturally went into their instinctive schooling mode. Since then, he has been accepted.

Rearranging the tank is traumatic enough to cause the territorial attitude of the rest of the school. Clean slate idea.

If these fish have a habit of hanging around one area of the tank, re-arrange just that area. Try and throw them out of their routine, make them uncomfortable with their surroundings, and they will accept the other fish.

 

[itafx]

They are big boistrous fish that love to frolic. They basically patrol the whole tank looking for anything of fun or interest.