Silver Dollars not eating right =(

[Friendly]

When I first got my silver dollars (I have 3), I would always feed them roman lettuce, brine shrimp, and flake food. I use to have a pleco in the tank and I would feed it algae pellets. My silvers dollars started to take a liking to the algae pellets that I would give my pleco. They started to go nuts for them. I figured since they liked the pellets so much I would feed it to them. Over time they stopped eating roman lettuce and would only eat the algae pellets and brine shrimp. About 3 1/2 weeks ago I changed the set up of the tank. Now every time I go near my tank they freak out! When I try and feed them they seem too scared to want to eat any food that I put in. Even the algae pellets! The silver dollars just let all the food fall to the bottom now. It's such a waste because I end up having to suck up all the food so it doesn't pollute my tank. I tried some roman lettuce a few days ago and they still don't eat it. I tried some brine shrimp as well and they only eat little bits of it when it falls to the bottom. They use to go up and eat all of the brine shrimp when it was falling and rarely let any get to the bottom. Before the new set up they would eat when I was in the room. Now they wont even eat when I’m not in the room

I really don’t know what is wrong with them. I know silver dollars are very skittish but mine just get so scared! They think I’m like out to kill them. I’ve also noticed that they have been nipping at eat other as well. Do silver dollar fins grow back?

There’s nothing wrong with the color of my silver dollars though. They look very beautiful still. I really don’t want them to be malnourished. Any suggestions on what I should do or feed my silver dollars? Also, are algae pellets good for silver dollars?

I’ve had my silver dollars for about a year and they are almost 3 inches now. I have them in a 35-gallon tank. I’m saving up for a bigger tank because I know they will grow much bigger then 3 inches. I got them when they were the size of a quarter and a year later they’ve grown to 3 inches lol. I have two pieces of driftwood in the tank for decoration/hiding. I keep the water/tank very clean. I have proper filtration and everything. I also bought 3 julii cory cats to help with the clean up of uneaten food that falls to the bottom.

Any help or advice that can be given will be greatly appreciated!

 

[dskidmore]

What exactly did you change about the setup? Have any of your water parameters changed? Could you post the results of each of the test kits that you have? There are no new fish in the tank?

How long do you leave the lettuce in the tank before removing the uneaten portion?

Many fish will be able to heal small nips and tears in the fin, given good condionts.

I'm not sure about silver dollar nutriton, I have never kept this species. In general it is good to feed a variety of foods, so it somewhat concerns me that they started to reject the lettuce when they took to the algae pellets.

 

[Friendly]

Thanks for the reply dskidmore!

What exactly did you change about the setup? Have any of your water parameters changed? Could you post the results of each of the test kits that you have? There are no new fish in the tank?

I added another piece of driftwood into the tank and moved the two into the center of the tank so it looks like an arch bridge. I don't have any test kits (except for a ph kit) so I had to go to my lfs today to get the water tested. Here are the results:
Ammonia 0.4
Nitrate 1.0 (I did a water change)
I tested the ph myself and it was around 7.0
The new fish that I added were the 3 cory cats that I recently bought. Oh and the temp is at 78.

How long do you leave the lettuce in the tank before removing the uneaten portion?

I usually leave the lettuce in the tank for 2or3 hours. For some reason they don't eat any of the lettuce

Many fish will be able to heal small nips and tears in the fin, given good condionts.

Should I buy any meds to help with the healing process?

I'm not sure about silver dollar nutriton, I have never kept this species. In general it is good to feed a variety of foods, so it somewhat concerns me that they started to reject the lettuce when they took to the algae pellets.

Yeah, I don't know why they're not eating :? Could it be that the algae pellets made the silver dollars dislike the taste of lettuce?

 

[dskidmore]

Ammonia 0.4

Hold the phone!
That's likely your problem. Ammonia should be 0. Likely your new driftwood is rotting, and spiking your ammonia. Try taking out the new driftwood, and leaving it in a bucket of water for a month to cure.

I usually leave the lettuce in the tank for 2or3 hours. For some reason they don't eat any of the lettuce
...
Yeah, I don't know why they're not eating :? Could it be that the algae pellets made the silver dollars dislike the taste of lettuce?

They probably prefer the algae pellets. They would likely return to the lettuce if access to the algae was removed for a long period of time. Have you tried any other vegetables? Especially darker green ones. My guppies used to go crazy over peas. When introducing a new food, it is ok to leave it in the tank as long as overnight. Many fish are hesatant to try new foods and need to become accustomed to them. If a new food fails on the first try, it may still be accepted at a later date.

Should I buy any meds to help with the healing process?

If they are well nurished, have pure water, and not infected, they should heal on thier own. Reducing your ammonia level is the best thing you can do for them right now.

 

[crazycat]

i have silver dollars and they are also VERY skittish. try leaving the lettuce for a little longer, or feed them at night, maybe they'll calm down. mine also love algae wafers! as for fin nipping, one of mine goes after the other occasionally, but it's been my experience that their fins do grow back, as long as they are small nips. they can be very aggressive fish--i've had to segregate mine from my community tank because my smaller fish kep disapppearing. that and my silver dollars eat all my plants!

good luck!

 

[dskidmore]

that and my silver dollars eat all my plants!

That must be why I never got around to trying them.

 

[Devilishturtles]

I can keep anarchis, and that is the only thing they stay away from. My SD are also VERY skittish eaters, but I've never had a problem with them not accepting a variety of foods. Mine also hoard the algae wafers.

I would follow dskidmore's advice. Find out what is causing your ammonia problems. After you remove the driftwood, do a water change and take your water back to be tested. (Or buy your own. You can find one online for less than $20).

 

[dskidmore]

After you remove the driftwood, do a water change and take your water back to be tested. (Or buy your own. You can find one online for less than $20).

Less than that if you're not picky what brand. I can get an ammonia kit pretty cheap at my LFS, and not have to wait for shipping. The cheap kits are fine for detecting way out of spec conditions like this, they're just not as good at precise values if you're fine-tuning your conditions.

 

[rubysoho]

I thought driftwood only lowered your pH over time, and had nothing to do with increasing ammonia.

How often do you clean your tank? Do you have a snail population (if snails die and are not taken out this will significantly increase your level of ammonia)? When was the last time you rinsed out your filter (in old tank water so as not to kill beneficial bacteria) to get rid of the excess gunk?

 

[dskidmore]

I thought driftwood only lowered your pH over time, and had nothing to do with increasing ammonia.

Only if it's properly cured. Wood that is too fresh will rot a bit as well as release tannins.

 

[Friendly]

Hold the phone!
That's likely your problem. Ammonia should be 0. Likely your new driftwood is rotting, and spiking your ammonia. Try taking out the new driftwood, and leaving it in a bucket of water for a month to cure.

The driftwood is actually not new lol. I've had them in my tanks for about two years I think. I first had both in my SD tank but I took one out and put it in another one for a few months. I just recently moved it back into my SD tank. When I took it out yesterday, it kind of felt mushy. So yeah I think it was rotting :? I got knife and scraped off the mushy wood. I put it in a bucket full of water just to make sure

They probably prefer the algae pellets. They would likely return to the lettuce if access to the algae was removed for a long period of time. Have you tried any other vegetables? Especially darker green ones. My guppies used to go crazy over peas. When introducing a new food, it is ok to leave it in the tank as long as overnight. Many fish are hesatant to try new foods and need to become accustomed to them. If a new food fails on the first try, it may still be accepted at a later date.

I'm going to stop giving them the algae pellets/wafers for now. I tried cucumber for the first time and they seemed interested and took a few nibbles but didn't devour it. Most of it is still uneaten. I'm going to try peas and some spinach leaves tomorrow. Hopefully they'll like it!

If they are well nurished, have pure water, and not infected, they should heal on thier own. Reducing your ammonia level is the best thing you can do for them right now.

The fins definitely do not look infected! I did a water change and a few hours later I went and got my water tested. Results are:
Ammonia 0
Nitrate 0

i have silver dollars and they are also VERY skittish. try leaving the lettuce for a little longer, or feed them at night, maybe they'll calm down. mine also love algae wafers! as for fin nipping, one of mine goes after the other occasionally, but it's been my experience that their fins do grow back, as long as they are small nips. they can be very aggressive fish--i've had to segregate mine from my community tank because my smaller fish kep disapppearing. that and my silver dollars eat all my plants!

I'll start to feed them when it gets dark from now on. They do seem calm down when the room is dark. I think it's the Male that is doing all the nipping. It's kind of obvious because it's the only one that doesn't have any nipped fins. And he's the smallest one too! They leave the cory cats alone and don't even react to them at all. It's weird because the one that I think is a male and doing all the attacking has a black stripe running down the tip of the tale fin and has an orange ting under it's gills. The other two are just all silver. I hope the fins do grow back. Some of the nips are kind of big now but aren’t too bad. I also think the attacks have stopped. I hear ya about not wanting to have your SD's in your planted tank. I have a 75 gal that I could put my SD's in but it's heavily planted. I wouldn't want them eat all my amazon swords in just a few days lol.

Mine also hoard the algae wafers.

Wow, silver dollars really do like to eat algae wafers lol

I would follow dskidmore's advice. Find out what is causing your ammonia problems. After you remove the driftwood, do a water change and take your water back to be tested. (Or buy your own. You can find one online for less than $20).

Less than that if you're not picky what brand. I can get an ammonia kit pretty cheap at my LFS, and not have to wait for shipping. The cheap kits are fine for detecting way out of spec conditions like this, they're just not as good at precise values if you're fine-tuning your conditions.

Yeah I really need to buy my own testing kit so I don't have to wait to go to my lfs to get the water tested there. I could then reply to you guys more quickly. I'm gonna get one next week for sure!

How often do you clean your tank? Do you have a snail population (if snails die and are not taken out this will significantly increase your level of ammonia)? When was the last time you rinsed out your filter (in old tank water so as not to kill beneficial bacteria) to get rid of the excess gunk?

I use to clean my tank every two weeks but lately I've been doing it once a week. I have absolutely no snails in my tank. The last time I rinsed out my filter was about maybe a little over a month ago. I never knew you were supposed to rinse out the filter with old tank water. I've been using tap water :? I thought it was just the bio wheel that was not to be touch or rinsed with regular tap water.

Wood that is too fresh will rot a bit as well as release tannins.

What are tannins?

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Btw thank you dskidmore, crazycat, Devilishturtles, and rubysoho! You guys are the greatest! I'm really glad that I found this site

 

[Devilishturtles]

What are tannins?

Tannins are biological molecules that serve ALOT of industrial purposes (mainly in the food and health industry), but in your case, they are particles found in wood. When you first introduce new driftwood to water, it can leach the tannins into the water and turn it yellow or brownish.