Help! Lyretail Anthias not eating

ninjamyst

ninjamyst

Premium member
Got 3 lyretail anthias 8 days ago. They were all eating fine but one was sitting on the sandbed a bit the first night. Then it stopped eating on the 3rd day. It kept opening its mouth too so I figured may be a parasite. I dosed PraziPro on last Friday. Not much improvement. Then yesterday another anthias stopped eating. What can I do? These are the only fish in the tank. 75 gallon Red Sea Reefer newly set up. Cycled for a week before adding the 3 fish.
 
no no no...the tank has been done cycling for a week before I added the fish. So Ammonia / Nitrite 0 already for a week before I added fish. Nitrate at 10ppm or so.
 
Anthias are hard to care for because they are prone to parasites and their eating habits.They should have been quarantined to make sure they did not come with worms or other parasites.
What are you feeding?

Most anthias require a mature tank with many micro organisms to keep happy.Since you just set up,
this will make them hard to keep.
Anthias will accept frozen ,but are mainly planktivores.You can entice their hunger with live micro foods.
Also, make sure you have 1 male and 2 females or else they wont be too happy.
hope this helps.
 
Anthias are hard to care for because they are prone to parasites and their eating habits.They should have been quarantined to make sure they did not come with worms or other parasites.
What are you feeding?

Most anthias require a mature tank with many micro organisms to keep happy.Since you just set up,
this will make them hard to keep.
Anthias will accept frozen ,but are mainly planktivores.You can entice their hunger with live micro foods.
Also, make sure you have 1 male and 2 females or else they wont be too happy.
hope this helps.
 
I'd check Ammonia and Nitrite levels again. If any are detectable do a large-ish water change, like 25%. Also may want to add some nitrifying bacteria.
 
ReeferRick said:
Anthias are hard to care for because they are prone to parasites and their eating habits.They should have been quarantined to make sure they did not come with worms or other parasites.
What are you feeding?

Most anthias require a mature tank with many micro organisms to keep happy.Since you just set up,
this will make them hard to keep.
Anthias will accept frozen ,but are mainly planktivores.You can entice their hunger with live micro foods.
Also, make sure you have 1 male and 2 females or else they wont be too happy.
hope this helps.
Click to expand...

I have tried Larry's Reef Frenzy and Rod's Original Blend. I have some live pods coming too.
 
bryman said:
I'd check Ammonia and Nitrite levels again. If any are detectable do a large-ish water change, like 25%. Also may want to add some nitrifying bacteria.
Click to expand...

Just checked and still 0. I actually dosed MB7 for a week straight after the tank was cycled before I added the fish.
 
Could be parasites then, or internal organ damage from cyanide collecting. Or just a setup that isn't established enough for anthias. They are tricky even for very experienced people, and not the best to start with.
 
Last edited:
ninjamyst said:
I have tried Larry's Reef Frenzy and Rod's Original Blend. I have some live pods coming too.
Click to expand...

Yes , live pods will help since anthias like to feed all day on them.Its really gonna drain your wallet brother, until you start cultivating in a refugium.I kept some Queen anthias,same deal.Beautiful fish, but unless you constantly keep buying live foods to put in your new tank they will likely starve and wont thrive on frozen or flakes.Best of luck , I know I have kept 4 damsels in a 10g and tangs in a 55 successfully lol so its not impossible but can become quite stressful for the owner and the fish to deal with on a daily basis.Please post pics of your awdome fish and set up!
 
anthias can be hard. i bought 3 lyretails a few months ago. put them in a qt tank and all ate the first day then one stopped eating and died and the others followed. i bought a bartletts a month after and it did very well. moved him into my DT and he is doing great. they are a tough fish to acclimate but once done they are beautiful.
 
Quick update on them. Finished second round of Prazipro and all 3 seems to be eating. I was able to get the 2nd one eating while on Prazipro by feeding Rod's Fish Eggs. Now I am feeding a mixture of Larry's, Rod's Original Blend, Rod's Fish Eggs, and Rod's Pacific Planktons with Selcon and Garlic. The 3rd one is still less active and doesn't eat as much as the other two.
 
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