PlanetCatfish.com

Greetings...

I recently purchased a 4-5 inch tigrinus. The LPS advised they fed it feeders. Is there a way to successfully wean it off live food? I'd appreciate your suggestions. thx.

John

Most predators can be weaned onto alternatives, with very few exceptions (if any).

Sometimes a dead fish will be taken straight away by a hungry fish, sometimes it needs to be "agitated" to stimulate the predator. Prawns, mussels, & worms are all woth a try particularly with a fish like yours which is small will feed regularly in order to grow as quickly as it can

if a lion can learn to eat meat, another predatror should at least be able to take frozen (and thawed) fish, or shrimps

I've got three large aggressive cats all of which eat fish fillets or blugill. I hand feed so it makes it a little easier to make sure only they get the food.

I started by knocking out a gold fish (put it in a net and whack it on a hard surface) then putting my hand in the tank and waving it in front of the cats face. Eventually he got hungry enough to take it. Then I tried a pice cut off of a fish fillet, same thing, slowly putting my hand in as to not spook him and eventually he took it. Now after almost two years, as soon as they seem e coming they know it's time and sometimes all three are waiting at the surface before I even get there LOL... Dog tame

I have a B. juruense, and to start with it turned its nose up at dead or preprepared food, however though it sounds cruel the best way i have used to wean my predator's off live food is to carefully "starve" them it sounds cruel but if you are careful about it and offer some dead/prepared food a few days after it last ate live, and leave the food available for a short while then remove it if not taken, then the next feeding time do the same. It took 4 or 5 days after its last large live feeding for my juruense to get used to shrimp, after that it was pretty easy to get him onto catfish pellets. I find its easier to get a predatory used to shrimp before dead fish, not sure why maybe the stronger smell?

either way i've used this technique on 3 P.ornatus, one P. blochi, 2 Lima Shovel noses and the B. juruense.

Good luck!

Simon