Please dont hate me for this......

SoCalSURFrider · 11/29/2008, 11:50 PM

Alright So I read up on Moorish Idols and how they will refuse to eat in a closed system... And they are the hardest fish to keep in a system.... Well I made the purchase and Its been 2 weeks and My moorish Idol is eating like crazy... I feed it brine shrimp and he just loves the stuff.... Ive been feeding all my fish 3 times a day and my idol even eats the algae sheets i feed my tangs.... I guessing he will do just fine? Anyone else have a Moorish Idol?

reefergeorge · 11/29/2008, 11:54 PM

Some people are successful, just not too many.
Congratulations on finding a good one, and I hope it stays that way. Remember to keep a lot of sponge in his diet.

SoCalSURFrider · 11/30/2008, 12:03 AM

Where can i find sponges at? I just fead my fish flake food right now and my idol ate that as well.... I just hope it stays like this... The first couple days I had him he didnt even bother with the food... Hes about 5 inches long....

tmz · 11/30/2008, 12:06 AM

Good Luck with the idol.Keep us posted on how he does.

SoCalSURFrider · 11/30/2008, 12:14 AM

I will.... In the beginning my powder brown was just attacking the idolwhen ever he showed his face... i was so nervous about that... the powder brown didnt give him the time of day... Even when my idol is like 4 times his size... But they got along just fine the next day and all my fish are fine now.... When I get the chance Ill post some pics of him... Im just so glade Im one that can keep a moorish Idol... great feeling

Mikey Donuts · 11/30/2008, 02:59 AM

Brine shrimp are pretty much useless unless you're feeding baby brine (within 24 hours of hatching) or gut loading adults. Think of adult brine shrimp like an empty vitamin capsule that you can fill with something nutritious. If you can get him eating a quality frozen mysis (I use PE) then you're in business

. Good luck with you Idol I hope he does well.

stanlalee · 11/30/2008, 03:27 AM

getting them to eat has never been the issue, there are plenty of fish much easier to keep alive that are MUCH harder to get eating than moorish idols. there is no reason to believe they will be fine because they are eating. the problem is nobody knows why they just drop dead for no appearent reason in captivity

returnofsid · 11/30/2008, 04:18 AM

If all your feeding is brine shrimp, it's not going to live long. Brine shrimp have very little nutritional value. Feed the brine shrimp phyto and selcon to gut load them. This will help the fish out a lot. Learn as much as you can about Idols. I know a couple people who are keeping them healthy, but those people have had their tanks up and running for 15 years or more...lol. Good luck and Glad to hear it's going well so far!! Keep us posted!!

agreeive?fish · 11/30/2008, 07:41 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by SoCalSURFrider
Where can i find sponges at? I just fead my fish flake food right now and my idol ate that as well.... I just hope it stays like this... The first couple days I had him he didnt even bother with the food... Hes about 5 inches long....

try the frozen angel/butterfly formulas they contain chunks of sponge. my moorish idol loves it mine ate from day one right out of the shipping bag (divers den) mine eats flakes(formula one and 2, and prime reef) pellets (formula 1 and 2) frozen mysis angel/butterfly formula chopped up frozen seafoods from the fresh seafood department at wallmart (various foods depending on avalability) and frozen table shrimp and i have had him aprox 4 months and does extreemly well with tangs,large angels,drawf angels,an a-hole wrasse aka lunnar

lamboraf · 11/30/2008, 08:19 AM

You should feed him veriety of fish food,so he gets all he needs to live in captivity.

11/29/2008, 11:50 PM	#1
SoCalSURFrider Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Santa Barbara, CA Posts: 380	Please dont hate me for this...... Alright So I read up on Moorish Idols and how they will refuse to eat in a closed system... And they are the hardest fish to keep in a system.... Well I made the purchase and Its been 2 weeks and My moorish Idol is eating like crazy... I feed it brine shrimp and he just loves the stuff.... Ive been feeding all my fish 3 times a day and my idol even eats the algae sheets i feed my tangs.... I guessing he will do just fine? Anyone else have a Moorish Idol? __________________ Whatever happens, Happens...( IF YOU DONT SURF, DONT START!) Current Tank Info: 200g Mixed Reef 84'-24'-24' Custom Stand/Canopy- 6' light fixture with 3 400w 14k Metal Halides and 2 160w 10k VHOs With 4 cooling fans- R2 moonlights- 4 clip on fans in canopy for cooling- 2 CPR overflows with aqua lifters- 60g custom sump/ fuge

11/29/2008, 11:54 PM	#2
reefergeorge Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: St Louis MO Posts: 4,222	Some people are successful, just not too many. Congratulations on finding a good one, and I hope it stays that way. Remember to keep a lot of sponge in his diet. __________________ $35-50 for a <1" frag of some stupid named thing that came from a colony you bought for $40-60 wholesale and chopped into 20-40 pieces? No thanks. "JasonH" Current Tank Info: 125 aggressive reef, DIY led lighting, swc cone skimmer, 33 gallon sump, posiden Ps3 return.

11/30/2008, 12:03 AM	#3
SoCalSURFrider Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Santa Barbara, CA Posts: 380	Where can i find sponges at? I just fead my fish flake food right now and my idol ate that as well.... I just hope it stays like this... The first couple days I had him he didnt even bother with the food... Hes about 5 inches long.... __________________ Whatever happens, Happens...( IF YOU DONT SURF, DONT START!) Current Tank Info: 200g Mixed Reef 84'-24'-24' Custom Stand/Canopy- 6' light fixture with 3 400w 14k Metal Halides and 2 160w 10k VHOs With 4 cooling fans- R2 moonlights- 4 clip on fans in canopy for cooling- 2 CPR overflows with aqua lifters- 60g custom sump/ fuge

11/30/2008, 12:06 AM	#4
tmz ReefKeeping Mag staff Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: West Seneca NY Posts: 27,691	Good Luck with the idol.Keep us posted on how he does. __________________ Tom Current Tank Info: Tank of the Month , November 2011 : 600gal integrated system: 3 display tanks (120 g, 90g, 89g),several frag/grow out tanks, macroalgae refugia, cryptic zones. 40+ fish, seahorses, sps,lps,leathers, zoanthidae and non photosynthetic corals.

11/30/2008, 12:14 AM	#5
SoCalSURFrider Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Santa Barbara, CA Posts: 380	I will.... In the beginning my powder brown was just attacking the idolwhen ever he showed his face... i was so nervous about that... the powder brown didnt give him the time of day... Even when my idol is like 4 times his size... But they got along just fine the next day and all my fish are fine now.... When I get the chance Ill post some pics of him... Im just so glade Im one that can keep a moorish Idol... great feeling __________________ Whatever happens, Happens...( IF YOU DONT SURF, DONT START!) Current Tank Info: 200g Mixed Reef 84'-24'-24' Custom Stand/Canopy- 6' light fixture with 3 400w 14k Metal Halides and 2 160w 10k VHOs With 4 cooling fans- R2 moonlights- 4 clip on fans in canopy for cooling- 2 CPR overflows with aqua lifters- 60g custom sump/ fuge

11/30/2008, 02:59 AM	#6
Mikey Donuts Premium Member Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Suffolk, UK Posts: 933	Brine shrimp are pretty much useless unless you're feeding baby brine (within 24 hours of hatching) or gut loading adults. Think of adult brine shrimp like an empty vitamin capsule that you can fill with something nutritious. If you can get him eating a quality frozen mysis (I use PE) then you're in business . Good luck with you Idol I hope he does well. __________________ - Mike Current Tank Info: 150g mixed reef, 90g Seahorse Last edited by Mikey Donuts; 11/30/2008 at 03:04 AM.

11/30/2008, 03:27 AM	#7
stanlalee Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: hampton roads, va Posts: 1,799	getting them to eat has never been the issue, there are plenty of fish much easier to keep alive that are MUCH harder to get eating than moorish idols. there is no reason to believe they will be fine because they are eating. the problem is nobody knows why they just drop dead for no appearent reason in captivity

11/30/2008, 04:18 AM	#8
returnofsid Registered Member Join Date: May 2006 Location: Spokane, WA Posts: 3,852	If all your feeding is brine shrimp, it's not going to live long. Brine shrimp have very little nutritional value. Feed the brine shrimp phyto and selcon to gut load them. This will help the fish out a lot. Learn as much as you can about Idols. I know a couple people who are keeping them healthy, but those people have had their tanks up and running for 15 years or more...lol. Good luck and Glad to hear it's going well so far!! Keep us posted!!

11/30/2008, 08:19 AM	#10
lamboraf Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Visalia California Posts: 62	You should feed him veriety of fish food,so he gets all he needs to live in captivity.