Masked Goby Not Eating

[Nanofrau]

We just put him in here a couple of days ago. He's in permanent hiding only peeking his head out a couple of times. Water parameters were perfect when we put him in. He's our first fish in the tank. I'm feeding frozen mysis shrimp with a pipette but he isn't coming out to even check things out at night. I'd appreciate any suggestions.

[Nano sapiens]

I saw your 'I'm New' thread, so a couple sugestions. Important to thoroughly read up about a fish before purchasing.

 

A good sourse is 'LiveAquaria.com', but best to read up as much as you can.

 

Your 'Masked Goby' from LiveAquaria's site:

 

overview

The Masked Goby is a native of the reefs in the Caribbean. This fish gets its name from its transparent body and orange face. The body of the fish is also covered in white spots.

It requires a 10 gallon or larger aquarium with plenty of hiding places as they are often found hovering above the bottom in caves and in shaded areas of reefs. It will rarely become aggressive towards other fish and is found in schools on the reef. Masked Gobies are known to successfully spawn in an aquarium.

The diet of the Masked Goby should consist of a variety of brine shrimp, frozen mysis shrimp, table shrimp, and frozen food preparations for carnivores. They should be fed small amounts several times each day.

Note the italics. This is a schooling type fish and will feel much more comfortable with a few of it's own kind. Otherwise, it will stay stressed and likely perish over time.

Get him/her a few buddies

[Nanofrau]

I read a bit about him before we made the purchase and I did read that. However, I also read on several reef forums that owners of that fish felt that they are definitely not a schooling fish, despite what live aquaria said and that they can be pretty aggressive with their own. Everyone said they were best alone. So with conflicting info, we didn't know what to do. We erred on the side of actual people instead of a website. Maybe we made the wrong choice. I was hoping he'd come around and maybe open up a bit. Not sure I could even get more since it was the only one at our LFS. Well shoot. Do you think he'd open up with some clowns in there? Or will that freak him out more?

[Nano sapiens]

I read a bit about him before we made the purchase and I did read that. However, I also read on several reef forums that owners of that fish felt that they are definitely not a schooling fish, despite what live aquaria said and that they can be pretty aggressive with their own. Everyone said they were best alone. So with conflicting info, we didn't know what to do. We erred on the side of actual people instead of a website. Maybe we made the wrong choice. I was hoping he'd come around and maybe open up a bit. Not sure I could even get more since it was the only one at our LFS. Well shoot. Do you think he'd open up with some clowns in there? Or will that freak him out more?

 

Looks like you did some study, which is great. I wish I had personal experience with them, but all I can say is that when I've seen tank threads with this fish I've typically seen a grouping of three or so. If you've read multiple accounts where one did just fine for extended periods of time, then maybe go with that.

 

I have had Clownfish for many years and when small they *could* be fine, but when larger they can get very territorial. My pair of adults killed larger crabs and any new hermits by pestering them to death.

 

Shy docile fish that have other peaceful tankmates swimming around in the tank tend to feel more secure. Likely that they realize that if the other fish aren't scared and hiding, then it's safe to come out.

 

Good luck.

[jimmyree]

Find out what the LFS was feeding him and try that. Or try a variety of food items. My two new clowns wouldn't eat for a week after introduction into the tank, one eventually starved itself to death and the other decided im hungry gonna eat. Its not uncommon for new fish to overstress themselves and stop eating for awhile. I think the more options you give them the better, as long as you don't pollute your tank trying too many different things quickly. Good luck, hope he settles in soon.

[antsypants]

I had two masked gobies and the bigger of the pair bullied the smaller one into hiding all the time. Now that the bigger one is gone, the smaller one is out all the time and is always looking for food. I feed mine NLS pellets and brine/mysis I've only had personal experience with the behavior of a pair so I can't attest to how well they do in schools, but my experience seems to line up with what other people are saying. Do you have any other fish in the tank or is it just the masked goby?

[Nanofrau]

Thanks everyone! I will talk to the LFS this weekend and see what they're feeding. He's the only fish in there right now. It's just a 10, so I know a clown pair is even pushing it. We are looking at getting young ocillaris. We had originally considered a watchman and pistol combo but we don't have a DSB and we were afraid they'd spend most of their time hiding anyway.