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Tailspot blenny never coming out


Melfy77

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So 5 days ago I bought a TSB. Looked healthy, not skinny, and it is now in my 8g. It's also the only fish in the tank, along with 2 cleaner shrimp and snails.

However it won't come out at all!! Won't look around, won't eat, just stays in the same silly hole. So now I'm thinking it's just gonna die in that hole and put crap in my tank :( what am I supposed to do?

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21 minutes ago, Tautoo said:

Have you tried to spot feed right in front of his cave?

 

They can take a bit to acclimate to the new surroundings in the tank.

 

 

Yes I did, of course it just hides deeper in its hole:(

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Christopher Marks

It's definitely not unusual for them to hide at first while they get settled. It's making sure there aren't any predators it should be worried about!

 

What did you try to spot feed the first time? Was it a frozen meaty food? You'll want to make it enticing, using tongs, be patient. Hopefully it's eating some of the copepods in the tank as well!

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Any algae in the tank?

Mine would leave little kiss marks on the back glass.  He soon became the biggest, little pig in the tank.  Always front and center.

He's probably eating stuff you're not aware of...algae, pods,  leftovers....

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Mine was shy for a while. Even my starry blenny was shy. Hid in the rocks most of the time for a over a week. 

 

I found the ts very hard to feed. They have small mouths so they need small pellets, flakes, frozen.

Mine wouldn't touch nori.

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It's currently laying on it's side at the bottom of the tank, barely moving. Never ate anything I offered, just my guess is it's gonna be dead tomorrow. I'm never getting a blenny again. Not worth it IMO. Such a waste :(

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39 minutes ago, Melfy77 said:

It's currently laying on it's side at the bottom of the tank, barely moving. Never ate anything I offered, just my guess is it's gonna be dead tomorrow. I'm never getting a blenny again. Not worth it IMO. Such a waste :(

I'm sorry to hear this.

This is exactly what happened to mine.

It would eat nothing I offered.

 

Not all bennies are like this. The tailspot is small, can be finicky, and has a small mouth.

 

 

My starry eats anything.

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6 hours ago, Clown79 said:

I'm sorry to hear this.

This is exactly what happened to mine.

It would eat nothing I offered.

 

Not all bennies are like this. The tailspot is small, can be finicky, and has a small mouth.

 

 

My starry eats anything.

I have an 8g which is why I chose that fish. There's not tons of options when it comes to fish sadly

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18 minutes ago, Clown79 said:

Clown gobies, 

There are a few smaller gobies you could do

 

 

I've heard they're loaded with parasites, picky eaters and such. No sand either so goby/shrimp won't work

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All fish can get parasites. I have never heard or experienced a goby having parasites more so than any other.

 

There are gobies you don't have to have with a shrimp 

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Yeah I guess it's a risk you have to take. Just feel like i'm becoming a fish killer:( had 2 clownfish in the tank and was about to set up another tank for them (they were my daughters's fish.one jumped and the other one died 2 days later. Now the blenny...

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  • 2 weeks later...

Little update: I'm very happy to report that my tailspot blenny is still alive, and appears to be doing great! Still pretty shy and won't eat right away when I feed the tank (I feed some nano LRS every other day, keeps everyone happy lol), but based on it's very plump belly I'd say it's getting enough food:D. And since the tank is only 8g and 2 months old, clearly the blennyis not just eating pods!! Sooo relieved and happy!!!!:happy:

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I've tried 3 tailspot blennies. Every single one died because it wouldn't eat. They're just so freaked out. If anything spooks them, they don't come out for the entire day. If you just walk by the tank, that's it. If any fish floats near it, that's it.

 

My first one died after about a week of not eating.

Second one I got eating in a quarantine box inside the tank. basically there was very little flow and nothing for him to hide behind. I squirted a ton of mysis into the box and eventually he ate a few. But after I thought he was good, I let him totally into the DT and he never showed himself again. I found a corpse a week later.

Third one I got eating in the quarantine box again. Left him in the box for about 3 weeks. He was eating and healthy. I stuck a ton of chaeto into the box so he would feel even better + copepods. After the third week, I thought he would be good to go. Put him into the tank and was eating for probably another 3 weeks. One day I was cleaning the tank and I freaked him out. Never came out to eat again and died.

 

I remember after the third one I decided never to keep another blenny ever again. They're beautiful, and pretty funny looking, but the stress of trying to feed them and tiptoe around my tank was not worth it. Plus killing fish was not what I want with this hobby. At this point it just wasn't for me. Maybe other people had better success with something different.

 

This upcoming tank I'm building will just have clownfish. My last pairs I could just pick one out of the water and it wouldn't even care.

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44 minutes ago, kinetic said:

I've tried 3 tailspot blennies. Every single one died because it wouldn't eat. They're just so freaked out. If anything spooks them, they don't come out for the entire day. If you just walk by the tank, that's it. If any fish floats near it, that's it.

 

My first one died after about a week of not eating.

Second one I got eating in a quarantine box inside the tank. basically there was very little flow and nothing for him to hide behind. I squirted a ton of mysis into the box and eventually he ate a few. But after I thought he was good, I let him totally into the DT and he never showed himself again. I found a corpse a week later.

Third one I got eating in the quarantine box again. Left him in the box for about 3 weeks. He was eating and healthy. I stuck a ton of chaeto into the box so he would feel even better + copepods. After the third week, I thought he would be good to go. Put him into the tank and was eating for probably another 3 weeks. One day I was cleaning the tank and I freaked him out. Never came out to eat again and died.

 

I remember after the third one I decided never to keep another blenny ever again. They're beautiful, and pretty funny looking, but the stress of trying to feed them and tiptoe around my tank was not worth it. Plus killing fish was not what I want with this hobby. At this point it just wasn't for me. Maybe other people had better success with something different.

 

This upcoming tank I'm building will just have clownfish. My last pairs I could just pick one out of the water and it wouldn't even care.

That is very sad story :( I'm waiting to see how my blenny is going to do, but should something happen, I wouldn't buy another one. They are beautiful fish though!

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Happy to see your TSB made a comeback!

 

I have had 2 TSB's so far, and they have some very interesting personalities.

He'll quickly become the tank comedian.

Stick with him, and he'll likely become one of your favorites. ;)

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15 minutes ago, Droy008 said:

Happy to see your TSB made a comeback!

 

I have had 2 TSB's so far, and they have some very interesting personalities.

He'll quickly become the tank comedian.

Stick with him, and he'll likely become one of your favorites. ;)

I love the fish!! Fascinating. Really looks at you while thinking "what are you staring at?!" :D still gets spooked easily but getting better IMO

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gone_PHiSHin
47 minutes ago, Droy008 said:

Happy to see your TSB made a comeback!

 

I have had 2 TSB's so far, and they have some very interesting personalities.

He'll quickly become the tank comedian.

Stick with him, and he'll likely become one of your favorites. ;)

^this!!

 

TSB are hilarious to me.  i love their 'personality'.  stick with it, he will warm up to you once he knows he's secure.  mine started out the same way, but within 2-3 weeks he was out and about all day.  now, 7 months later i love the little guy and he basically eats from my fingers. 

 

i would highly recommend this stuff because they have such small mouths,  but make sure you get the small pellets. it's cheap too

https://www.bulkreefsupply.com/seaweed-extreme-hikari.html

 

mine will eat 2-4 pellets in a sitting, once a day, sometimes i'll do a second feeding of a pellet or two before lights out.  at that rate that $6 bag will last you forever.  i just turn the pump off and throw in one at a time until he's not interested anymore.  every few days or so, i'll soak a few pellets in a drop of Selcon for a little vitamin boost, which he seems to love.   highly recommend this combo if you can't get the guy to eat.  

 

i've tried various flake, and both the red and green Julian Sprung's Sea Veggies, which is basically seaweed sheets, and he isn't nearly as interested in this stuff.  i have to cut up the seaweed VERY small for him to eat them, but he will.

 

you want a bulk of your TSB's diet to be herbivore based, but mine also LOVES the stuff i feed my corals (Coral Frenzy, Reef Roids, BRS Reef Chili) and has a field day cleaning up the water after i feed.

 

hope this helps.  good luck with the little guy, they quickly become favorites of those who keep them!

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  • 1 month later...

I love my TSB and was worried since I was first reading you believed it was going to die :(

its great to read your TSB eats though! For what it's worth, When I got mine, there were two TSBs in the display at the LFS, and one was bullying the other, so I was originally going to only get a clown, but ended up taking the bullied TSB to as a bit of a rescue. I really didn't like seeing what was happening, and It wasn't acting sick or weak, but just harassed by the other TSB since the DT was so small.

anyways my experience with it, I introduced it with a small clown at the same time, and ever since are normally always hanging around together, The TSB wasnt too timid with the clown always near it and started eating copepods off the glass and for a little while wouldnt go for the frozen mysis i offered. I was a bit stressed since it only went for copepods for a week. after what I assumed it watched the clownfish go for it enough times, it started eating frozen mysis. I've also had luck with the TSB eating flake food, pellets too. funnily enough, it didnt seem too interested to go after freshly hatched brine shrimp like my clown will,

as for the shyness, mine perches on the rocks and cruises around especially when hunting copepods. I've only seen it hide in a hole during the night, when my hand is in the tank, or it is spooked. maybe dither fish help blennies be more confident and help them eat?

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I was glad to find this post.  I got a TSB 4 days ago.  I could find him in his hole for the first 2 days then I lost track of him.  I have no idea where he is, if it has eaten anything.  No idea.  I hope it begins to show its face.  Cool looking fish, but never see it.  I hope still alive!  It appear that this is common and the post gives me some hope that it will come out.  

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