New ID Sharks

Kenner

Bought 2 ID's 5 days ago. 1 is 5" and the other is about 3". The 5 " did nothing but go side to side rubbing his nose on the tank for 3 days straight. The smaller one wasn't too bad. He would roam around but then he would school with the larger one. Back and forth...Back nd forth. Very active.
The larger has not eaten one thing. The smaller eats a little but not much. Today they have taken to hiding underneath a rock face all day. No motion. dead like. The smaller one lays on his side against the rock and gravel. I turned all the lights out and they came out for a bit. Lights on they are hiding again.
I this normal or should I worry. Flakes, Algea discs, shrimp pellets, frozen blood worm. I have an assortment of smaller fish in there too and they are fine.

Falina

Many fish will hide when the light is on so I wouldn't worry about that.

Can i ask what size of tank you have? This type of fish gets huge, 2-3ft in good water conditions is not uncommon and they can get larger though that is very rare. In any case you are looking at a tank of hundreds of gallons.

The foods you are feeding seems fine.

Do you have your water parameters to post?

Kenner

Falina,
Thank you for your info.
I have a 50 gallon right now. As they grow I will upgrade. I know these fish can get huge.
I do not have tank parameters. A half educated guess tells me it should be fine. I do 15% changes twice a week. I have 2 platys, 2 guppies, and 2 rainbows that have been in there for about a month and seem to be loving the new tank. Temp 78* My smaller one actaullt just popped his head out for the first time in 12 hours. Should I worry about their no appetite? Or laying on the bottom?

Falina

They are possibly eating after the lights go off. Keep a close eye on them after dark to se if they are. In the first few days fish are often stressed from a move and may lose their appetite so I wouldn't worry about that yet.

The lying at the bottom could be stress form a move, bullying (thoguh your list of fish makes me think that's unlikely, though not imposible), or bad water quality.

Your water change schedule does seem good but it's always a good thing to know your parameters because often a tank can lok clean but actually has toxic amonia/nitrite present. I'd recommend a liquid test kit over test strips. If you buy a master test kit these will test for amonia, nitrite and nitrate as well as ph which are the 4 most important ones to know. They're not that expensive, and will last for absolutely ages.

It's good that you're upgrading, and as long as you know what size these fish will potentially grow to, then you will be able to get a tank to accomodate. i would think 400-500g would be a minimum, though having never kept them I cannot say for sure.

Kenner

I did a 20% water change last night. The little fish are staying well clear of their larger tankmates. I am very cognizant of the food i feed them too. I stuck an algea disc in last night to see. I was 80% still there this morning not saying the smaller could have munched on it too. I did not see the sharks at all today. They hid the whole day. I thought these were active, social fish? It is like not having any. Should it get better?

Kenner

Well the ID's are finally eating. I fed them bloodworm this morning in the dark and they munch it down quick and went back into hiding. Again another day of not seeing them at all in daylight. It is 11pm and I am typing in the dark hoping to see my ID sharks. Someone tell me it will get better. I read lots of posts about how great these fish are. I haven't seen them to know.

okiemavis

Sounds like they're just picky eaters...hopefully you can get them to eat simpler foods over time. You might want to try a sinking shrimp based food or something like that instead of algae- it seems they like the meaty ones better, which makes sense for the species they are.

DropquickMurphy

Hey as the ID's get used to the tank they will start eating when you put the food in. i have had mine for about a year now and he was the same way. The thing about ID's is they get spooked easily, and with their bad eye sight often they will ram into the side of they tank and knock themselves out. but they do get big fast so start making plans for a bigger tank. Also check the temp you have the tank set at, and the balance of your water. They will hide and as they grow they will get "lazy". Also as they grow bigger even though they aren't an aggresive fish they will eat anything that will fit into their mouths.

1077

I agree with previous post. Many of these fish never reach their potential for most,,don't provide large enough tanks for them. They frequently bang into the ends of the tank and knock themselves silly or worse. Personally don't believe they have a place in any but the largest of aquariums.