# Clown knife question



## tattooedkountrygirl (Mar 9, 2012)

I'm concerned about my 6" clown knife's (steve) eating habits. I'm not sure if he's getting enough. The fish store I got them from said to feed them rosies which I have been but they seem to big and I've been watching Steve try to catch one and doesn't get anywhere close to getting it. Is there other things I can feed him? I've tried cichlid pellets, flakes, freeze dried blood warms..... Any advice is helpful. Thanks


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## z1200 (Jan 26, 2012)

Ghost shrimp are cheap, and smaller than rosies, could you maybe try them? Don't quote me though, I've never owned one.


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## snail (Aug 6, 2010)

Do you know if he is eating at all?


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## susankat (Nov 15, 2008)

You can try frozen blood worms and shrimp, They tend to like those better than dried.


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## SuckMyCichlids (Nov 5, 2011)

You could try soaking his food in garlic gaurd as well, if never used it but have heard good things about it


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## tattooedkountrygirl (Mar 9, 2012)

snail said:


> Do you know if he is eating at all?


I've smaller rosies in there and they've disappeared so I'm sure he's eating but these 2 rosies (in the pic) have been in there for 3 days and I've seen him chasing them. I got some ghost shrimp tonight and am going to get frozen brine if he doesn't eat at all.


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## tattooedkountrygirl (Mar 9, 2012)

I finally got him to eat!! Had to kinda of knock the rosies of balance so he could catch them. I'm so relieved that he's finally eating. sheewww lol


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## Vitamin T (Feb 29, 2012)

Rosie's are good food. Clowns usually only eat late at night. 

They also like frozen beaf hearts.


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## katanamasako (Jun 29, 2012)

Freeze dried blood worms have no nutritional value, i wouldn't feed those anymore, on top of that often times they cause health issues. as for smaller feeders, you could try ghost shrimp or breeding feeder guppies, it takes a while, but once the females start they can keep going for several months even after being removed from the males.


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## tattooedkountrygirl (Mar 9, 2012)

He's eating good now. 24 rosies in about 2 days or so. lol He's about 9" now. I need to get a new pic of him.


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## Manafel (Sep 4, 2011)

Are you QTing your feeder fish before you feed them to your clown knife? I know that it's not the question that you asked, but clown knives get huge, and him being 9 inches in a 10g tank could be part of your problem. I know that you are waiting to get a bigger tank, but I hope that it is soon. They can get to 36 inches and need a minimum of 300 gallons. Not trying to be mean, just letting you know. Glad to hear that he is eating again.


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## tattooedkountrygirl (Mar 9, 2012)

No I'm not. He does just fine on his own now. Yes I'm well aware of that... I've had them growing up. I have a 150 gallon tank but there's no since in setting it up just to take it down in a month. He has plenty of room in this for now and he will only get as big as his environment will allow him to. The ones I used to have only got 24" in a 55 gal tank and we had them for 5+ yrs. I just never had one that small and didn't know what to do for him.


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## Nereus7 (Jun 13, 2012)

Oh boy here we go... take it away, chaos.. - N


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## Manafel (Sep 4, 2011)

"A Fish only grows to it's tank" Is actually a pretty inaccurate statement. Yours lived for only 5+ years in a 55 Gal tank because he was in a tank too small. Clown Knives can actually live a lot longer than that, providing that they are given enough space to fully grow. I commend you for already having a 150gal ready for him. Do you plan on buying a tank in the neighborhood of 300 gallons in the near future? You could make a nice predator tank with a tank that size(After all it doesn't seem to make much sense to have such a large tank for just one fish). Or are you having to take it down in a month bcause you are moving?
When a fish is kept in a tank too small, they become stunted. Their organs continue to grow, while their skeleton stops. The end result is a slow painful death because their organs grow and end up crushing eachother. I'm not trying to be mean or rude, but sadly, thats just how it goes. I wish we could keep an oscar in a 30 gallon and have everything be ok, that would make stocking a tank a lot easier, and I know that you do care about your fish.
With the feeder fish, Might I suggest breeding your own? Feeding live fish is a bit of a controversy, but it is sometimes impossible to feed a clown knife anything else since they are predators. When you buy fish from the pet store and feed them to your knife without making sure they are in good health, who knows what diseases your exposing it to. He might not be sick now, but when he gets stressed, you might be pulling out your hair when you have to deal with multiple illnesses at one time.


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## susankat (Nov 15, 2008)

When a fish is in a smaller tank than needed he will grow to fit the tank, but what is actually happening is the fish is stunted, The outside quits growing but the internal organs do not and causes a very painful death.

If you are not willing to set the fish up properly in the first place you don't need the fish.


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## fishboy (Jul 15, 2012)

when you move, get it in a 150-300 gal. tank


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## navigator black (Jan 3, 2012)

Can someone give me a source for the organs growing but outsides not? I'm not trying to start a debate - I have no set opinion on the issue. I would just like to see a confirmation as I have never observed this. In the pre-water change, natural harmony in the tank phase of the hobby 30 years ago, lots of people had stunted fish and while their fish had miserable lives as creatures much smaller than their genetic potential, swimming in bowls of poop, I never saw this phenomenon. My one inch variatus lived as long as my 2.5 inch ones do now. Since I could not see inside them, maybe they were suffering. Any links to studies?
This is genuine curiosity, and not trolling for a dispute...


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## Manafel (Sep 4, 2011)

navigator black said:


> Can someone give me a source for the organs growing but outsides not? I'm not trying to start a debate - I have no set opinion on the issue. I would just like to see a confirmation as I have never observed this. In the pre-water change, natural harmony in the tank phase of the hobby 30 years ago, lots of people had stunted fish and while their fish had miserable lives as creatures much smaller than their genetic potential, swimming in bowls of poop, I never saw this phenomenon. My one inch variatus lived as long as my 2.5 inch ones do now. Since I could not see inside them, maybe they were suffering. Any links to studies?
> This is genuine curiosity, and not trolling for a dispute...


I would actually like to thank you for this. I always took other more experienced advise from people without questioning, and now I have. I have looked for a while for actual scientific evidence of it to be true, but I have found the opposite, that it is just a very common myth among aquaria. Here is a like to a thread on another forum with some really good information. No official studies have been conducted on this matter:

fish growing to size of their tank=MYTH!!

Though thee organs might actually stop growing, it is obvious that the fish does become stunted, because ideal living conditions are not provided, and they become stressed. The extract from the article the guy posted on that thread was a very informative read.


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