How Much To Feed?

[Ann]

Hi, I am very new to having Apistos, I have 2 A. sp "Steel Blue". It looks to me like their bellies are a little sunken, I'm not sure if its my imagination or not, but I originally thought that it was because they weren't getting enough food. At the store they were in with fish who would outcompete them for food especially since they were always hiding so before any food would have time to sink and then time for them to notice it, it would be eaten by the other fish. But I've had them for almost 2 weeks now, have been feeding them twice a day and they don't look much different.
I want to make sure that I'm not feeding them TOO much as well. Is there a rule for how much to feed Apistos? I don't mean how often, I mean what volume of food should I be giving per day? For some fish their stomach is about the size of one of their eyes, is that true of Apistos? Do they have a particularly fast or slow metabolism? Thanks in advance.

 

[dw1305]

Hi all,
Welcome Ann, I'd treat them for internal worms, Camallanus infection is very common in a lot of commercially bred Apistogramma from SE Asia.

You may also find that, assuming they are both male?, that they are quite aggressive to one another.

Have a look here:<"A. agassizii wasting away"> & <"Camallanus worms">, and in terms of feeding have a look at <"A trifasciata undernourished"> & <"Dry food for Apisto's">.

cheers Darrel

 

[Ann]

I think I have a male/female pair. But they're in separate tanks right now while I get the larger one ready. However I was under the impression that two males could be kept together anyway if they're each given at least 10 gallons and a barrier is created between them. Is this not true? Also, these were CB in Massachusetts but I will still consider this possibility. Thanks for the info!

 

[Ann]

So far they've shown no other symptoms of anything being wrong. They are both active. No bumps or anything unusual that I have noticed on them. They haven't gotten any skinnier. Again, its not extremely noticeable, it may just be my imagination. I thought I was feeding them a lot, but I'm wondering if maybe I'm just not feeding enough. But I don't want to end up feeding them too much. That's why I want to know how much to feed them. They have been eating frozen mystis shrimp and bloodworms also live guppy fry (gut loaded), snails (gut loaded), and the occasional black worm. They haven't shown any interest in pellets or flakes so far.

 

[gerald]

You can feed them as much as they'll eat while they're young an growing, provided they get a good variety. "Overfeeding" is more a problem of feeding more than the fish can eat, and the uneaten food rots in the tank. Mosquito larvae and fresh-hatched brine shrimp are probably the all-around best foods for under-nourished dwarf cichlids. Blackworms too, if they're healthy worms; I chop them on cutting board for fish smaller than 2". They do have a small stomach and prefer to nibble all day long rather than gorge on a big meal, which is why Apistos in pet shops nearly always look thin. That's great you were able to get local captive-bred fish; less likely to be stressed and carrying diseases than mass-farmed ones, and also you might have a better chance of getting a female (rare in farmed steel-blues). When growth slows down after age 1, be a bit more careful about feeding fatty foods, or they can get fat deposits in the liver and other organs that can shorten their lives.

Edit: Can you contact the breeder and find out what foods he/she was feeding them?

 

[Ann]

Thanks Gerald. Great info. I can contact the breeder. I think for now I will try feeding 3 times per day and see if that helps fill them out more.