Whenever I feed my Blood Parrot, Rosemary, the food just comes right back out of her gills. I've tried her on a number of different cichlid pellets but she can't seem to actually eat any of it. The problem is getting serious because now I not only have a starving fish but the discarded food is really making my tank disgusting. I've got some kind of stringy white fungus growing everywhere now. I've done numerous water changes to get rid of it but it just keeps coming back because of the food in the water. Also her stool is very compact and large which I don't understand because she has such a hard time eating. When I say the food comes back out of her gills I don't just mean a little of it, the entire pellet comes out whole, then disintegrates and falls to the bottom to turn my tank into a fungus incubator. I've fed her small chunks of fish and cooked crab and she seemed to like it but someone told me that it was unhealthy for her so I haven't done it since. She's very large and I would venture to say pretty old considering that I bought her full grown over 4 years ago. If anyone has any pointers or advice it would be greatly appreciated.
Comments
Rosie's Dilemma
Hi there,
I agree that some defrosted frozen peas could help in her digestion and with parrots food being blown through their gills is common.I would get a variety of foods as Rosemary is quite old and may be a bit fussy now.Frozen bloodworm or brine shrimp defrosted in a mug/dish of lukewarm water may be a good addition.Some pellets i have tried like bloodworm or a krill/shrimp mix is sometimes ignored by my parrots and even the very unfussy green severums, as old stock or inferior products are being sold cheap on auction sites and are pretty tasteless and uninviting to our fishes.As she is an older fish too you could try adding a vitamin supplement in the form of a liquid to your pellets and let them absorb the solution before feeding them to her.If there is a stringy white mess in the tank also i would try adding some Melafix which is a natural remedy used for a few days before a 30% water change,i swear by this product and it is chemical free as it is derived from melaleuca.Check your water temperature and ask a local petshop/aquarist to check your waters levels for nitrates,ammonia and oxygen etc just to be safe.Hope Rosemary picks up and eats better.Have a great xmas all the best.Craig.
Re: I think my poor Rosie is starving!
try feeding her pea's or get some frozen bloodworms or brine mine love all of the above. As for all the white stuff growing you need to get a gravel vac and really clean that out also everthing that it dosent consume should be removed after a few mins. maybe this will help