What you do if your fish is blind?

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evbal

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Dec 22, 2009
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Alberta, Canada
I bought a 8" red eye albino ID shark from private sale for over 3 weeks and I figure out it has a very weak vision, almost blind. I feed the sinking pellet everyday and it doesn't eat anything because it cannot see. The shark is very slim. Do you guy has any experience? I try to put a cut up market prawn in front of its month and I know it can smell but it swim away, then my stingray eats it. My wish is this shark can eat and growing up.

Thanks
 
It might not necessarily be blind, though they are very prone to damaging their eyes in an aquarium. Of the 4 ID sharks I currently have, all were acquired at larger sizes and all but 1 went on a hunger strike for the first couple weeks. One went a month and a half, with plenty of food available.

If you can post a picture it would help in identifying if there is an issue with the Id's eyes.
 
even if he is blind, he can still find and eat by his strong sense of smell. this can be one of the issues w putting a somewhat timid eater (if even temporarily timid) with a much more aggressive eater such as your stingray. is there any way you can isolate him in the tank or in a different tank with just him and the food and leave him alone for a while?
 
Fish don't need their eyes to find food, so he may simply be on a hunger strike since he's in a new environment. Though 8" is pretty young for an Iridescent Shark to go three weeks without food, I suspect a little more time should get his hunger back.

Have you tried feeding him after lights out? Tried adding no food for a day or two to get him actively seeking food? What was the previous owner feeding him?
 
Thanks pharmaecopia, Twofish, Knifegill & Tri-Fisher for quick reply.
I will definitely give the shark more time to calm down and to be accustomed to the new environment. I will post some picture then. I always see the shark hit into my other fishes or glass or decoration not in a purpose that's why I judge it cannot see.
I put it in the quarantine tank for 4 days with light dose of medicine to prevent or to cure any disease before placed it into my 180 gallon tank because this shark was living in a not good quality water fish tank before.
 
how do you know if the fish is blind? it may tale sometimes for your fish to eat the food or else your fish just need sometimes to adapt with the new environment.
 
I would put him in a small bare bottom tank and feed him frozen BS. I would avoid bloodworms at first because they may be too rich for him at first. You could also use shrimp pellets.

Just drop the food (or squirt with a turkey baster) infront of him. Then the next day you can see how much he ate that night and it makes it easier to monitor him. The smaller tank ensures he finds the food. Once he starts eating good, you can move him back to his normal tank.
 
Yes I like the barebottom tank idea. I would use NLS pellets called thera AAA++++. It has a high concetration of garlic in it. An appetite surpresant. Keep up on the wc too.
 
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