Fire Goby popularly known as Firefish is a saltwater fish that are hardy and full of activities, that’s why they are very easy and less expensive to keep. They are beginner-friendly fish because even newbies could keep them but with the right knowledge, this is because just like every other fish, problems may arise which could make you helpless, especially when you have little or no idea about the causes and maybe what to do. One of the problems that may arise when keeping Firefish is the inability to eat. If you are reading this article, it means that your Firefish has refused to eat and you want to know why and also the possible solutions, I suggest you read this article to the end.
Why is my Firefish not eating? Firefish could stop eating if it is sick or it is not interested in the type of food it is being fed.
As I mentioned above, fire Gobies are hardy and beginner-friendly fish because they ain’t very hard to keep unless you don’t know what you are doing.
They will eat anything edible because they are scavengers and could eat like pigs.
Surprisingly if they stop eating all of a sudden, then something is wrong with them and we will look at some of the reasons why they might stop eating in a second.
Why Is My Firefish Not Eating?
If your Firefish is refusing to eat, then here are some of the reasons:
1. Keeping more than one Firefish: Firefish is aggressive, territorial, and intolerant of each other and will stress and even kill themselves when kept together.
You might be surprised to hear this for the first time, but that is the fact and many people make these mistakes so many times and they pay dearly for it.
This is why I said that you must have the necessary knowledge about these fish before keeping them.
Fire Gobies are not social fish, and neither do they school, they are lone fish and they love it.
When two or more are kept together, they will fight and kill each other and those that survived will go into hiding and won’t ever come out, not even to eat and they usually die of hunger and malnutrition.
So, if they are hiding and not coming out to eat, then know that there is aggression going on in the tank.
The only solution to this is to keep only one Firefish and if you must keep two, then it should be a male and a female and they must have mated, if not, they will still fight.
2. Type of food you feed them: Another reason why your Fire Goby may refuse to eat is the type of food you are giving to it.
These fish have small mouths and giving them the kind of food that is bigger than their mouths will kill their interest in eating such foods.
I mean who will eat what can’t even be able to fit in his mouth without breaking the food down? The same goes for your Firefish.
Although they could eat a lot of things but only what could fit in their mouths.
The solution here is simple, just break the food down into smaller particles and they will go for it.
3. Wrong water parameters/Cold water temperature: Fire Gobies are Tropical saltwater fish and they don’t do very well in a cold water temperature when they are exposed to such temperature, they could have some health issues which might result in loss of appetite.
Their ideal water temperature is 68°F – 80°F, so, if they are refusing to eat and you notice that the water temperature is very cold, then Get a heater and maintain the above temperature and your fish will be fine again.
Apart from temperature, another fact you should consider balancing is their ideal pH which is 8.0 – 8.2.
4. Toxins: Toxins are very harmful elements in the water that could develop as a result of dirt such as poops, urine, decayed organisms, uncycled tank, etc.
These elements are better harmful and could be fatal to any aquatic animal which fish is inclusive.
Such harmful elements include Copper, Ammonia, Nitrite, Chlorine, and many more.
Any of these could have severe health issues in your fish which could make them sick and stop eating.
As I always say, you are not serious with fish keeping if you have no water testing kits and Filter, get all these and test your water at least once a week and if you notice any of these toxins, do at least 50% change of water per day or one in a week until the toxins are eliminated.
Again if you happen to find out very late and your fish is down already, I think the intervention of a vet will be a nice idea.
5. Diseases and Parasites: Sickness is one of the greatest factors that could cause loss of appetite in every animal, including fish.
Generally, sick animals don’t eat and even if they do, they eat very tiny compared to what they used to eat when they are in good health.
There are many diseases and parasites that could infect fish which could keep them from eating, such diseases and Parasites are White spot disease, Bloat, Swim bladder issues, Fin rot, and many more.
When they are suffering from diseases or parasites, they show many signs such as swimming upside-down, scratching themselves on any object they see and losing appetite, etc.
Your best shot here is to get a vet to intervene, diagnose and find a cure for them.
FAQs
What Do Firefish Like Eating?
Firefish are omnivores, they eat anything other fish could eat, but their best food is meat such as brine shrimps, Insects, Copepods, Mysis shrimps, etc and they could eat vegetables and plants such as algae, cucumber, carrots, and many more.
Sometimes Firefish could lose appetite and stop eating maybe because it doesn’t like a particular food, so try changing the diet to frozen Mysis shrimp… if that doesn’t work, try some flake flood like Omega One with Garlic. No fish can resist those… if nothing works, try soaking the food in garlic a little.
If you can get Nutramar Ova, that will get your fish crazy.
Despite that Firefish could eat almost anything, there are some foods they love most and can’t resist, so give them and above mentioned foods if they are refusing to eat and see what happens.
How Often Should I Feed My Firefish?
It is highly recommended to feed your fish once or twice a day with the quantity of food they can only get able to eat for 5 minutes or less.
Feeding is caring but overfeeding is not! so don’t overfeed them or you risk killing them because they have no limitation and will continue eating till they die.
If your fish is bloated as a result of overfeeding, then you might have to starve them for a day or two so that they can poop and fee themselves.
Conclusion
The above are some of the reasons why your Firefish is refusing to eat and their solutions too.
If things get complicated, get in contact with a vet.
References
