How to feed Sandsifting Gobies?

Hey everyone,

I'm boywithafishtank, and as some of you guys know, i got a Mural Striped Sleeper Goby. I'm really happy for this guy, and he has been doing great. He is sifting through the sand, and finding some things to eat. However, i'm not really having success with feeding him with other foods. I tried pellets, and he eats some of them, but he always leaves some behind, like hes not really interested. I tried mysis shrimp, but didnt catch him eat any (Mainly because he was hiding in his burrow, meanwhile i was feeding, since it was one of the first feedings i gave him). Are there any pellets or other foods that you have success with feeding gobies with? And how do you feed him? I usually just drop some pellets in front of hes burrow, and he will come out and eat some of them, but leaves some few behind. Any tips? (You can eventually see my new goby on my new update video on youtube, hes very healthy and active )

Oh, just read about a tip: Blowing mysis into the sand infront of the gobies burrow. That way, you can make it sift through the sand, and then it will eat the mysis shrimp. Some people say live brine shrimp works good aswell. What do you think? I've heard that the most common reason for gobies dying, is because of under-nourishment, and lack of nutrients.

 

Sand-sifting gobies can be difficult to keep long term due to nourishment issues. You need a large established sandbed, as well as one that eats prepared foods to supplement its diet. With these gobies, it is crucial (IMO) that you witness them eating prepared foods at the LFS. If not, they may never eat anything you put in the tank. If you do get it eating, high quality pellets, mysis, and other large frozen plankton are what you should feed it. Any foods that break apart easily will just pass through their gills.

 

The gobies were feed with prepared foods at my LFS, and they ate mysis shrimp. They didnt have any sandbed out there. So i use the same mysis shrimp, and i blew them down in the sand, and he would go down and filtrate the sand, and eat all of the mysis. He is now fat and happy That feeding technique apparently really works well. My sandbed is also really well established, and every day i see him catching small pods and worms, but its never enough. So, i'm giving him mysis, and then i try to see if i can put pellets down under the sand infront of hes burrow, and see if he'll eat it. Hes very curious

 

That method may work, although it may also lead to a build up of nutrients. Mine would come out during feeding time and would catch mysis as it was floating down. I never had to blow it into its cave. And I disagree that your sandbed is established personally. Your tank is still on the newer side (6 months is still on the newer side believe it or not!), and is small. Your Goby will have trouble finding enough fauna in a small tank. As you already mentioned, one of the main reasons these fish do not last long in home aquariums is due to malnutrition. The other is "carpet surfing" as they are jumpers. Is your tank covered? I recently lost my Tiger Wardi Goby as it found a very small opening in my HT and somehow jumped into the HOB filter. It only lasted a couple days after this happened as it got pretty beat up unfortunately.

In summary, I would say that if your Goby does not eat your prepared foods well, I would recommend finding another suitable (and larger) home for him. If he does eat well, just keep an eye on its belly. It should stay nice and fat. Good luck!

 

Yes my tank is covered, i learned that lesson after i got a lawnmower blenny, and the day after i got him, he was on the floor, and my cat found it, so he didnt make it I now have it covered with a fine net, that is attached to some wood, so that it stays on the tank, and i can remove it manually. No fish has jumped out since

 

Ok good. Sorry you found out the hardway, but at least you learned from the mistake.

 

You might try thawing the mysis in SW (that way they won't float away) and let them sink to the bottom of the tank thru a tube in front of the fish's lair. Here's a vid of how we fed one of our stingfishes:

 

Haha, indeed i did In fact, that guy was my first fish, so it was devastating My dad made the net on this tank by himself, and it works perfectly. It doesnt look very ugly either, it actually looks kinda cool

 

Great video! I might try this method tommorow with some new mysis. Atleast he got some food today I'm just hoping that they can be there, without the my shrimp catching it first Thanks for the tip!

 

My Sleeper Blue Dot Goby eats frozen mysis/brine. I saw him eating frozen food at my LFS, so I knew he'd be okay to take home regarding feeding. I let the shrimp thaw in saltwater in a tiny bowl and then drop it into the tank. He comes out of his burrow and chases after all the food. Literally all of it! He even goes to the top of the rockwork sometimes to go get it.

He's about twice the size as the one in my LFS's personal tank, yet doesn't make mountains like his -_-