# Angelfish won't eat flakes?



## Tigger3336

Hi everyone. I have 3 good sized angelfish in a 40 gallon long tank, all are healthy ... but not a single one will eat flake food! I've tried various kinds/qualities, but they only mouth it and spit it out again. I've tried crushing it small, kinda small and leaving it large flake ... still nothing.

They LOVE bloodworms, and are kind of okay with brine shrimp. Am I just being paranoid, or is it okay to feed mainly brine shrimp just so they will eat. If I don't feed the squares, they will go days without eating ... 

Nobody is getting bullied, they all have good coloring, no blood shot eyes, no bloat, no signs of any infections, and all swim around the tank / between plants and driftwood ... and play in the water current.

All tank parameters are good, I do 1/2 water changes weekly, and vacuum the gravel well. They don't hide or act weird when I approach the tank, but I'm worried about overfeeding them richer foods.


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## infolific

I don't have any proven tricks, but I thought you'd like to hear that I've had similar troubles. It took days for mine to accept flakes (unfortunately a low-end variety). I'm now working on pellets and have had success with one angel, but not the other. Frozen brine shrimp and freeze-dried bloodworms are readily accepted, but I want flakes/pellets to be an option for vacations.


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## Tigger3336

Thank you, I'm glad I am not alone. I don't mind feeding them the bloodworms and brine, but sheesh ... they are picky! I've never had so much issue with small children eating as these lot!


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## youngt3

Tigger3336 said:


> Hi everyone. I have 3 good sized angelfish in a 40 gallon long tank, all are healthy ... but not a single one will eat flake food! I've tried various kinds/qualities, but they only mouth it and spit it out again. I've tried crushing it small, kinda small and leaving it large flake ... still nothing.
> 
> They LOVE bloodworms, and are kind of okay with brine shrimp. Am I just being paranoid, or is it okay to feed mainly brine shrimp just so they will eat. If I don't feed the squares, they will go days without eating ...
> 
> Nobody is getting bullied, they all have good coloring, no blood shot eyes, no bloat, no signs of any infections, and all swim around the tank / between plants and driftwood ... and play in the water current.
> 
> All tank parameters are good, I do 1/2 water changes weekly, and vacuum the gravel well. They don't hide or act weird when I approach the tank, but I'm worried about overfeeding them richer foods.


If it is not due to sickness, sometimes with new angelfishes I bought they do not right away feed due to new environment or stress. Usually, in couple of days, they will start feeding again when they become hungry. If they don't eat the food, reduce the amount you give them until they start eating again. Any left over uneaten food, suck it out.

I also run into this problem when introducing them to new kind of food they are not used to eating. It will take them time to adjust and accept.


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## Altumnut

I had the same issue for years until I tried Tropical D-50 Plus Flake I got as a sample and both Altum Angels and Discus go nuts over it. I ordered an 11 kg pail direct from Germany now as my main stable food. It's like crack to them...
You can try a small can from AngelFins but they are sold out currently.
https://angelfins.ca/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=3410

Just found this site....https://ca.miscota.com/fish/tropical/p-91073

...Ralph


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## Tigger3336

Thank you for all the support and advise, I figured out the problem!

Last Saturday (tank cleaning day), I had completed all 4 tanks and was sitting in the dark watching the problem tank with just the night time black light on. Brutus (giant dominant male) was picking on Snowball. She has always been blind, but had started to show signs of fish bladder, and was almost nose straight up in the tank. She kept moving to the corner when Brutus pecked at her, so I moved her to the guppy tank to give her some peace and quiet.

The next day, Gidget started investigating different areas of the tank, and hanging around with Brutus A LOT! All three of them are now eating flakes (spit out the pellets), and are all doing much better. 

Currently Gidget and Brutus are taking turns cleaning different areas of their tank and swim around beside each other without fail ... showing all the signs of Gidget about to spawn! Sheesh, I guess they felt three was a crowd and just wanted some privacy. LOL


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