ive got a 8inch cobra snakehead

[scrubby]

[jvision]

Maybe ask scottie100 how it's going with this guy.

Edited September 14, 2007 by jvision

[nicolalex]

If you don't feed him often enough then your fingers may become the next meal at the regular cleaning :rofl: -roll-

I'm sure glad I'm not the one responsible for cleaning a snakehead tank!

[Tanker]

When I kept Rainbows they were about 6", and I fed them every second day. I used feeders that I raised myself and would just drop a couple or four in, every couple days. The snakeheads wouldn't gorge themselves the way that the larger ones do, so sometimes a feeder or two would make it to Day Two, but never more.

You can tell when they have had too much to eat, their bellies get distended like a puffer's and they look like they swallowed an egg.

And keep the lid VERY secure... one of mine got out through a hole I never would have imagined and it was a couple days before I found him clear across the room behind some furniture. They boogey!

[scrubby]

When I kept Rainbows they were about 6", and I fed them every second day. I used feeders that I raised myself and would just drop a couple or four in, every couple days. The snakeheads wouldn't gorge themselves the way that the larger ones do, so sometimes a feeder or two would make it to Day Two, but never more.

You can tell when they have had too much to eat, their bellies get distended like a puffer's and they look like they swallowed an egg.

And keep the lid VERY secure... one of mine got out through a hole I never would have imagined and it was a couple days before I found him clear across the room behind some furniture. They boogey!

so far ive kept a few gold fish in the tank and he eats when he wants but he s shy when eating likes the lights off i started with minnows but they dont last 25 in less then 1 1/2 days

[Tanker]

They do tend to prefer a dimmer tank than we are used to keeping our fish in. He'll settle in and come out a bit more as time goes on, and if you don't leave the feeders in there, and instead feed one at a time, he'll associate you with food, and will come to greet you when you walk in. Otherwise you're just movement and noise and he'll stay in the shadows.

They are an interesting keep, for sure, but absolutely different than the 'normal' stocking of a tank.

As well, beware of the dangers of feeding commercial feeders, especially goldfish. Highly diseased and poor nutrition. If you can swing it, it is far better to raise your own, or purchase them from someone you know (might be a couple people on here that can swing enough for you from their extras). A fish like that would probably be fine on a normal diet of say 'a minnow every second day' to keep the hunting nature up. They'll also eat beef heart, bloodworms, pieces of cooked shrimp (I ran a length of fishing line through it and drag it through the tank.. THAT is cool to watch - just don't knot the line or have too much sticking off the backside... otherwise they eat it and no one wants to floss their snakehead) so if you can supplement their diet with things other than live you'll be happier (and more cost effective).

I have heard of a couple people trying to spike their prepared foods with pellets, etc to get the fish used to the taste in hopes of going 'pure NLS' or other, but I have not heard recently if it's worked, or not.

FYI, or for anyone else who might be curious:

~Beef heart is super cheap, just buy it fresh, trim as much fat off as possible and dice it into cubes (about a quarter inch square), then freeze it in smaller portion ziplocks. I will put 10 or so in a bag, and then squeeze all the air out and seal the bag. then useing my fingers, I'll separate the pieces IN the bag, so they are not touching when they freeze - otherwise it's a pain in the rump to get them apart without defrosting the bag.

~Cooked shrimp - check Safeway or your local grocer for the bags of large size cooked and peeled shrimp. They often have them 2 for 1 which means two pounds of shrimp for about $8. I just cut a chunk off of a tail and nuke it for 10 seconds to defrost it quickly. I have read that feeding frozen stuff is tough on a fish due to their cold blood. I used to take about 5 tails out at a time, and chop it up various sizes for everything I had. Super tiny for the Endlers, little bigger for the juvie tanks of cichlids, about the same for the bettas, bigger for the adult cichlids and the snakeheads and the yabby and the piranhas and the puffers... the whole feeding frenzy would cost about 20 cents, and everyone LOVED it.

~Bloodworms are tough to feed a snakehead, as they tend to break up in the water before the fish has a chance to get it all, and they are not very adept at feeding off the bottom. Not really the best suggestion, but if you are running low on something else, it's usually handy. Same goes for mysis and krill; larger WHOLE frozen krill are alright, but I would not use anything freeze dried or too small, myself. These are VERY messy eaters, so I try to limit the amount of mess I make while feeding... they'll make enough, themselves.

Maybe this is fodder for a Pin on "How to prepare 'other' foods for fish"... suggestions and ideas could all be gathered from everyone and compiled... oh wait... might be something in the Library on that... hrmmm....

[scrubby]

do you cook beef heart .....or just raw and how long can you leave it in for

[Tanker]

I use it raw without problems so far. Just cut it up so that all you have is pure 'meat'. Leave it in the tank, you mean? In theory you should only be feeding what the fish can eat, so it shouldn't be sitting there, for long. Otherwise it will immediately start leaching into the water, and fouling it. If you use a good 'freezer' bag, and not just the regular sandwich bags, the frozen stuff will last for months (and one $4 package of beefheart after trimming it will give you about 2 pounds of solid meat) so no worries there. Once you defrost it, it will be ok in the fridge for a couple days - so don't take out too much at a time (hence the suggestion for seperating it in the bag when freezing it originally. The less air, the longer it will stay nice in the freezer, too.

I was trying to stick to a regime of feeding my snakeheads one feeding of live feeders, then the next would be beefheart, and then feeders again, and then shrimp. This was about every second day, so they would only usually get shrimp and beefheart about once a week. I would gut-load my feeders with NLS prior to them going in the tank, so that they got as well rounded a meal as I could give them, as easily as possible. I was fortunate to have already had a feeder system started, though... which is why I got the snakeheads in the first place... they were bought specifically to handle my culls. All the chatter on here lately with them, and I am considering doing it again, but my operation is MUCH smaller now and with me working out of town half the week, Mrs. Me would not appreciate it, so much.

[Tanker]

Oh and uh... what size tank do you have this in? You are aware, I'm sure, that this fish is going to need a 400+ gallon tank in 12 months, right? This is not a dwarf species of snakehead (as the Rainbow is)... this is also known as the Great Snakehead. Even at half it's 'max' size, it's going to be three feet long, and weigh 40 or so pounds.

[scrubby]

Oh and uh... what size tank do you have this in? You are aware, I'm sure, that this fish is going to need a 400+ gallon tank in 12 months, right? This is not a dwarf species of snakehead (as the Rainbow is)... this is also known as the Great Snakehead. Even at half it's 'max' size, it's going to be three feet long, and weigh 40 or so pounds.

right now hes in a 30 g but ive got a 110 g tank set aside for now some one told me the only get 16 inches long :eh:

and i even called him on it and he asured me they only get to that certain size

Edited September 16, 2007 by scrubby

[scrubby]

oh well the 110 will do for now i ll keep my eyes open....for a new tank

[Toirtis]

Oh and uh... what size tank do you have this in? You are aware, I'm sure, that this fish is going to need a 400+ gallon tank in 12 months, right? This is not a dwarf species of snakehead (as the Rainbow is)... this is also known as the Great Snakehead. Even at half it's 'max' size, it's going to be three feet long, and weigh 40 or so pounds.

Actually, I have seen them and know them to be Channa marulioides (which is what they were shipped as) rather than Channa marulius, which they do not resemble at all. Channa marulioides reach a maximum of 26cm.

[scrubby]

Oh and uh... what size tank do you have this in? You are aware, I'm sure, that this fish is going to need a 400+ gallon tank in 12 months, right? This is not a dwarf species of snakehead (as the Rainbow is)... this is also known as the Great Snakehead. Even at half it's 'max' size, it's going to be three feet long, and weigh 40 or so pounds.

Actually, I have seen them and know them to be Channa marulioides (which is what they were shipped as) rather than Channa marulius, which they do not resemble at all. Channa marulioides reach a maximum of 26cm.

thx ......... i kept getting larger pics of the other one ...... i was thinking omfg 70 inch fish.... i can breathe again thx