Trigger Owners

[Sobo's Reef]

What do you feed your trigger and how do you feed him? I just purchased a male blue throat trigger 2 days ago and so far he hasn't been eating. I know for the first few/several days they may not eat but I was just curious for when he does start to eat. Thanks!

 

[Ackmans]

hi dan.
this is steve the old guy.
that was at your place.
i have a niger trigger.
after 2 days he eats any thing the other fish go after.
dan do you still have any mushroom left.
let me know.

 

[ThatGuy]

table shrimp with shell, krill, clams, mussles, fish chunks, ect. That's what I use to feed my Picasso and niger back when I had them. Surprised he hasn't eaten your shrimp.....yet.

 

[Sobo's Reef]

hi dan.
this is steve the old guy.
that was at your place.
i have a niger trigger.
after 2 days he eats any thing the other fish go after.
dan do you still have any mushroom left.
let me know.

Hey Steve, thanks for the info. But No I do not have anymore mushrooms for sale.

 

[redfishbluefish]

I too have a male blue throat and he’s a pig. He’s first to the table on anything that is put into the tank……including the algae I put in for the tangs; mysis; home-made frozen food; flakes; pellets; anything. Eats algae off the algae clip. If he doesn’t like it, he spits it out….and that is rare.

 

[lefkonj]

I have a niger trigger for about 2 years now. He eats like a cow. He eats nori, pellets, rods food, frozen krill. Just give him time.

 

[kschweer]

Triggers will eat just about anything as stated previously. The ones I have dealt with really liked when I would feed them clams on the half shell.

 

[dppitone]

Now triggers are my area. The blue throats are generally one of the most cautious of the triggers. You may not see him/her for a few days. It's normal for them to go as long as a week or two without eating. Some don't adjust to eating prepared foods. They all eat meaty foods. I keep squid, shrimp and silver fish (not to be confused with silversides) for them. If you just have one it makes feeding easier and potentially less messy. Defrost the food in water and then rinse it off to remove the phosphates produced from defrosting. Feed mouthside bits directly to the trigger towards the surface and he should take it all in with one gulp. That is the cleanest way to do it. Compared to more confident triggers like humus, queens, etc, the blue throat may be a little skiddish and grab a piece of food and the run, before coming back and doing it again. In time it will become more at ease.

 

[Sobo's Reef]

Thanks for all the advice guys! I've tried mysis shrimp but he hasn't come out for any, not saying he didn't eat any but he didn't come out of the rock work for anything.

Now Dave, when you say feed the trigger mouthside, how r u feeding, with ur hand? A feeding tool? I mean all I have are mysis shrimp and I can't really feed that directly to him bc it all falls apart once I thaw it out. Is there some food that's more solid to give him? If so, what brands have u had success with?

 

[dppitone]

The mysis are pretty small and might confuse him at first. In time he'll figure that out but might miss bunch. I'd suggest getting some shrimp from the grocery store, that's what I use. There mouths are about twice as big as they look, so make chunks about that size. Throw in a 2 or 3 at time, and after he gets it do it again. This is just for the beginning while he's skiddish. Later on you can put it all in, and he'll hit them all in a matter seconds once he's adjusted - could be a few days to a few weeks.

But you may as well not try to feed him till you see him taking an interest in the other fish feeding. Then you'll know he's ready. Just drop it in at the surface with your hand, I just say that to keep the tank clean, let him grab it right away rather than having the food travel around the tank and potentially get missed.

Dave

 

[Sobo's Reef]

Maybe I should try spot feeding him? Bc I know as soon as I put a piece of shrimp in the tank, everyone else is gonna jump for it. Would be hard to feed him and not everyone else

 

[dppitone]

I'd wait till he shows interest when you feed the others.

 

[Sobo's Reef]

Might be awhile, he hides everytime I walk near the tank lol

 

[grink]

Mine was the same way. He hid for about the first week. I also have several other triggers. They all eat anything I put in the tank.
Not to worry.

 

[Sobo's Reef]

Mine was the same way. He hid for about the first week. I also have several other triggers. They all eat anything I put in the tank.
Not to worry.

He seems to be getting a little better. Do u hand feed ur trigger(s) or just toss some food in the tank?