Super excited!!

[Skyewillow]

After having the newbies for nearly a week, I was becoming increasingly worried that Don Quixote wasn't eating. We rescued him from a putrid little cup last Tuesday, and I tried just about everything I could think of to get him to eat without any success.

My fiance put a couple of guppy fry into his tank, and he seemed interested in their presence, but still didn't eat. I bought garlic, crushed and chopped the daylights out of it so it would be all oozy and such, and soaked his pellets in it: Nothing. I've given him the Omega One flakes that we use on our EE, Hu; Nope.

This afternoon, I moved him to a different tank, and added a slow moving filter (for air and water movement), and tried the flakes again. He didn't even give them a second thought.... until they blew into the filter current!! Don Quixote finally ate something!! Granted it was 2 bite-sized pieces of flake, but it's better than nothing! ^_^

We're relieved, since this means he has a real chance of recovering from his abuse at Walmart.

[waterdog]

Sometimes it just takes certain fish longer to adjust than others. You went to the wall for him and I tip my hat to you for that!

My newest find kept sucking up pellets then spitting them back out for 3 days before he swallowed his first one.

[Skyewillow]

I know all too well about the adjustment periods, but he's so emaciated that I didn't think he was going to make it through his. He's been listless, and breathing too heavily, and his back is curved funny. My fiance and I really and truly thought that he'd come home with us to die. He looked like he'd given up.

[waterdog]

Obviously your love and caring are giving him a reason to live!

[logisticsguy]

That is rough, poor lil guy. It can be a tough road back for some of these guys that had less than an ideal life in the store. Try some frozen bloodworms as no betta can resist them just to get his appetite going better.

[Skyewillow]

The funny thing is that he's starting to look like your display pic, Waterdog!

We tried those, he wasn't even remotely interested. He did eat some more flakes from the filter current today.

[waterdog]

That's a crowntail in my avatar. My suggestion.....keep doing what you are doing. Don't overfeed as it will cause water issues. Sometimes it's a long road home.

You guys have my respect for what you are doing, and if he makes it, I'm sure you will have the closest pet imagineable!

[Skyewillow]

I meant he's getting all of this silvery color on him. He is a CT though.
Here's the best picture I could sneak of him, he's still really shy:



He's currently peeking at me from behind his thermometer lol

This is when we brought him home.

[waterdog]

He looks sooo much improved! I can't tell yet if he is a marbled or a pastel (liked mine)

[Skyewillow]

So far, he has spots, so I'm leaning towards marble, but he's been slooooooooowlyyyyyyy getting his color in.

I was so excited when he finally ate, that I bounced in my chair and clapped like a lunatic!

My fish aren't spoiled... nope, not at all....