Food is essential for fish, which helps in their faster growth and development. Cory catfish are omnivore fish and require various meat and plant matter food to ensure their faster growth and development.
The most common issue aquarists go through while keeping cory catfish is cory catfish are not eating the food they provide, for which there can be various reasons. So, Why is my cory catfish not eating? Let us find out.
Stress is the primary reason behind your cory catfish not eating. Other causes include poor water condition, aggressive mate, being already full by eating at night and scavenging on the bottom of the tank. Ensure to keep cory catfish in a large group and provide various food to make them eat.
This article will discuss the reason behind cory catfish not eating and how to make our cory catfish eat. Also, we will discuss the ideal dietary requirements of a cory catfish. So, let us get into it.
Contents
- 1 My cory catfish is not eating.
- 2 Cory catfish ideal dietary requirements.
- 3 What are the reasons for cory catfish not eating?
- 3.1 Your cory catfish is not acclimated in a new tank.
- 3.2 Aggressive tankmates
- 3.3 Cory catfish is full by eating eggs.
- 3.4 Cory catfish are eating at nighttime.
- 3.5 Cory catfish is already full by scavenging the substrate.
- 3.6 You are overfeeding your cory catfish.
- 3.7 Cory catfish don’t like the food you provide to them.
- 3.8 Cory catfish are suffering from illness.
- 3.9 Your cory catfish is living alone.
- 3.10 The water conditions of your cory catfish tank are poor.
- 3.11 Your cory catfish tank is overcrowded.
- 3.12 Lots of plants and decor in the tank
- 3.13 The water parameters are not adequate.
- 3.14 The water temperature of your cory catfish tank is not stable.
- 3.15 Your cory catfish is under stress.
- 4 How to make my cory catfish eat?
- 5 How long can cory catfish survive without food?
- 6 Conclusion:
My cory catfish is not eating.
There can be various reasons behind your cory catfish not eating, of which stress is the primary reason.
When you introduce new cory catfish to the tank, they take some time to acclimate, and till then, they will avoid eating.
Once they are familiar with the environment, they will start eating.
Other reasons are poor water conditions, aggressive mates, living alone, inadequate water parameters, and illness.
It is also possible that your cory catfish’s stomach is full by feeding at night or feeding from scavenging the bottom.
We will discuss more reasons in detail in the further article.
Cory catfish ideal dietary requirements.
Cory catfish are omnivore fish species and require both plant and meat matter food in their daily diet to fulfill their ideal dietary requirement.
Feeding various types of plant and meat bases nutrition food to your cory catfish is essential to ensure their faster growth and development.
| Cory Catfish Food | Serving Quantity | No of Times |
|---|---|---|
| Mosquito larvae | 10-15 pieces | 2-3 times a week |
| Bloodworms | One small pinch at a time | 1-2 times a week |
| Daphnia | One small pinch at a time | 1-2 times a week |
| Peas | One pea per fish | 1-2 times a day (2-3 times a week) |
| Cucumber | One small piece | 1-2 times a day (2-3 times a week) |
Also read: Do Cory Catfish Eat Snails?
What are the reasons for cory catfish not eating?
These are the reasons why your cory catfish is not eating:
- Cory catfish have not been settled comfortably in the tank.
- There is a presence of aggressive fish in your cory catfish tank.
- Your cory catfish is full by eating eggs.
- Your cory catfish are eating at nighttime.
- Your cory catfish is already full by scavenging the substrate.
- You are overfeeding your cory catfish.
- Your cory catfish doesn’t like the food you are providing to them.
- Your cory catfish is suffering from illness.
- You don’t have an appropriate group of cories, and your cory catfish feels alone.
- The water conditions of your cory catfish are poor.
- Your cory catfish tank is overcrowded.
- You have added lots of plants and decorations to your cory catfish tank.
- The water parameters of your cory catfish tank are not adequate.
- The water temperature of your cory catfish tank is not stable.
- Your cory catfish is under stress.
Your cory catfish is not acclimated in a new tank.
It takes time for your cory catfish to settle in a new tank.
Your cory catfish will take time to get familiar with the tank environment and water conditions.
So, when introducing new cory catfish to your tank, give them time to settle.
Your cory catfish will not be interested in eating when being newly introduced to the tank.
Once they are settled comfortably, they will start eating.
Aggressive tankmates
Cory catfish are peaceful fish and prefer to live with other peaceful fish in a community tank.
Adding aggressive fish to your cory catfish tank will result in cory catfish coming under stress.
Aggressive fish will constantly chase your cory catfish and try to hurt them.
All this will make your cory catfish under constant stress, becoming prone to various diseases and parasites, losing their immune system, and not eating.
Also read: Can Cory Catfish Live With Bettas?
Cory catfish is full by eating eggs.
You must know that cory catfish do eat their eggs.
They find the eggs delicious, and eggs fill their dietary requirements.
So, one of the reasons for cory catfish not eating can be that your cory catfish are eating their eggs and are full of stomach.
Also, once your cory catfish make a habit of eating their eggs, they will be less interested in feeding on other foods.
So, consider removing the eggs as soon you notice them in your cory catfish aquarium.
Cory catfish are eating at nighttime.
Cory catfish are active fish and remain active at night, scavenging the bottom in search of food.
So, it is possible that your cory catfish is not feeding on what you are providing to them because they are already full eating at nighttime.
Cory catfish is already full by scavenging the substrate.
Cory catfish are bottom dweller fish, which means they spend most of their time scavenging the bottom of the tank in search of food.
So, your cory catfish may be feeding by scavenging on the bottom of the tank and are not interested in feeding the food you are providing to them.
You are overfeeding your cory catfish.
Overfeeding can make your cory catfish stop eating.
Cory catfish will suffer from constipation and bloating when being overfed.
The food inside your cory catfish stomach will not digest for a long time when you end up overfeeding your cory catfish.
In such a case, your cory catfish will ignore eating.
Cory catfish don’t like the food you provide to them.
It is possible that the food you are providing to your cory catfish is not appropriate for them, and they don’t like feeding on such food.
Also, when you feed only one type of food to your cory catfish, they will become boor of eating the same food in the future and will start refusing to eat.
Floating foods are not appropriate for cory catfish as they are bottom dwellers.
Sinking pellets are hard and will be difficult for your cory catfish to feed on them.
Feed your cory catfish with a variety of foods like:
- Cucumber
- Bloodworms
- Daphnia
- Sinking wafers
- Boiled peas
- Soaked flakes
Cory catfish are suffering from illness.
One of the reasons why your cory catfish is not eating can be an illness.
Cory catfish suffering from an illness will not be interested in eating because of stress and loss of appetite.
They will become lethargic and will hardly move from one place to another.
Regularly checking your cory catfish’s behavior will help you find the symptoms of illness, and you can treat it immediately.
Look for symptoms like patches on the body, pale-looking skin, and lethargy.
Some illnesses will require antibiotics to get treated, for which you should concern your vet.
Your cory catfish is living alone.
Cory catfish like to live in a group. Keeping a single or two cory catfish in a tank will make them come under stress, and they will start avoiding food.
Cory catfish are school fish and like being in a group of five to six or more.
Keeping less number of cory catfish will make them lonely, and they can even pass away because of stress and loneliness.
The water conditions of your cory catfish tank are poor.
Cory catfish are sensitive when it comes to water conditions.
Cory catfish are freshwater fish and prefer to live in clean water conditions.
Keeping cory catfish living in bad water conditions will make them come under stress, lose their appetite and stop eating.
High ammonia levels can burn your cory catfish’s body and gills, making them suffer breathing and swimming.
Cory catfish can even pass away when kept in poor water conditions for long.
Your cory catfish tank is overcrowded.
An overcrowded tank comes with all these issues:
- A crowded tank will lack oxygen.
- An overcrowded tank will get polluted faster than a regular one.
- A crowded tank will carry a risk of an ammonia spike.
- All of your fish will not be able to eat regularly because of high competition for food.
- Your fish will not be able to live and swim comfortably in a crowded tank.
Overcrowding your cory catfish tank will make them come under stress, and they will end up losing their appetite.
Lots of plants and decor in the tank
Adding lots of plants and decor to your cory catfish tank will make it harder for them to feed on the bottom.
Cory catfish are bottom dwellers and feed on food by scavenging on the bottom.
Adding many plants and decor will prevent your cory catfish from comfortably feeding on the bottom, making it more challenging for them to search for food.
The water parameters are not adequate.
Inadequate water parameters will make your cory catfish come under stress, and they will lose their appetite.
Keeping your cory catfish in an inadequate water temperature will make them prone to various diseases and parasites.
Your cory catfish will become lethargic and will lose their appetite, resulting in your cory catfish not eating.
Also read: Why Is My Cory Catfish Floating?
The water temperature of your cory catfish tank is not stable.
Unstable water temperature will make your cory catfish stressed out and become prone to diseases.
Also, keeping your guppies in a hot water temperature will slow down their digestive process, and your cory catfish will take a long gap on every feeding.
Your cory catfish is under stress.
Stress is the most common reason behind your cory catfish not eating.
Cory catfish being under constant stress, will become prone to diseases and lose their appetite.
Symptoms like lethargy, patches on the body, refusal to eat, and illness show that your cory catfish is under stress.
All these reasons can make your cory catfish come under stress:
- Inadequate water parameters
- Poor water conditions
- Aggressive tankmates
- Illness
- Injury
- Lack of hiding space
- Deficit of oxygen
- High ammonia level
- Overcrowded tank
- Overfeeding
- Living alone
Also read: Why Is My Cory Catfish Not Moving?
How to make my cory catfish eat?
Ensure these things to make your cory catfish eat and also to prevent such issues:
- Provide good water conditions
- Ensure adequate and stable water parameters
- Avoid overcrowding your cory catfish tank.
- Avoid adding aggressive fish to your cory catfish tank.
- Feed your cory catfish a variety of food.
- Keep your cory catfish in a group of at least 5-6.
Provide good water conditions
Providing good water conditions to your cory catfish will help you make them eat and prevent such issues.
Perform a weekly water change of at least 35% to ensure clean water.
| Particulars | Cory Catfish Requirement |
|---|---|
| Water Quality | Clean water condition |
| Water Hardness | 5 and 19 dGH |
| Ammonia | 0ppm |
| Nitrite | 0ppm |
| Nitrate | Below 20ppm |
Consider adding a good filtration system with a biofilter media to protect the water from harmful toxins like ammonia and nitrite.
Keep a regular check on ammonia and nitrite levels and ensure to maintain the ammonia and nitrite at 0ppm, whereas nitrate is below 20ppm.
You should use the API ammonia test kit to check ammonia levels as it shows accurate results.
You can purchase it from Amazon API TEST KIT.
Also, treat the water with a water conditioner to dechlorinate it while performing a water change.
We recommend using the API water conditioner to treat the water as it will eliminate ammonia, nitrite, chlorine, and heavy metals from the water.
You can buy this product on amazon: API TAP WATER CONDITIONER.
Ensure adequate and stable water parameters
Providing your cory catfish with their ideal water parameters will help you make them eat and prevent such issues.
| Particulars | Cory Catfish Requirement |
|---|---|
| Water temperature | 72-82 °F |
| Water pH level | 7-8 |
Ensure to maintain the water temperature between 72-82 °F.
Keep the water pH level between 7 and 8.
The water dGH should be between 5 and 19.
Consider adding a heater to your cory catfish tank to ensure stable water temperature.
Also, add a digital thermometer to your cory catfish tank to check the water temperature regularly.
Also read: Ideal Water Temperature For Cory Catfish?
Avoid overcrowding
An overcrowded tank will make your cory catfish come under stress, and they will stop eating.
To make sure that you are not overcrowding your cory catfish tank, follow the one-inch one-gallon rule.
The one-inch one-gallon rule means one inch of fish per gallon of water.
Cory catfish can be as long as 4 inches in size, so that you can keep one cory catfish per 3 gallons of water.
Also read: How Many Cory Catfish In A 10-Gallon Tank?
Avoid adding aggressive fish.
Cory catfish are peaceful fish and do great with other peaceful fish in a community tank.
If you add aggressive fish to your cory catfish tank, they will chase your cory catfish constantly and will try to hurt them.
Your cory catfish will not fight back with the aggressive mates and will come under stress because of constant chasing.
Consider adding peaceful fish to your cory catfish tank like:
- Neon tetra
- Guppies
- Mollies
- Tetras
- Gourami
- Zebra danios
Also read: Can Cory Catfish Live With Neon Tetras?
Feed a variety of food to your cory catfish.
When you feed only one type of food to your cory catfish, they will become boor by eating one type of food daily.
They will start avoiding the food by the time as they will become boor with that food.
So, feed your cory catfish various types of food that include:
- Bloodworms
- Daphnia
- Cucumber
- Peas
- Sinking wafers
- Shrimp pellets
Also read: Can Cory Catfish Eat Betta Food?
Keep your cory catfish in a group of at least 5-6.
Cory catfish are schooling fish and prefer to live in a large group.
Keeping one or two cory catfish in a tank will make them lonely and stressed, and they can even pass away.
Your cory catfish will not be interested in eating when kept in a small group or alone.
So, make sure to keep your cory catfish in a group of at least 5-6.
Also read: Do Cory Catfish Need A School?
How long can cory catfish survive without food?
A healthy cory catfish can survive without food for up to one week.
However, they can also survive for two weeks without food before starving.
But, you should never skip feeding your cory catfish, thinking they can survive for days without food.
Your cory catfish will live on their own for 10-12 days without food when you have to go out for some reason.
Otherwise, if you are at home, consider feeding them regularly, one to two times a day.
Also read: How Often To Feed Cory Catfish?
Conclusion:
There can be various reasons behind your cory catfish not eating, of which stress is the primary reason.
It is also possible that your cory catfish stomach is already full by eating eggs, eating at night, or scavenging on the bottom.
If these are not the reason, then poor water conditions, aggressive mate, illness, inadequate water parameters, and loss of interest in food can be the reason.
Provide good water conditions, avoid overcrowding and overfeeding, and ensure adequate and stable water parameters to make your cory catfish eat and prevent such issues.
Reference: Wikipedia,