Electric blue Jack Dempsey

**ErikFromNJ** · 04-09-2009, 11:49 PM

I have (2) 3.5'' ebjd's and (10 3'' standard. Dont count on them coming to the top too often to eat. Mine never come to the top. They also will sit back and let everyone eat first and then they dig in. I try to put just a little too much food in the tank so there is enough for them to pick at after the rest of the vultures are done eating. After an hour or so, I remove the food thats left over.

The best food I think for juvy eb's is ''Marine A'' sinking pellets with spirulina. I've noticed my eb's grow a little faster and it helps bring out there colors more. Ofcourse dont feed them just this. Once a week I will give them blood worms, plankton and deskinned peas, but every day is the spirulina pellets and some cichlid flakes.

Good Luck with them. When so small it is VERY difficult to keep them healthy. Be sure to keep the most stress free environment for them along with excellent filtered water conditions and a balanced diet.

Lots of luck to you!! Lets see some pics!!

Here are mine!

and my Geophagus Altifrons. This guy is just awesome!!

**young_cichlid** · 04-09-2009, 11:56 PM

beautiful fish!!!!!!!

**ErikFromNJ** · 04-13-2009, 03:52 AM

Thanks you!

**Oscar_freak12321** · 04-18-2009, 08:24 PM

Very beautiful looking fish! I wish I could buy an ebjd but I haven't seen some for sale at my lfs for a long time...

**camek** · 05-17-2011, 04:02 AM

i bought a baby at the lfs about 6 months ago and raised it till it was large enough for my friends tank without being eaten and paid 30 for it. Recently i met the breeder at the door to the lfs and got 2 for 30 this time and so far so good. They are tiny but none of the 3 have given me any problems. The new 2 are shy but good eaters, and the first one prefered flakes bigger than him. All 3 have eaten anything and everything i tried

**Sandz** · 05-17-2011, 05:53 PM

Jesus... up here we have them for under 5.00 a fish for juvi's... what size did you buy the fish at? The biggest thing on EBJD's is that mark (i think its 7in) where they either unexplainibly die or they are fine for life... maybe thats the cost raise? For 30 bucks more I could get 8 discus...

**sheamurai** · 05-18-2011, 02:02 AM

If he is still not eating you can tempt him with some brine or mysis shrimp. I find my guy (I bought him small, under 2") has a hard time choking a bloodworm down.
He does come to the top, but only for half the feeding time. He comes up for the first few bites, then once the edge is off will cruise the middle to catch the food as it sinks.

Prices sure seem to vary. I got mine for 35, at about 1.5".

And yes, don't get too attached to him until after he hits the 5" mark...as others here will attest, something goes wrong with their digestion at that size, and most of them don't make it.

**fishmommie** · 10-14-2012, 08:59 PM

realize this is an older thread but thought I'd see how everyone was doing with their EBJDs.
I have a new one in a 90 - he's around 2 inches. Have had him a month. He's not a good eater but have found that he loves frozen brine shrimp. He turns his nose up at the sinking cichlid pellets and fish flakes. I toss some larger sinking pellets in at night and hope he is finding them. tried shelled peas today but he has not gone after them that I can see
Have thought about pulling him out of the tank and temporarily putting him in my 30 with my tetra until he grows out a bit but don't know how the serpae would treat him. Also don't know if the move would be too stressful.

if anyone has any other thoughts on that or on feeding these guys, I'd love to hear from you.
thanks

**sheamurai** · 10-14-2012, 09:33 PM

I still have mine. He's a poor eater (by my standards - by his, I'm likely a poor feeder, lol).
He's 4" now, growing very slowly.

the only thing he eats these days is other fish, and for some reason he goes after the plecos algae wafers in a big way.

He's basically in a community tank now (as in there's only one other cichlid in there with him), and he is not the alpha fish. I've gotten some livebearers that are too big for him to eat (tho he does try) that will supply him with fry every once in awhile. He doesn't eat mysis or brine for me, or flake or pellets.

I wouldn't pull him out of the tank unless someone in there is stressing him. They don't grow all that fast, and you won't really be able to tell when the tank is too small for him - he may just stop growing in a small tank period.
Just MO tho, there are others here who are more cichlid savvy than I.

good luck!

**fishmommie** · 10-14-2012, 09:40 PM

Originally Posted by sheamurai

I still have mine. Good to hear!

the only thing he eats these days is other fish, and for some reason he goes after the plecos algae wafers in a big way.Also good to know. I hadn't intended to put any live bearers in the 90 but maybe it wouldn't be a bad idea. Platy have fry about every other day LOL and maybe the fry would make him happy. I don't think anything else in the tank would bother the adult platy - but then, the other fish might just beat the EBJD to the fry so I might be dealing with platy poo for nothing LOL

I wouldn't pull him out of the tank .. you won't really be able to tell when the tank is too small for him - he may just stop growing.hadn't thought of that. I'll leave him be. I want him in the 90 anyway :o)

good luck!

appreciate the response!