Yup, and I wasn't pushing it in that discussion, either. I'm not holding a gun to anyone's head over what to feed their fish. lol
Herbivore diet plan
- Thread starter Sinister-Kisses
- Start date
I have been thinking about something to jump the problem of add water to the powder mix.
Artemias are filter feeders, they eat particulate matter. Like the powder mix like Repashy!
So, How about put the powder mix directly to a culture of live artemias and let them eat the powder? In this way, you will offer the dense nutrient powder itself, not diluted with tons of water making the gel food, when you offer the artemias to your fish.
Enriched gut loaded artemias are a common food selled at market and the process of gut loading is the same: Just add particulate food matter, liquid vitamins or microalgae to the artemia's cultura, let tem eat and then freeze or freeze-dry them.
Sorry for my poor English, I am still learning the language
Artemias are filter feeders, they eat particulate matter. Like the powder mix like Repashy!
So, How about put the powder mix directly to a culture of live artemias and let them eat the powder? In this way, you will offer the dense nutrient powder itself, not diluted with tons of water making the gel food, when you offer the artemias to your fish.
Enriched gut loaded artemias are a common food selled at market and the process of gut loading is the same: Just add particulate food matter, liquid vitamins or microalgae to the artemia's cultura, let tem eat and then freeze or freeze-dry them.
Sorry for my poor English, I am still learning the language
I've never used this or any commercial gel food mix, but I have mixed up my own gel foods for many years, in various blends. Some fish just can't eat it without creating a mess, but I find that cutting the food into small bite-size morsels allows most fish to swallow without "chewing" and thus keeping the tank cleaner.
I completely agree with the importance of minimizing inedible particles and juices from polluting the water column. For example, when feeding frozen Artemia, Mysis, blood worms, etc. I will never just drop a cube or a chunk into the tank. Thawing it in a glass of water, allowing to settle and then pouring off the cloudy juice and then feeding only the actual food prevents that disgusting cloud of pollution to a large extent. You can even re-fill and rinse the food a couple times for less mess.
The thawed juice can be used in lieu of plain water for the next gel food mix, adding nutrients and aroma to the gel.
This ^ definitely. Also, not only do "herbivores" consume significant quantities of animal proteins, both intentionally and incidentally...but "carnivores" also get plenty of vegetable matter through the stomach contents of the prey they consume. I would assume that this matter is often partially digested before the prey is caught and eaten, making it easier for the short digestive tracts of predators to utilize the vegetable material.
I just do not understand the importance that is being placed upon "pure meat" or "pure vegetable" diets by many aquarists. The odd bite of worm for a herbivore, or mouthful of salad for a predator, should be looked upon as a natural and good thing, IMHO.
C
caaete
- That is a very good idea. The result would be similar to the Spirulina-ladden brine shrimp or Mysids.
Have you tried makng something like that? One possible downside is that such a process is likely to further increase costs (and thus final price), which is up there already.
I like Repashy as part as a very varied rotation of foods I use, including frozen (animals, and animals + Spirulina), animal and plant based pellets, same for flakes, insects and insect larvae, earthworms, nori sheets, and others.
When I prepare Repashy, I place it in quart Ziplock bags, flat and fairly thin (1/4" or so). I keep then frozen until I use them, for which I just break pieces into a small glass bowl; let it thaw partially, cut in small pieces with the tip of a knife, After fully thawed, I squish out most of the water and discard it. To feed it, I mince pieces into each tank using my finger tips. I want it delivered as small pieces (even tiny), not as chunks. Many fish come to eat it from my hand, Prochilodus and silver dollars in particular. By the way, I always turn off all filters during feeding any type of foods (each tank has an on/off switch that controls filters); this minimizes food going into filters, or going to places it will cause problems.
Regarding criticism of the water content of Repashy and other gel foods.
- If one lets thaw first, then one does not need to add a major portion of the water. Yes, a bit of nutrition may be lost in this manner, but who cares! After all, this is just one element within a rich rotation of high quality foods.
- Freshwater fish have some of the most remarkable mechanisms in nature to eliminate water, which constantly is trying to enter their bodies (via diffusion), since their internal environment tends to gain water from the more diluted outside environment. This is the opposite as what marine organisms experience, which tend to lose water (no salt) from their tissues. These processes are called osmoregulation, which are particularly well developed i aquatic organisms.
For FW fish, water contained in Repashy or any food (if it were of much additional significance), would be excreted in the same manner. From the physiological stand point, this is not a problem and not a strongly supported criticism.
Have you tried makng something like that? One possible downside is that such a process is likely to further increase costs (and thus final price), which is up there already.
I like Repashy as part as a very varied rotation of foods I use, including frozen (animals, and animals + Spirulina), animal and plant based pellets, same for flakes, insects and insect larvae, earthworms, nori sheets, and others.
When I prepare Repashy, I place it in quart Ziplock bags, flat and fairly thin (1/4" or so). I keep then frozen until I use them, for which I just break pieces into a small glass bowl; let it thaw partially, cut in small pieces with the tip of a knife, After fully thawed, I squish out most of the water and discard it. To feed it, I mince pieces into each tank using my finger tips. I want it delivered as small pieces (even tiny), not as chunks. Many fish come to eat it from my hand, Prochilodus and silver dollars in particular. By the way, I always turn off all filters during feeding any type of foods (each tank has an on/off switch that controls filters); this minimizes food going into filters, or going to places it will cause problems.
Regarding criticism of the water content of Repashy and other gel foods.
- If one lets thaw first, then one does not need to add a major portion of the water. Yes, a bit of nutrition may be lost in this manner, but who cares! After all, this is just one element within a rich rotation of high quality foods.
- Freshwater fish have some of the most remarkable mechanisms in nature to eliminate water, which constantly is trying to enter their bodies (via diffusion), since their internal environment tends to gain water from the more diluted outside environment. This is the opposite as what marine organisms experience, which tend to lose water (no salt) from their tissues. These processes are called osmoregulation, which are particularly well developed i aquatic organisms.
For FW fish, water contained in Repashy or any food (if it were of much additional significance), would be excreted in the same manner. From the physiological stand point, this is not a problem and not a strongly supported criticism.
For cichlids that rasp food off rocks, I was experimenting, by pouring Raspashy on lava rock to see if (in cichlids that acquire swollen type lips) that would encourage those type lips, because in captivity, cichlids often lose that trait, (i.e. Amphilophus labiatus)
Unfortunately I moved before giving the experiment enough time to show any realistic results.
On the vegetarian side of the conversation.....
I often fed herbivores like C. pearsei, bocourti, and Etroplus suratensis, entire heads of more nutritious lettuce (not iceberg) and dandelions, along with Algaemax and marine herbivore pellets
Etroplus eating dandilions
Unfortunately I moved before giving the experiment enough time to show any realistic results.
On the vegetarian side of the conversation.....
I often fed herbivores like C. pearsei, bocourti, and Etroplus suratensis, entire heads of more nutritious lettuce (not iceberg) and dandelions, along with Algaemax and marine herbivore pellets
Etroplus eating dandilions
Last edited:
You know, that's absolutely genius! I always used that juice to water my plants, but had never considered a way to get it back to the fish without fouling the tank.
Thanks for sharing it.
I actually have thought of doing that, but didn’t because I don’t make new batches of Repashy any more frequently than once (perhaps twice) a year, and thus, I have considered cumbersome to keep the juice. But it is doable (frozen) and a good idea.
I have been feeding live brine shrimp with liquid vitamins, spirulina powder and liquid aminoacids and essential lipids (like Selcon) for at least 15 years with excellent results, but never tried powder mixes to make gel foods.
I believe It Will work like spirulina powder, so It's worth a try.
