Cichlids and Feeder fish??

[rrcoolj]

I don't use feeder except for the odd insect/invertebrate. I guess there's nothing wrong with it if you breed your own but if you have a community setting or fish that aren't really that predatory it seems excessive. . Plus it does breed aggression at least in my experience. I remember I had 4 centrarchus growing in a 29 gallon tank. I added in some small livebearer fry for them to eat. After that it was impossible to introduce new fish into the tank. Anything that tuched the water they would snap at. These were 3-4" fish. And it's not like these were big predatory fish. If you have like a solo jag or oscar than I can see that but feeding feeder fish intentionally to something like a convict seems a bit excessive IMO.

 

[Gruff Master]

yeah i dont feed other fish normally (maybe the very rare occasions of somebody getting rid of fry) i mainly just feed pellets with the occasional treat of worms or something, but feeders are fine as an occasional treat as long as they are kept healthy and are something besides gold fish which are very unhealthy, if you are setting up a specific tank for feeders then i would do live bearers like someone else stated, with cons you run the risk of a few of the "feeders" surviving and then growing to breedable size in your main tank

I suggested Cons but I forgot to disclose this. Sarah is right about surviving feeder Cons living to breed. They will readily breed with siblings. Once established they are hard to get rid of. So if you do feed Cons, I would only add a few at a time, enough that will be quickly eaten. I still believe that there are other live foods that make better options than most feeder fish though.

 

[DMD123]

I have used feeder guppies when my Midas was young but quickly stopped when I saw how in his aggressive pursuit of the fish he would end up hurting himself. Not paying attention to his surroundings he would scratch himself on some decor or hurt himself in some other way. Now I use night crawlers or earthworms instead. No more feeders for me.

 

[pbass510]

I don't use feeders. Ones from pet stores carry parasites and disease, which I'm sure you know. Ones raised at home under good care could be great food considering what fish they are. many people breed Convicts as a source of healthy feeders. I think they are a good choice if you want to raise your own feeders. When I used feeders in the past it always made my fish more aggressive. They went after any fish that was smaller than them. I wasn't able to keep any schooling or small fish with them because of this. I do occasionally feed my cichlids live worms and Ghost Shrimp but no feeder fish. The pellet and frozen food that I give them is enough to satisfy them and keep them healthy.

agree, feeders make almost all fish more aggresive and in my opinon faster when it comes to eating but like most the people once in a while is ok for a entertainment and snack for them but i feed my cichlids dry shrimp,market shrimp,frozen bloodworms,earthworms,pellets/carnivore pellets,some vegis like peas

 

[kp15460]

I have two dempsey's with my red tail cuda. About a week ago i dropped in a couple feeder fish for the cuda and the dempsey's snatched them up right away. I've been trying to feed the dempsey's pellet food before I drop in feeder's for the cuda... but they end up eating all the pellets then the feeders! I have a second tank for the feeders so it shouldnt be a problem.

 

[dogofwar]

I don't use feeder fish...only prepared foods, red wiggler worms and bugs...

Matt