Feeder fish, live fish, etc
..
Well...well...well....a hot topic to say the least.
Let me start off by saying my SA/CA Cichlids diet consist of Cichlid Staple, Cichlid Bio Gold, algae wafers, frozen & freeze dried blood worms, frozen brine shrimp, frozen mysis shrimp, and live treats such as fish, shrimp, and earth worms.
I am 4 months into the hobby and can say I have never fed "feeders" (I know youre thinking 4 months what does this guy know). I spend 1-2 hours a day on MFK or more, countless hours online reading articles, and I pick any hobbyist brain whenever I get the chance. By no means does this make me an expert but I do have an OPINION.
I have fed neon tetras, cherry barbs, and ghost shrimp to my 1.5" to 3.5" fish. I have done this 3 times now and everything gets destroyed right away. I am now breeding my own guppies...for the safety of my fish.....which I will go into detail on later. I will continue to purchase ghost shrimp to feed, but no longer tetras or barbs.
Why do I want to feed live fish?.....although my fish are not in the wild anymore...I try to set their tank up to mimic the wild and part of the wild is them eating live foods. It is their natural instinct to make a meal out of smaller fish. It also adds variety to their diet and breaks up the monotony of having a 90 gallon imprint to swim in. (Purchasing a 180 or 220 gallon....I got a WTB ad in the marketplace. If you got 1 for sale PM me please!)
Also, think of it this way .do I only eat fruits & vegetables, the leanest cuts of meat, and drink wine & water?...Hell no. I put stuff into my body that has 0 nutritional value and I am sure some of you do too. If you have dogs and cats, I am sure the occasional treat or table scrap is fed. That is how I look at feeding live fish to my fish. It is intended to be a treat. I do try to gut load first though (more on this later).
If you don't have the capabilities to breed your own fish to feed, this is what I suggest .
#1 - Quarantine the feeders for a minimum of 1 week. Will this ensure parasites & disease will not be passed to your prized fish?...Hell no...but it will give you a chance to observe the feeders for any potential warning signs.
#2 - Start feeding the feeders a high quality food, from the time you get them to right before you feed the feeders to your fish. Gut load the feeders by feeding as much as they will eat right before you feed. The "gut loaded" feeders will pass some of the nutrition in their bellies to your fish while being digested. If you are feeding crickets you can "gut load"...as a cricket will begin burning its stored nutrition within 24-48 hours of not eating. Earthworms & meal worms I am not so sure...but I have a feeling you can do the same thing.
If you do have the capabilities to breed your own fish to feed, here is a basic guide ..
#3 - Start your own breeding. You can get complete used setups for $25-$75 on craigslist. You need at least two 10 gallons...but 20 gallons is recommended, with a 40 or 55 gallon grow out tank. Since guppies, mollies, sword tails, and platys give live birth these are recommended but convicts (not livebearers) would work too. Using live bearers, start with 2-4 females and 1-2 males in one of the two tanks. Females will give birth every 22-40 days and can produce 20-80 fry. Once the females are pregnant, they begin to bulge or you can tell by a dark spot called a gravid spot that will get noticeably darker by the week. After 2-3 weeks of the female being pregnant, transfer her to the other tank. Once she births the fry, remove her, and place her back into the tank with the other males and females. She will eat the fry if left in there, so dont do it. The fry will take up to a month to get a half inch or so, and that is when I would transfer them to a larger grow out tank (40 or 55 gallons). If you have 3 females you will be producing 60 to 240 fry a month! The process will just keep repeating itself. They may even start breeding in your grow out tank. You can do this with just 2 tanks if you use a breeder net. Feed the fry crushed up flakes, baby brine shrimp, or specially made fry food for good growth. Dont forget to gut load before you feed to your fish.
I will agree with most that it is best to train your fish on pellets. If you cant resist to feed live fish, I hope this helps.
Good luck! J
Good Luck!
Well...well...well....a hot topic to say the least.
Let me start off by saying my SA/CA Cichlids diet consist of Cichlid Staple, Cichlid Bio Gold, algae wafers, frozen & freeze dried blood worms, frozen brine shrimp, frozen mysis shrimp, and live treats such as fish, shrimp, and earth worms.
I am 4 months into the hobby and can say I have never fed "feeders" (I know youre thinking 4 months what does this guy know). I spend 1-2 hours a day on MFK or more, countless hours online reading articles, and I pick any hobbyist brain whenever I get the chance. By no means does this make me an expert but I do have an OPINION.
I have fed neon tetras, cherry barbs, and ghost shrimp to my 1.5" to 3.5" fish. I have done this 3 times now and everything gets destroyed right away. I am now breeding my own guppies...for the safety of my fish.....which I will go into detail on later. I will continue to purchase ghost shrimp to feed, but no longer tetras or barbs.
Why do I want to feed live fish?.....although my fish are not in the wild anymore...I try to set their tank up to mimic the wild and part of the wild is them eating live foods. It is their natural instinct to make a meal out of smaller fish. It also adds variety to their diet and breaks up the monotony of having a 90 gallon imprint to swim in. (Purchasing a 180 or 220 gallon....I got a WTB ad in the marketplace. If you got 1 for sale PM me please!)
Also, think of it this way .do I only eat fruits & vegetables, the leanest cuts of meat, and drink wine & water?...Hell no. I put stuff into my body that has 0 nutritional value and I am sure some of you do too. If you have dogs and cats, I am sure the occasional treat or table scrap is fed. That is how I look at feeding live fish to my fish. It is intended to be a treat. I do try to gut load first though (more on this later).
If you don't have the capabilities to breed your own fish to feed, this is what I suggest .
#1 - Quarantine the feeders for a minimum of 1 week. Will this ensure parasites & disease will not be passed to your prized fish?...Hell no...but it will give you a chance to observe the feeders for any potential warning signs.
#2 - Start feeding the feeders a high quality food, from the time you get them to right before you feed the feeders to your fish. Gut load the feeders by feeding as much as they will eat right before you feed. The "gut loaded" feeders will pass some of the nutrition in their bellies to your fish while being digested. If you are feeding crickets you can "gut load"...as a cricket will begin burning its stored nutrition within 24-48 hours of not eating. Earthworms & meal worms I am not so sure...but I have a feeling you can do the same thing.
If you do have the capabilities to breed your own fish to feed, here is a basic guide ..
#3 - Start your own breeding. You can get complete used setups for $25-$75 on craigslist. You need at least two 10 gallons...but 20 gallons is recommended, with a 40 or 55 gallon grow out tank. Since guppies, mollies, sword tails, and platys give live birth these are recommended but convicts (not livebearers) would work too. Using live bearers, start with 2-4 females and 1-2 males in one of the two tanks. Females will give birth every 22-40 days and can produce 20-80 fry. Once the females are pregnant, they begin to bulge or you can tell by a dark spot called a gravid spot that will get noticeably darker by the week. After 2-3 weeks of the female being pregnant, transfer her to the other tank. Once she births the fry, remove her, and place her back into the tank with the other males and females. She will eat the fry if left in there, so dont do it. The fry will take up to a month to get a half inch or so, and that is when I would transfer them to a larger grow out tank (40 or 55 gallons). If you have 3 females you will be producing 60 to 240 fry a month! The process will just keep repeating itself. They may even start breeding in your grow out tank. You can do this with just 2 tanks if you use a breeder net. Feed the fry crushed up flakes, baby brine shrimp, or specially made fry food for good growth. Dont forget to gut load before you feed to your fish.
I will agree with most that it is best to train your fish on pellets. If you cant resist to feed live fish, I hope this helps.
Good luck! J
Good Luck!
but lets not even go there