How to get Cichlids to eat their Veggies?

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Pyramid_Party

Pyramid_Party

Fire Eel
MFK Member
Aug 6, 2008
4,916
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68
Monterey, CA
Hi,

Ive tried a few times to give them some veggies but they dont accept it. They eat mostly a carnivore diet. They get Cichlid bio gold pellets, bloodworms, tubifex worms (only some eat this), live cherry shrimp, pond snails, brine shrimp and krill sometimes. Ive tried giving pieces of carrot, spinach, dried seaweed, algae wafers, cucumber, and lettuce and they wont eat it.


I dont know how to get them to eat veggies, and I know they should be getting it. The cichlids I have are a Blue Acara, 2 Jack Dempseys, Salvini, and Sajica. What do you guys recommend?

Also my cichlids are sometimes picky eaters. Like the bigger JD hardly eats pellets, only wants bloodworms and live shrimp and snails. My Sajica wont eat tubifex worms but the bigger JD will eat thems sometimes and so will the Salvini. They all act picky sometimes, but this is just an example. But they all really love bloodworms.

Help is appreciated. Thx
 
Not too sure they're gonna except any veggies.In my years of keeping SA/CA cichlids,very seldom do I get one that will eat the veggies my Buttikoferi eats,and even then I think they're just eating them because they see the Buttis eating em...
 
I had a 6 year old convict that grew to 6 inches long that would eat canned corn, and bits of carrots, and canned peas..... He just died last month. You could also find a pellet or stick food that has veggie content in them...
 
They should eat carnivore diets, they are carnivores. The pellet food you give them is probably 45% or more wheat or corn based, don't forget that. Look to see what the top 3 ingredients are.
 
my heros, geos, plecos, chocolates...all eat veggies. they love spinach, potatoes, green peppers and red peppers. i have also fed the roman lettuce and they absolutely lov eit......


Are most Fish opportunistic feeders??...doesn't this mean they are omnivores???

Rod
 
Since they're already eating Hikari pellets, you could try their Cichlid Excel, which is their version of a more veggie based pellet. If they won't go for it, you could add a little garlic extract to the Bio Gold pellets they eat until they get used to it, then try feeding the Excel with the garlic to try to trick them into thinking it's the same thing.
 
I just fed some fresh peas to my guys last eve and they went nutso for them...hell my jack dempsey must have downed 10 of them . They have never had veggies in the 5 yrs I have owned them .
 
The only things I have ever gotten to work with cichlids in the past for some reason, is a veg pellet made by the same people who make "cichlid attack" in the clear round container with the red lid, except this one has a yellow one. Shiny silver label too. Not sure if it's around anymore, but I threw it in there for a couple different fish, and the carnivores took it too..

That, and little pieces of pickle.
 
i started mine on veggies when they were young(peas,grapes,romaine lettuce)so they tale it no problem,just got to wild caught bocourti that eat romaine lettuce like crazy,and two months ago i got an oscar from a freind who had it for three years and never feed it veggies,i tried it and he ate peas and lettuce like a little kid with candy,try grapes they seem to go nuts for it just make sure they are seed less and cut them up alittle
 
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