Regular beef?

[Moloch]

I know its really common to feed beefheart, I actually checked with a local grocery store and I'll be able to get it for less than 2$ a pound when they have it in.

But, can bichirs eat regular cuts of beef? Like if there's a good sale on beef can I just buy them a steak & cut it into bitesize pieces? Whats the difference between that & beefheart?

Also, you guys who feed raw beefheart, how many pounds per month would you say you feed? (Pounds per month because I have a feeling that'd be the easiest way to estimate...if not just some sort of number/value would do...) Or if its easier, I have two small sen's (one is less than 3 inches, the other I think is nearing 5 inches, he's been blowing up the past few weeks) how much heart would you say I'd need to feed them as a part of their staple diet? Right now they're on hikari carnivore pellets & freeze dried krill. I bought beefheart cubes but my tiger barbs are more interested than my bichirs. The smaller sen takes bites of it sometimes but I've never seen the larger pay it any attention at all, even when I dropped it right on top of him so he could have first bites

 

[ar0wan]

I believe the reason for the heart is the low fat content
You don't want to put fatty cuts in the tank because

- they can cloud the water
- fish tend to not possess the enzymes necessary to break down mammalian fats

I don't really think of feeding in Lbs
maybe it's cause mine are still lil gais
Vary the diet, let em eat wat they'll eat

 

[Moloch]

I believe the reason for the heart is the low fat content
You don't want to put fatty cuts in the tank because

- they can cloud the water
- fish tend to not possess the enzymes necessary to break down mammalian fats

I don't really think of feeding in Lbs
maybe it's cause mine are still lil gais
Vary the diet, let em eat wat they'll eat

Makes sense. So what about lean cuts without much/any fat?

I'm trying to vary the diet, its why I'm looking into raw beefheart (my wife is opposed...its disgusting I guess) I'm just trying to figure out what a good amount of beefheart is to start off with. If 1lb will actually feed an adult bichir for a month, I don't want to go buy 5lbs of beefheart off the bat and have to deal with it being in the freezer (limited space) forever. But if two small sen's will tear through a pound in a week flat, then I don't want to buy less than 5lbs and then not be able to get it again until the store does another order. See where I'm coming from?

 

[ar0wan]

aaah well I guess if I had to guess then I'd guess that
the two babies wouldn't need moar than a lb a month and
that an adult is capable of consuming 2 lbs by hisself
These figures are assuming you are feeding other foods also
and I'm guessing that these # are probably on the high side

 

[Moloch]

Cool. I'll start with a pound or two and see what happens. I think the tiger barbs will be all over as well and the jack & cons might come in for a piece if they realize whats going on.

We'll see what happens. It might be a few weeks before they get any in at the store anyways.

 

[Taysius]

Cool. I'll start with a pound or two and see what happens. I think the tiger barbs will be all over as well and the jack & cons might come in for a piece if they realize whats going on.

We'll see what happens. It might be a few weeks before they get any in at the store anyways.

Look for a butcher shop rather than a grocery if you can. Maybe outside of town or something. Beef heart should be easy to find regularly at places like that.

 

[ar0wan]

I like the Asian markets too

 

[Moloch]

Yeah...I think its not going to be hard to get the beefheart. I was only able to talk to a clerk in the butcher at the grocery store. I think if/when I talk to a manager or at least the actual butcher back there I'll be able to have them get it in whenever. I'd imagine its just not a very popular item so they don't get it in regularly. I think if I request it they'd probably get it for me.

 

[GarNiac]

just be careful selecting which food for your bichirs, though its good to have variety of food, some of them can hardly be digested by bichirs, which mean dead bichirs.
Why not giving them earth worms, or crickets, those are high with protein.

 

[Moloch]

I'm not sure of a safe source for live worms and I don't want to deal with the risk of keeping crickets and them getting out of whatever I'm keeping them in (my cat will let them loose even if I keep them in a safe I swear)

Beefheart is tried & true I believe so I'll go with that, and if my convicts ever spawn they'll get some healthily raised feeders. Once they're big enough I'm switching the carnivore pellets out for massivore and once in a while I might get them some fish fillet & raw shrimp.

I just didn't know the difference between feeding beef heart and regular cuts of beef.