What is best foods, etc. to enhance cichlid color

[at2]

Does you RD struggle to eat it? Or does the crawfish (?) just get eaten in one clean gulp? It seems like your fish might get pinched from time to time or just have a hard time digesting it. . . But its been working eh? . . .

my butti would tear up some crawfish. he didnt get pinched or anything. i think it is just one of thier natural instincts since they eat them in the wild.

 

[Modest_Man]

The cray's get sucked in tail first. Never had a pinching problem.

 

[killerfish]

are those red cray fish or just wild ones arn't the red ones a bit pricecy mine love crayfish they just get riped apart my jack dempsy is smart she eats the meat out of the tail and head and leaves the shell unless they are soft then every thing is eaten and paprika hmm is it really okay to feed i think i may try it and do a water change just to be safe do they like the smell?

 

[Modest_Man]

They're the red. Red colored crays means more carotene in the shell, which means better color on the fish.

I could just go outside a scoop them up when I lived in Hawaii. They were introduced and were everywhere. Nothing better than free food.

 

[killerfish]

dang if you get them for free then i would feed them i see those things go for $20 around here your lucky man but your cichlids looks great

 

[cichniss]

Awesome, i have always wanted to feed my fish crays. Do you think a foot long jag could handle them?

 

[rob0521]

Frozen krill works well, and you will get some good growth rates out of it

 

[tapeworm]

I just discovered my lfs actually stocks new life spectrum, which food do you guys feed? I was thinking something like:

(smaller fish)
Spectrum Large Fish Formula:
-3 mm sinking pellet
-Freshwater/Saltwater

(medium to large fish)
Spectrum Jumbo Fish Formula :
-5 mm floating pellet
-Freshwater/Saltwater

(big fish)
Spectrum ExLg Fish Formula
-7.5 mm floating pellet
-Freshwater


Does that sound about right? I know they have a special cichlid formula, but those pellets are tiny. Sorry to thread jack

 

[Tsunamiboy77]

i feed my arowana hikari food sticks for carnivores and it looks slightly red now. its a silver arowana

 

[cichniss]

sounds pretty good tape, but you need to mix up their diets with some earthworms, krill, bloodworms, clean live fish, mysis shrimp, or some sort of insects like crickets or something. Pellets wont be able to give your fish everything they need. Plus your fish will love you for the treats you supply.