Premium (Preferably Flake-Based) Food Suggestions for Goldfish...

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ArtesiaWells

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My four fancy goldies tend to prefer flake-based foods, even though I know this is not recommended for them due to their swim bloat issue tendences, substantiated by my observations that seem to prove the sinking pellet type foods make them get a bit "lethargic" as they attempt to digest them; with the flakes, they show a much greater interest and swim around gobbling them up on the surface and as they float under the water like it's going out of style...:lol:

I have had experience thus far with the "cheaper" off-the-shelf type flake foods from Aqueon, Tetra and now a goldfish flake from a brand I'm not familiar with, but which I think is made by Hagen, which came with the little "Marina Goldfish Starter" container package we bought some time ago for an emergency situation in which we needed to get our Black Moor out of infected water and into a holding area. I also, at times, feed them Tetra's Goldfish Crisps and the Tetra Sinking Pellets, but, as I said, they definitely "react" better to flakes...

That being said, I was advised that NEW LINE SPECTRUM is an awesome, premium food line (and I am aware of the Hikari brand as well for fancy goldfish) that I could, and should, be feeding them, but I noticed some New Line Spectrum in Petco yesterday and they had the very small goldfish granules....which actually looked very small, and perhaps a bit too small for the four I keep now...

Does anyone have any suggestions for a premium flake-based food I can give my fancies? Does New Line Spectrum make a flake for goldies? Further, are the flake based diets from Tetra and Aqueon (or perhaps Wardley, Omega One, or any other off-the-shelf brand) adequate enough for daily nutrition if these aren't being raised to be true exotic show fish?

Thanks in advance! :thanks:
 
I know less than zero when it comes to goldfish but I do spend a good deal of time with regards to fish nutrition. Just like food meant for human consumption read the labels and decide for yourself which is a better choice.

The ingredient list in Aqueon or Tetra is no better than any other low end food which uses alot of grains such as corn, wheat, and oat flour which serves as low grade proteins, fillers, and binding agents. Look at their list and then compare to NLS flakes which uses actual whole Antarctic krill and whole hearing instead of fish meal which utilizes all the left over parts from other industries rather than the whole fish. The type and origin of proteins will have a drastic effect in digestion in which most people with goldfish should be concerned with.

NLS:
Whole Antarctic Krill Meal, Whole Herring Meal, Wheat Flour, Whole Squid Meal, Mussel Meal, Algae Meal, Garlic, Soybean Isolate, Beta Carotene, Spirulina, Vegetable and Fruit Extract (Spinach, Broccoli, Red Pepper, Zucchini, Tomato, Pea, Red and Green Cabbage, Apple, Apricot, Mango, Kiwi, Papaya, Peach, Pear), Ginseng, Vitamin A Acetate D-Activated Animal Sterol (D3), Vitamin B 12 supplement , Thiamine, Biotin, DL-Alphatocophero (E), Riboflavin Supplement , Niacin, Folic Acid, Calcium Pantothenate, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, L-Ascorby-2-polyphosphate (Stable C), Choline Chloride Ethylenediamine Dihydroiodide, Cobalt Sulfate , Copper Proteinate, Manganese Sulfate, Ferrous Sulfate.

Tetra:
fish meal, dried yeast, ground brown rice, shrimp meal, wheat gluten, feeding oat meal, fish oil, potato protein, dehulled soybean meal, soybean oil, algae meal, sorbitol, lecithin, monobasic calsium phosphate, ascorbic acid (source of vit. C), yeast extract, inositol, niacin, L-ascorbyl-2-poolyphosphate, riboflavin-5-phosphate (source of vit. B2), A-tocopherol-acetate (source of vit. E), D-calcium pantothenate, thiamin mononitrate (source of vit. B1), pyridoxine hydrochloride (source of vit. B6), vitamin A palmitate (source of vit. A), menadione sodium bisulfite complex (source of vit. K), biotin, cyanocobalamin (source of vit.B12), cholecalciferol (source of vit. D3), manganese sulfate monohydrate, zinc sulfate monohydrate, ferrous sulfate monohydrate, cobalt nitrate hexahydrate.


Now simply compare the first 5 ingredients, then continue on comparing line by line and you'll see a clear winner.
 
Last edited:
HUKIT said:
I know less than zero when it comes to goldfish but I do spend a good deal of time with regards to fish nutrition. Just like food meant for human consumption read the labels and decide for yourself which is a better choice.

The ingredient list in Aqueon or Tetra is no better than any other low end food which uses alot of grains such as corn, wheat, and oat flour which serves as low grade proteins, fillers, and binding agents. Look at their list and then compare to NLS flakes which uses actual whole Antarctic krill and whole hearing instead of fish meal which utilizes all the left over parts from other industries rather than the whole fish. The type and origin of proteins will have a drastic effect in digestion in which most people with goldfish should be concerned with.

NLS:
Whole Antarctic Krill Meal, Whole Herring Meal, Wheat Flour, Whole Squid Meal, Mussel Meal, Algae Meal, Garlic, Soybean Isolate, Beta Carotene, Spirulina, Vegetable and Fruit Extract (Spinach, Broccoli, Red Pepper, Zucchini, Tomato, Pea, Red and Green Cabbage, Apple, Apricot, Mango, Kiwi, Papaya, Peach, Pear), Ginseng, Vitamin A Acetate D-Activated Animal Sterol (D3), Vitamin B 12 supplement , Thiamine, Biotin, DL-Alphatocophero (E), Riboflavin Supplement , Niacin, Folic Acid, Calcium Pantothenate, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, L-Ascorby-2-polyphosphate (Stable C), Choline Chloride Ethylenediamine Dihydroiodide, Cobalt Sulfate , Copper Proteinate, Manganese Sulfate, Ferrous Sulfate.

Tetra:
fish meal, dried yeast, ground brown rice, shrimp meal, wheat gluten, feeding oat meal, fish oil, potato protein, dehulled soybean meal, soybean oil, algae meal, sorbitol, lecithin, monobasic calsium phosphate, ascorbic acid (source of vit. C), yeast extract, inositol, niacin, L-ascorbyl-2-poolyphosphate, riboflavin-5-phosphate (source of vit. B2), A-tocopherol-acetate (source of vit. E), D-calcium pantothenate, thiamin mononitrate (source of vit. B1), pyridoxine hydrochloride (source of vit. B6), vitamin A palmitate (source of vit. A), menadione sodium bisulfite complex (source of vit. K), biotin, cyanocobalamin (source of vit.B12), cholecalciferol (source of vit. D3), manganese sulfate monohydrate, zinc sulfate monohydrate, ferrous sulfate monohydrate, cobalt nitrate hexahydrate.


Now simply compare the first 5 ingredients, then continue on comparing line by line and you'll see a clear winner.
Click to expand...

I appreciate the input and provision of those comparisons; thank you. I was already sort of convinced that the New Life Spectrum foods were of higher quality than the "off-the-shelf" brands, but the thing is, because my particular stock seems to do better with flakes and not sinking pellets for some reason, I was hoping to stick with a more "premium flake" based food -- and it seems New Life Spectrum does not make flake foods (you had mentioned "New Life flakes" in your post)...:(
 
jetajockey said:
What kind of issues are you talking about? They are definitely better off on a pellet diet.
Click to expand...

They just don't "respond" the same way as with flakes; the best way I can describe it is that they seem to have difficulty digesting the pellet-based foods...they get "lethargic" as these things attempt to go down, just kind of floating mid-water or towards the bottom moving their mouths aggressively as if they're in "shock" from these things...and they don't appear to "enjoy" them all too much...
 
Perhaps the behavior you are 'perceiving' when you attempted the pellets was due solely to the fact you gave them equivalent of McDonalds for fish. The stuff your feeding now is not any better but they are just getting less of it than the pellets. Why don't you just give the NLS goldfish pellets a try? The quality brand foods do not make flakes for fancies for good reason.
 
jlk said:
Perhaps the behavior you are 'perceiving' when you attempted the pellets was due solely to the fact you gave them equivalent of McDonalds for fish.
Click to expand...

I'm not "perceiving" anything to be honest; I am witnessing it and reporting exactly what I see.

The stuff your feeding now is not any better but they are just getting less of it than the pellets.
Click to expand...

What are you talking about...the "NutraMin" flakes I mentioned that came with our Marina starter setup thing?

Why don't you just give the NLS goldfish pellets a try? The quality brand foods do not make flakes for fancies for good reason.
Click to expand...

I probably will give them a try; and I was beginning to wonder, in fact, why brands like Hikari and New Life didn't make flakes.
 
I'm not a Goldie expert so I'm saying this based on what I've read from those who do keep Goldie's, do you feed them veggies as well as the pellets/flakes? My understanding is they need a well rounded diet of veggies & fruits I believe for their overall health. Maybe with the NLS pellets being smaller & better quality they'll have a better time with them. I feed my fish, not Goldie's, NLS & Omega one pellets & one fish gets the Omega One flakes because he refuses to eat pellets.
 
shellieca said:
I'm not a Goldie expert so I'm saying this based on what I've read from those who do keep Goldie's, do you feed them veggies as well as the pellets/flakes? My understanding is they need a well rounded diet of veggies & fruits I believe for their overall health. Maybe with the NLS pellets being smaller & better quality they'll have a better time with them. I feed my fish, not Goldie's, NLS & Omega one pellets & one fish gets the Omega One flakes because he refuses to eat pellets.
Click to expand...

Hello shelli, and thank you for the input...:cool:

Indeed, every now and then we'll supplement their diet with cooked frozen and deshelled peas -- especially if there are any signs of swim bladder bloat -- but I think I will maybe give the NLS pellets a try...

I see you also vote, in a way, for Omega One foods...is there something that makes them more "premium" over, say, your garden variety Tetras, Aqueons or Wardleys?
 
HUKIT said:
New Life Spectrum does make flakes similar to Thera with extra garlic(they have a saltwater version as well), I buy them in 800g buckets. I feed flake until the fish are large enough the switch to 1-2mm pellets.

New Life Spectrum Premium Fish Food for Colour and Vitality
Click to expand...

Thank you, HUK -- but can you specifically outline for me where it mentions on their site, or in the link you provided, that they offer flakes? I don't seem to see it...:blink:
 
They don't have a specific gold fish based flake, it's either saltwater or fresh. There is absolutely no reason the the flakes can't be fed to goldfish, if your looking for flake there is none better in my opinion.
 
HUKIT said:
They don't have a specific gold fish based flake, it's either saltwater or fresh. There is absolutely no reason the the flakes can't be fed to goldfish, if your looking for flake there is none better in my opinion.
Click to expand...

Okay; good to know, thanks -- but can you pinpoint for me where the flakes are mentioned on their site? :thanks:
 
Ironic...

I just went onto Seachem's site to clip some info on Purigen for Scottyhorse in one of his threads, and I stumbled upon THIS:

Seachem Laboratories. Just add water. We'll do the rest

On their homepage, they seem to now be making flake-based foods even for goldfish! Weird that this came along just when I was questioning new food for my finned family...:blink:

What do y'all make of these?
 
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