A good feeder snail?

[logansmomma1228]

I am wondering what kinds of snails I can feed Alejandro. He is like half an inch so long so he probably won't be able to eat anything real big yet. Can I just give him regular little pond snails? Should I QT them first?

 

[SnailPowered]

If Alejandro is your dwarf puffer I would say that the pond snails out of the local fish store should be fine, at least in my experience. I have never had a QT and never had a problem, but apparently I am very lucky also.

 

[Crepe]

You can give him any snail he can fit in his mouth really. MTS I think are the best. They breed like mad and are good for your tank. They also have very calciferous shells that will trim your puffer's teeth well.

 

[logansmomma1228]

What are thoughts on ghost shrimp? Think he will hunt those as well? I have heard mixed things on dwarf puffers' needing their teeth trimmed, but I am going to give him snails anyways just to be safe. Will the MTS do OK with gravel do you think? I know they like to burrow in sand but I have gravel in the 10

 

[Crepe]

It wouldn't hurt to give em hard foods like they eat in the wild, so go for it. I think ghost shrimp might by too fast for them but you can try. MTS will burrow around no matter what you do they can even get through pea gravel, don't underestimate them.

 

[logansmomma1228]

Well I saw him eat today so that is a good thing. I am feeding him frozen brine shrimp for now but the issue I am having is that I am having a hard time not pouring a ton in, and he doesn't see most of them so they are just settling in the bottom. I am keeping an eye on ammonia/nI/nA and doing PWC's every other day to two days depending on what the levels are, but I want to make sure he is getting enough food. How often should I feed him? Is twice a day too much? I only saw him eat 2 shrimp earlier.

EDIT: It seems that he is having a hard time seeing the shrimp, they just kind of float real fast all over the place.

 

[dkpate]

You could try MTS. I have some I could send you for the price of shipping, ($4.95) and WhiteDevil has some too. They come in all sorts of sizes from around 1 cm to 2 inches. Let me know!

 

[taylorodw]

As far as feeding a solitary fish, it can be difficult especially as a new fish will feel threatened by your presence. Some "dither fish" like otocinclus may make Alejandro feel better.

FYI, a dither fish is a smaller, non-aggressive species that, by acting "normal" assure your solitary fish that it is safe to be out and about.

In the meanwhile, the best way to feed is small, small amounts, one at a time. In the past I have fed a single fish one flake at a time, because if I fed a pinch of flakes, the rest would fall to the bottom and be wasted while the fish concentrated on the one flake it was eating.

With brine shrimp that scatter and can't be fed one at a time, use a sharp knife and cut out very small pieces (a good guideline to start is the size of the Alejandro's eyeball). Feed, and observe. If Alejandro is gobbling, feed more! If he stops pursuing the food vigorously, then he has had enough for the moment.

 

[logansmomma1228]

You could try MTS. I have some I could send you for the price of shipping, ($4.95) and WhiteDevil has some too. They come in all sorts of sizes from around 1 cm to 2 inches. Let me know!

Yeah I was thinking about putting an ad up in the classifieds, I pm when I get some more money

 

[HeathB]

The nice thing about the snails or shrimp would be that you wouldn't have to worry quite as much about the leftover food. Handy little cleaning crew to have around.

 

[logansmomma1228]

Well I saw him eat one shrimp, then he chased a couple but didn't eat them. I hope he's getting enough :/