Albino Cory & Food

[shaunakadub]

Hey guys,

My cory's look completly healthy, doing the normal cat things (diving up and down glass, then sitting still, ect.), but they dont seem to be eating the TetraMin Crisps I put in the tank. Sometimes they'll go right over them, other times it looks like they just kick it up off of the bottom, not eating any.

Anyone have any ideas on what I could to do solve this?

 

[dskidmore]

Try blanched zucinni, spinach, and other squashes and dark green veggies.

Some catfish prefer to eat at night, and may take awhile to take to a new food, so don't expect to see them dive for it. You can leave the vegtables in the tank as long as it's not getting fuzzy or causing an ammonia spike.

I just got some new otocinclus catfish myself, and am trying to get them to eat. (Tank too clean to support them on algae.) I put in a variety of veggies for them to try. So far I've seen one eating raw zucinni, and one hanging out on the cooked broccoli stem. At least one of the three seems to get it, he was pooping properly on his third day, and has a much rounder tummy than his brothers. I'm hoping to see the other two eating soon. Going to try some more well done veggies as well.

As a side effect, I'm getting rid of my snails in the QT by picking them off of the veggies daily.

 

[BrianNY]

The crisps might be a little large for the corys. Try feeding some flakes and see if that doesn't perk up their appetite.

 

[Simpte]

Cories are NOT vegetarians. Feed them what you feed the other fish in the tank. If you are worried, feed one side, then drop extra food on the other. Some will make it down.

 

[dskidmore]

Sorry, for some reason I was thinking Pleco when she said cory.

 

[Zagz]

My cories hover around the bottom of the tank when they are hungry, not necessarily when I feed them LOL. They will find the food, I use crushed flakes for them.

 

[Kilgore]

Try sinking shrimp pellets - Wardley makes a good brand. They are guaranteed to thrill your cories, and other fish will try to eat them as well (my dwarf gourami used to swim around with an entire one poking out of his mouth, until it started to dissolve and other fish would steal chunks).

 

[Wizzard~Of~Ozz]

Just be careful with the shrimp pellets, they will run up your nitrates (very messy food)

 

[shaunakadub]

Cories are NOT vegetarians. Feed them what you feed the other fish in the tank. If you are worried, feed one side, then drop extra food on the other. Some will make it down.

So I see conflicting reports. Are you saying they are not vegetarians meaning they can't live on just greens, or are you saying I shouldn't be feeding them any veggies at all?

Also, was wondering what dskidmore meant when you said "blanched" zucinni, ect.

EDIT: Forgot to ask this but do Albino Corys have eyes that naturally stick out a bit? I can't remember when I first bought them, but they're eyes (both of my corys) seem to stick out a little bit, but otherwise look like normal eyes. Am I just worrying to much?

 

[dskidmore]

Blanched: A cooking term. Boiled or steamed enough to cause wilting. It's basically an undercooked vegtable. Leafy vegtables self-blanch when microwaved, most should be microwaved or stovetop heated with water.

 

[shaunakadub]

Ok so I am going to try some blanched zuchinni in the tank. Quick question:

I have 4 corys, so should I cut a small piece of it into 4 smaller pieces, or should i just put one piece in there and let them pick it apart? Also, does it need to be peeled?

 

[7Enigma]

I'll 2nd the sinking shrimp pellets. No one touches them when they are first put in, but after they soften up a bit, everyone goes after them. I'll agree they are messy, but in my tank (and probably yours) I doubt they would make any significant increase in nitrAtes. This is because the cory's are great bottom cleaners and while you will see these shrimp pellets make a mess when they get broken down and chewed apart by the other tank inhabitants, come back in a couple hours and there will be no evidence left of them. Maybe in a tank where you didn't have bottom feeders they would rot and cause high nitrAtes, but in my tank its just not the case. Another reason to have these amazing cory's!

justin

 

[dskidmore]

Ok so I am going to try some blanched zuchinni in the tank. Quick question:

I have 4 corys, so should I cut a small piece of it into 4 smaller pieces, or should i just put one piece in there and let them pick it apart? Also, does it need to be peeled?

You can either put in a large piece they can all share, and take out the uneaten portion when it looks nasty, or stick to several smaller pieces. Don't need to peel it, but do cut it open so that they have the option of chewing on the inside or outside. You may need to weigh it down or put it in a veggie clip. I use a spare fork, spear the vegtable and let it sink.

Simpte was right, corys are not vegetarian. I have vegetarian catfish on the brain right now, just having bought some ottos after several years without them. Omnivorous fish do benifit from occasional vegtables in thier diets. My guppies used to like melon and peas, my tetras like softened carrots.