Tell me about fish food choices ...

[trennamw]

Community tank, fishless cycle suddenly took off and I'll have fish soon!!

So, about food ...

I'm kinda health food obsessive for myself yet I hate going to a lot of trouble. Single mom of a toddler, working 50 hours a week ... So I'm thinking high quality flake etc. Live seems a little high maintenance.

But. I remember learning "no chicken byproduct" with my cats and feeding them kitten food always because the higher protein and fat meant they felt full after eating less. The smaller amount of higher quality food meant less poop, and at 11 years old they were still lean with clean teeth. My boyfriend also recently adopted an obese cat, put her on a grain free food, and the cat is eating all she wants and losing weight fast.

So that's cats, but fish? Well I also have been reading how grain fed salmon doesn't have the healthy fats that wild salmon does. It's actually more like eating beef (and grass fed beef has the healthy fats that wild salmon does).

So I look at the wheat, corn, and soy in the fish foods and wonder. I do see how some have the higher quality protein sources (like the cat food with chicken meal instead of chicken byproduct meal) ...

I expect it to be pricey, but as I found with the super quality cat food, they eat less when there are fewer fillers so it costs the same over time.

Anyway. Fishless cycle is almost over, time to obsess about something else!

Fish will likely be a lot of tinies ... Danios, dwarf pencilfish and loach and cories, two German blue rams if all goes well.

 

[threnjen]

I feed this stuff Amazon.com: New Life International Spectrum Small Fish Formula Sinking 75g: Pet Supplies
And Hikari sinking wafers
Amazon.com: Hikari Tropical Sinking Wafers for Catfish, Loaches and Bottom Feeders 3.88 oz: Pet Supplies

Omega One is another well-regarded brand

I also have blood worms, brine shrimp and some other thing, all by Hikari, as the occasional treat. Along with frozen Hikari blood worms. You shouldn't feed the pure meaty stuff all the time though.

Don't decide on cost. Fish food is dirt cheap.

 

[KevinKY]

<- Another fan of New Life Spectrum fish food here.

 

[trennamw]

I was reading the new life spectrum site last night, impressive and exactly the kind of thing I was looking for.

I'm a little confused about the types though, seems there's a regular and a garlic, and flake or .5mm for small fish and then something for the bottom feeders?

I bet The Wet Spot LFS carries it and can advise huh ...

 

[threnjen]

I feed everyone the .5mm pellet, it's a really good catch-all size. I think it's perfect for any small-medium community fish.

 

[captaincritical]

Right now I primarily feed the NLS Community flake food, since the fish I have were used to eating flake at the store. I mix it with some tank water and then spot-feed with a turkey baster to avoid the fish sucking unnecessary air at the surface. Not sure if that's unnecessary or not but I find it fun anyway, haha.

All of my fish are doing very well, with a noticeable improvement in colour since I brought them home.

 

[BBradbury]

Quality Fish Foods

Hello tren...

A little variety of flaked, freeze dried and frozen is good. Plus I like to feed a little minced garlic every week or so. Cobalt has good flaked food product, Tetra and Hikari have some good freeze dried fish food products and as long as you get the frozen foods with no additives, just the frozen animal and water, you'll get a good product. Spice World has a very good minced garlic that my fish like.

B