Alternatives To Flake Food

[nadajdui]

Hey all. I find flake food is too messy because it breaks apart and gets everywhere. This is especially bad for my little 10 gallon tanks. I have some Hikari Microwafers and some frozen food, like mosquito larva, bloodworms, and brine shrimp.
I was just wondering if there are other things I could use to give my fish a healthy, varied diet without using flake.
I have lizard loaches in one 10 gallon.
I have 7 diamon tetras quarantining in a 10 gallon.
I have 3 cories and 1 male betta in a 10 gallon.
And I have 1 keyhole cichlid and one BN pleco in a 33 gallon.
Thanks all.

 

[sylvia]

Pellets, live food, vegetables (blanched zuchinni for example), deshelled/mashed green peas, cucumber, algae waffers (most things eat them - not just plecs) and larger pleco tablets (everything loves them as they are quite protein-rich). Avoid freeze-dried stuff.

BTW, just reducing the amount of flake you are feeding should solve your problem. If it has time to break up and get stuck everywhere, you are feeding far too much. About a flake or two per fish is enough.

 

[my fat fish]

i notised that about my plec food all my fish swar it befor my plecs acually find that food but now i have a cirtain drop point and they know when i open the lid to be ther and warn other fish away kinds funny sometimes when the food lands on top of them they dont move out the ways they just let it and stay with it ontop of them 4 ages... i think ther crazy fish but i love them!

 

[Gazoo]

A food like TetraMin Tropical Crisps hold together longer than flake food.

 

[Anita]

Feed the plecs after the tank lights go off. Just before you go to bed they'll scuttle around in the dark and find the food.

Anita

 

[Callum]

A food like TetraMin Tropical Crisps hold together longer than flake food.

i find these are better than flake as well but i have to crush them for my harlequins and fry.

 

[yvez9]

you can also buy small pellets

i know hikari and nutrafin make them

 

[Arfie]

Live foods, like grindal worms will be happily accepted by all your fish even the plec if mine are anything to go by.

I also use Tetra crisps and tetrapro crisps, JMC high protein granules, tetra prima, algae pellets, lettuce, cucumber, courgette, king british mini granules, freeze dried bloodworms, freeze dried brine shrimp, frozen foods (bloodworm, artemia, black mosquito larvae, white mosquito larvae, spinich), pellets (bloodworm, shrimp, greenlipped mussels & others), microworms for the endlers oh and when I can be bothered I set up the brine shrimp hatcher.

I think thats a nice and varied mix

Arfie

 

[nadajdui]

Thanks everyone. I'll give those crisps a try I think

 

[raptorrex]

Thanks everyone. I'll give those crisps a try I think

on the point of protean, all my fish love fresh chicken, lol the sight of a common plec with a big chunk of chicken in it mouth is very funny.


sylvia mentioned that it was worth avoiding dried food, i was wondering if they would expand on this. i don't use it but up until now i was not aware there may be a problem with it!!!