Cucumber And Zuchinni

[reeeedfish]

I would like to know if plecos will eat cucumbers. I have heard that they will but the only ones I have all store bought and I am worried that they will be poisoned by the pesticides. If not, how do I prepare it? Do I skin it? Do I pull out the seeds? Do I boil it? And which are better? Cucumbers or Zuchinni? Please Advise.

 

[Inchworm]

Hi reeeedfish

I never quite trust the wax or oil coating the supermarkets put on the cucumbers. I prefer to feed my bristlenose plecos and otos zucchini but sometimes I also give them butternut squash, lettuce, or kale. I look for small ones because they have fewer seeds. To prepare them I just wash them and slice them into 1/2" thick rounds. This size gives my plecos time to eat them before they spoil but not much goes to waste.

Some people like to parboil or microwave them before putting them in the tank to soften the fibers up a bit, but I like to slice up several zucchinis at once and store them in the freezer. This has the same effect but is easier on me. All I have to do is defrost them and in they go.

 

[reeeedfish]

Thank you so much Inchworm! : )

 

[buckiejim2]

It depends what kind of plec you have if it will eat zuccini or cucumber. Many people make the mistake of assuming all plecos eat vegetable food but many are actually meat eaters. Having said that most of the commonly available plecs will love to be given cucumber or zuccini to eat. If they dont eat it simply remove it before it rots as it will quickly polloute the tank if left to rot. No preparation is needed for cucumber but zuccini is usually best parboiled or microwaved. Never tried freezing and defrosting but its worth a try. Alos add a piece of soft bogwwod as many plecs will graze on it and even digest the wood as roughage. The lack of this wood is often a cause of failure with many people who try to care for their plecs.
BJ

 

[reeeedfish]

Yes, there are 4 pieces of bogwood in there and I'll try the zuchinni soon. My plecos are a bristlenose and a rhino pleco.

 

[matty_022001]

ive got a young bristlenose pleco, a sailfin pleco and a green phantom pleco and they all love cucumber, you dont need to peel it or de-seed it, put a fair sized chunk under a peice of slate of put an ellastic band round it to hold it onto a rock and they will love it, i tried lettuce before but they wasnt really interested so i dont bother with that anymore but i have never tried zuchinni so if you try it keep me posted cuz if it works i might try it too lol

 

[indigoj]

Just scrub the outside with a scourer (keep one only for this purpose) just enough scrubbing to be sure the skin is clean then slice and weigh down in the tank - a stainless steel item of cutlery is fine for this. Try a small bit at first then once they realise it is food increase - a 4" long bit sliced lengthways to expose the seeds always went down well here.

 

[Inchworm]

Seeds are OK for the plecos if they will eat them. I've found that they often come loose and float around the tank which makes a big mess, so I try to avoid putting them in whenever possible. I just have bristlenoses so the pieces I cut are small. Bigger plecos need more food, of course.

 

[Rezatii]

Sorry to hijack the thread but I also have a question about this, is it better to buy organic? So it doesn't have any of the un-natural-nasties in it, or is it okay to buy regular and wash it thoroughly? My local market sells both so it's not difficult to get hold of, and if it's better then should I get that?


-Thanks!
-Rezz

 

[B13]

Seeds are OK for the plecos if they will eat them.

My lil' BN fella eats the seeds first and then works his way outwards!!




When he was little, he LOVED potato, but now he's bigger, he's gone right off spuds and goes mad for cucumber. Go figure!!

 

[simonas]

I've fed my plecs cucumber and courgette (zuchini) for years and never had a problem

I don;t wash mine or prepare it just slice it and stick a screwcumber in it and jobs a goodun.

Never known a plec to ignore it, bristlenoses love it, royals eat it and even my L25 which is a meat eater eats it as well