Feeding

[New Boy]

Anyone got any tips on feeding a pair of rams.

I recently added them to my tank and they seem to lose out to the other faster fish most of the time. Seem to swim around with the other fish quite happily though, quite surprised as I read they were very shy.

Thanks
Andy

 

[CathyG]

My Rams will eat flake, but they are more interested in what drops to the bottom Try Algae tablets, blanched vegetables, frozen live foods etc that will drop to the substrate. You could also try soaking flake foods/dried foods in tank water for a few minutes so that they sink.

The fact that they are recent additions could be the reason as to why they are being reticent at the moment. If they otherwise appear happy and well, I would not worry about it. Later you might be despairing that your Rams get very possessive of foods that drop to the substrate, and want advice on how to feed your cories or clown loach

My Rams are in no way shy, btw

 

[CFC]

Try Algae tablets, blanched vegetables

These foods have no worth to Microgeophagus species which are carnivorous in their feeding requirements.
Try using a large syringe or turkey baster to squirt live or frozen foods such as bloodworm or daphnia directly to the bottom of the tank where the cichlids can get to them quicker.

 

[CathyG]

Try Algae tablets, blanched vegetables

These foods have no worth to Microgeophagus species which are carnivorous in their feeding requirements.
Try using a large syringe or turkey baster to squirt live or frozen foods such as bloodworm or daphnia directly to the bottom of the tank where the cichlids can get to them quicker.

Purely carnivorous? You did stop short in quoting me, btw, as I did continue to include frozen live foods, which I feed a couple of times a week. A quick Google search turned up this site, as well as a few others, who labelled Rams as omniverous... here...mine eat almost anything, and are healthy and happy...

A varied diet is the key, I think...

More reading

My Rams

 

[AmberC]

Purely carnivorous? You did stop short in quoting me, btw, as I did continue to include frozen live foods, which I feed a couple of times a week. A quick Google search turned up this site, as well as a few others, who labelled Rams as omniverous... here...mine eat almost anything, and are healthy and happy...

A varied diet is the key, I think...

I have to agree that rams are NOT carnivorous. They enjoy live and frozen meaty foods as much as any other fish, but they are not carnivorous.

I feed mine a staple food of Cichlid granules which sinks to the bottom. Mine LOVE algae wafers, peas, bloodworms, flakes and other different pellets as well. Just give them a good variety and they will be fine.

 

[cluster]

actually i dont knwo if there is anything my ram will not eat besides flakes, he LOVES the granules and frozen shrimp currently he is in a 2.5gal till my 29gal gets up to good standards and he is sitting right next to my monitor so he constantly stares at me like

"Feed Me"

he is still a little one at this time.... 1.5" maybe so the bite size granules he takes in spits out and chews about 2-3 times then its poof gone but he cleans the tank

im just hoping the 29gallon hurries up so i can take him him back to his old home with the others

 

[Doggfather]

Purely carnivorous?

I don't think CFC implied that they were purely carnivorous, he just mentioned they would prefer more meat in their diet rather than more vegetables . I don't know of any cichlids that would prefer a piece cucumber over some live bloodworms Although rams are able to intake veggies, few nutrients are absorbed in their digestive system which results in a lot of green fish poop.

Good links btw

 

[CFC]

What you have to realise is that in the enviroment that rams come from in the wild there is very little to virtually no plant material for them to feed on, the low pH and dark tea coloured water prevent most plants from growing so the fish that dwell in these habitats have a almost purely carnivorous lifestyle which they have become adapted to. The vast majority of their diet will be made up of small shrimps, fry of other fish and small aquatic insects and their larvea, the only "green" food they will come into contact with is the occasional small berry that has fallen from the trees above and algea passed on from the stomachs of algea eating shrimps.
It is our job as fish keepers to insure that when we feed our fish we know what their dietry needs are and supply the right foods, just because a fish will eat anything you give to them it doesnt mean that it is actually good for them. Carnivorous fish have a higher metabolic rate than herbivors and require higher ammounts of protein in their diet, feeding such fish with too much vegetable matter can harm the long term health of your fish and damage chances of breeding, it wont hurt if the rams feed on the occasional algea disk or lettce leaf etc but this should by no means be relied on a main part of their diet.
For the feeding of dwarf cichlids i recomend frozen gamma shrimp, bloodworms and other small aquatic lifeforms (daphnia (water fleas), glassworms, black mosquito larvea etc) plus occasional (no more than twice a week) feedings with a good quallity flake or pellet cichlid staple food.