troutfly
Fish Crazy
Racerchic478 -
I want to start off by saying I am extremely jealous of your tank and fish - they are beautiful - and the fact you have the forsight and plans to up grade their habitats in the future is wonderful.
Feeding your "Monsters" goldfish is your choice and we have no right to tell you not to do it. The fact that you breed your own "feeders" is the best idea, that way you can provide for your fish with their best interests in mind. If your "feeders" get a diet provided by you, you can change their diet as you see fit. You could use multiple choices for your "feeder" diets, not limited to just pellets. You could also feed your goldfish pellets designed for carnivor fish so that they can benifit eating "feeders" that have ingested them. I have seen gold fish eat pretty much anything you put in their tanks. Also you can try and feed your goldfish beef heart or other meaty diets that are benificial and alternet diets for your fish. If your "Monsters" wont eat them outright, you can give that type of diet to the "feeders." Gut loading your "feeders" is the best way to provide a balanced diet for your fish and provide for them with their best interests in mind. I know I may catch flack for this, and I actually can't believe I am saying it, but once your RTC, TSN, and Peacock get bigger you could try to feed them live trout. Small trout have natural fish fats in them that would be benificial for your fish. They could be wild caught or possibly purchased locally and housed in your 240g once the monsters have been moved out. If you house them for a while you can quarenteen them to make sure they will not introduce disease into your tank. They do however require fast moving cold water, but the current filter choice you have it shoud be sufficiant for that without having a heater in the water and adding an air stone or bubbler. Small trout (4 to 6") could be fed to your fish without the worry of spiney dorsal fins and are a naturally occuring fish. Also, if you are worried about raising Convicts or other smaller chiclids, you shouldn't be worried, they are natural diets for your fish in their "home" waters. If they are only 3 to 5" when fed, they should go down easily. You could raise leaches for your fish to eat, they are a staple to their natural diet also, and with proper gut loading for them they can also provide an alternate nutrient source for your fish. You could try and set up a mulch pile and raise your own earthworms and give them as treats to your fish. With the worms eating natural refuse such as potatos, fruits and other table scraps, it would give your fish needed nutrition benifits. To try and help bring out the "red" in your RTC, you could try and feed it small crayfish. The natural iodine in their shells are absorbed and displayed by the fish and animals that eat them, that's why pink flamingos are pink.
These are just some ideas for alternate food sources for your fish, I hope you find it helpful, and good luck with them in the future, I hope they live long and healthy lives.
I want to start off by saying I am extremely jealous of your tank and fish - they are beautiful - and the fact you have the forsight and plans to up grade their habitats in the future is wonderful.
Feeding your "Monsters" goldfish is your choice and we have no right to tell you not to do it. The fact that you breed your own "feeders" is the best idea, that way you can provide for your fish with their best interests in mind. If your "feeders" get a diet provided by you, you can change their diet as you see fit. You could use multiple choices for your "feeder" diets, not limited to just pellets. You could also feed your goldfish pellets designed for carnivor fish so that they can benifit eating "feeders" that have ingested them. I have seen gold fish eat pretty much anything you put in their tanks. Also you can try and feed your goldfish beef heart or other meaty diets that are benificial and alternet diets for your fish. If your "Monsters" wont eat them outright, you can give that type of diet to the "feeders." Gut loading your "feeders" is the best way to provide a balanced diet for your fish and provide for them with their best interests in mind. I know I may catch flack for this, and I actually can't believe I am saying it, but once your RTC, TSN, and Peacock get bigger you could try to feed them live trout. Small trout have natural fish fats in them that would be benificial for your fish. They could be wild caught or possibly purchased locally and housed in your 240g once the monsters have been moved out. If you house them for a while you can quarenteen them to make sure they will not introduce disease into your tank. They do however require fast moving cold water, but the current filter choice you have it shoud be sufficiant for that without having a heater in the water and adding an air stone or bubbler. Small trout (4 to 6") could be fed to your fish without the worry of spiney dorsal fins and are a naturally occuring fish. Also, if you are worried about raising Convicts or other smaller chiclids, you shouldn't be worried, they are natural diets for your fish in their "home" waters. If they are only 3 to 5" when fed, they should go down easily. You could raise leaches for your fish to eat, they are a staple to their natural diet also, and with proper gut loading for them they can also provide an alternate nutrient source for your fish. You could try and set up a mulch pile and raise your own earthworms and give them as treats to your fish. With the worms eating natural refuse such as potatos, fruits and other table scraps, it would give your fish needed nutrition benifits. To try and help bring out the "red" in your RTC, you could try and feed it small crayfish. The natural iodine in their shells are absorbed and displayed by the fish and animals that eat them, that's why pink flamingos are pink.
These are just some ideas for alternate food sources for your fish, I hope you find it helpful, and good luck with them in the future, I hope they live long and healthy lives.
