Concerning the bloodworms; I contacted Ted Judy, one of the best dwarf cichlid breeders in the hobby concerning the use of bloodworms with cac's. This is his reply concerning this issue;
Hey Ted;
I've got a question on the forum I run concerning feeding bloodworms to Apistogramma cacatouides. Apparently some folks are being told that cac's can't digest bloodworms properly, and end up dying. Odd thing is, it's in reference to males only.
I bred cac's long ago, I'm sure I fed them bloodworms among other things, but am wise enough to feed them sparingly, followed by some frozen brine shrimp or a fast the next day. I'm just concerned that it may be a particular product having an issue, similar to the Hartz/Wardley recall from about a month back.
The topic can be found here; http
/www.fishforums.net/index.php?/topic/395734-unwell-apistogramma/
Get back to me when you have a chance, or feel free to post on the topic, looking forward to the next Fall Fish Fest, the last one was a blast!
Thanks!
John
****************************************************************
Hi John,
I read through the thread. Not much there to go on. I have never heard that bloodworm is a killer of apistos. I know a lot of people that use it. I do not, but only because I am allergic to bloodworms and it makes me break out in hives. Bloodworm is not a worm. It is a fly larvae. They do have an exoskeleton, but it is soft like a mosquito larvae. Since apistos are all invertebrate eaters, I would think blood worms would be right up their alley. The problem with frozen foods of any kind is that if it ever thaws out and gets refrozen the food can go bad very quickly and cause bacterial disease problems. I suspect that is most likely what happens when bloodworm is blamed for fish death.
*******************************************************************
I thought it odd that bloodworms would cause issues with these fish. I bred cacatuoides long ago, and am certain that bloodworms were part of their diet. My concern was one of a product recall that had not yet been enacted, or a certain product being suspected in this.
I lost one of my young discus about 2 weeks ago, my tank is looking awful empty now 0_0
