What exactly do your corries eat in your tank?

[TropicalDude86]

Since they are catfish and scavangers do they really clean up the bottom of your tank? do the eat atleast some of the waste like poo and so on? is it true? i feed them but do they clean up alittle?

 

[SirMinion]

Well they don't eat poo, but they do search the bottom of the tank for little edible fragments and uneaten food.
In a well maintained tank, there's no way that this is enough for them though.

We feed our cories on sinking catfish pellets, sinking flake, frozen bloodworm and sinking plec wafers.

They also occasionally get chopped prawn.

 

[dwarfgourami]

This is proving to be a bit of a learning curve for me. On my 4th day of cory keeping I have learnt:

a) that feeding corys tropical flake if they are alone in a tank with a strong top current is not a good idea. Some food sinks to the bottom and gets eaten, the rest stays on the surface and fouls the water. Catfish pellets from now on! well, until I have got some middle or surface eaters, anyway.

B) that you can't blame lfs staff for selling you the wrong food if you don't give them all the details (I hadn't)

c) that the as-much-as-they-can-eat-in-5- minutes rule doesn't apply with catfish pellets, as it takes them at least that long to dissolve. And then the daft things have got to find them. And play with them. And with each other.

d) that they don't eat nearly as much as I think they do. Started by feeding them 3 pellets (there are 5 cats) and had to fish one out straigthaway as it was clear it was not going to get eaten. Then fed them 2/meal for 3 days- and had to do a major water change. I think 1 pellet is enough for my crew.

 

[SirMinion]

they don't eat nearly as much as I think they do. Started by feeding them 3 pellets (there are 5 cats) and had to fish one out straigthaway as it was clear it was not going to get eaten.

Yes, I learned a long time ago that 'little and often' is the best way to feed most fish.

You may also find it beneficial to fast the tank once a week to give the fish time to clean up the scraps and evacuate their digestive systems.

This mirrors feeding patterns in the wild where food is not always available and has a positive effect on the fish's health.

 

[Undawada]

chopped prawns?

Pre-cooked or raw?

this is interesting, Ive never heard of that before. I might try it

 

[OohFeeshy]

At the mo mine are all alone, so I put a pich of soaked flakes in and that lasts them about 3 days. But really its a question of what they won't eat, just maybe bung a few extra flakes under the water for them.