# Best Foods to Promote Healthy growing



## Us And Them (Dec 4, 2008)

Alright , so as long as I have had P's , i have only been successful with Whole Frozen Krill..
Ive Tried Fish such as Salmon , Scallops , Haddock , Smelt and to no avail..

Now the other day i remember speaking with someone who told me that Krill Is just not meaty enough
and should only be used with smaller fish.. Is this Correct?

And if that is the case , What should I be feeding my 5 Inch Mannie and 5.5Inch Sanchezi ? I do want them to 
grow But not at the expense of Loosing any.

Which Foods promote the Fastest and Healthiest Growth ?

I do realize alot has to do with Water Params etc... but aside from all that.


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## b_ack51 (Feb 11, 2003)

Varied diet is always the best.

I usually had a few items frozen in my freezer, then just thawed out when necessary to feed.

Squid
Tilapia
Shrimp
Silversides
Smelt
Scallops


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## AKSkirmish (Jun 24, 2005)

I highly suggest a RAW seafood diet with the occasional pellets.....


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## His Majesty (Apr 5, 2005)

I have to agree with what AK and b_ack have said.
fresh raw seafood such as scallop, shrimp, fish fillets are all good foods
a good helping of pellets for variation. all these foodswill help promote healthy fish with great colour

i also on the rare occasion use live feeders. but only on occasion. its used as a treat and something to vary their diet and also lets them use their natural instincts to hunt. plus its cool to watch.

stay away from red meats, burgers, hot dogs, anything man made and anything which does not come from the sea/river.


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## Us And Them (Dec 4, 2008)

Ive heard alot of good things about Tilapia..
im gonna pick some up soon


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## Ja'eh (Jan 8, 2007)

Any kind of white fish fillet, shrimp, scallops and squid is what I like to use plus I will stuff any one of these with either Hikari Cichlid Gold or Hikari Carnivor Pellets. My brandtii and gibbus will actually take the pellets from the surface without having to trick them by stuffing the pellets in somthing. Meal worms occassionally for a shot of protien and as a treat.


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## b_ack51 (Feb 11, 2003)

Ja said:


> Any kind of white fish fillet, shrimp, scallops and squid is what I like to use plus I will stuff any one of these with either Hikari Cichlid Gold or Hikari Carnivor Pellets. My brandtii and gibbus will actually take the pellets from the surface without having to trick them by stuffing the pellets in somthing. Meal worms occassionally for a shot of protien and as a treat.


Be careful with any kind.. I'd say most.

I purchased Cod before and it would just fall apart. Messy as hell. I'd avoid unless you love cleaning every inch of your tank after each feeding.


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## Ja'eh (Jan 8, 2007)

b_ack51 said:


> Any kind of white fish fillet, shrimp, scallops and squid is what I like to use plus I will stuff any one of these with either Hikari Cichlid Gold or Hikari Carnivor Pellets. My brandtii and gibbus will actually take the pellets from the surface without having to trick them by stuffing the pellets in somthing. Meal worms occassionally for a shot of protien and as a treat.


Be careful with any kind.. I'd say most.

I purchased Cod before and it would just fall apart. Messy as hell. I'd avoid unless you love cleaning every inch of your tank after each feeding.
[/quote]
I never use cod and many others exactly for that reason. When I use fish I use fillets, tilapia, sole or even pollok. I stick with white fish because it's healthier for p's and it's less messy. I also use silversides but they don't usually fall apart during feeding and they are great for stuffing pellets into.


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## 65galhex (Nov 5, 2008)

I feed my 3 RBP's raw: shrimp, tilapia, silversides, and on the occasion scallops. They are healthy and growing like crazy and they also have amazing color.


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## Us And Them (Dec 4, 2008)

What exactly are silver sides ???
I have never seen them in Ontario , Unless im just unfamiliar with the name here??


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## roccov12345 (Sep 26, 2008)

CrazeeJon said:


> What exactly are silver sides ???
> I have never seen them in Ontario , Unless im just unfamiliar with the name here??


You can usually find them at a decent LFS. Most likely frozen, also commonly referred to in angling world as spiering (SP).


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## 65galhex (Nov 5, 2008)

They are little silver fish about 1-3 inches depending. Places like Petco, Petsmart, etc. They should be in the frozen food section


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## jamezgt (Jun 24, 2008)

I honestly just feed my piranha's shrimp and nothing else. Hope nobody is offended by that - but my water parameters are fine in all my tanks, and I cut them into bit size pieces and there are no left overs.

I also soak them in Kent Zero (vitamin solution) and I feel like that has really brought their colors out. Just my 2 cents


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## Trigga (Jul 1, 2006)

Feed nls as a staple and use whitefish or Shrimp once or twice a week. You could use fish as a staple but it's more expensive and not as colour enhancing



jamezgt said:


> I honestly just feed my piranha's shrimp and nothing else. Hope nobody is offended by that - but my water parameters are fine in all my tanks, and I cut them into bit size pieces and there are no left overs.
> 
> I also soak them in Kent Zero (vitamin solution) and I feel like that has really brought their colors out. Just my 2 cents :nod:


can't argue with the results


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## roccov12345 (Sep 26, 2008)

jamezgt said:


> I honestly just feed my piranha's shrimp and nothing else. Hope nobody is offended by that - but my water parameters are fine in all my tanks, and I cut them into bit size pieces and there are no left overs.
> 
> I also soak them in Kent Zero (vitamin solution) and I feel like that has really brought their colors out. Just my 2 cents :nod:


Jamez, how are you going about soaking the shrimp. I used to use Zoe a while back, actually have a whole bottle of it sitting around, but it used to make a mess of my water. I would pre-soak the shrimp in a zip loc and freeze it. Upon feeding them I would just bust out the bag, thaw out a couple and toss them in. It would cloud up the water pretty heavy. Are you soaking the shrimp right before feeding?

I appreciate any wisdom.......


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## FEEFA (Nov 19, 2007)

I also use zoe and the way i do it is I put the frzenshrimp in a cup with just enough water to cover the shrimp. To that I add some zoe and let it thaw, while it thaws for a couple hours it soaks up the zoe better than throwing it back in the freezer IMO.
Thats probably why it was messy for you.

Feeding with zoe is great but its just as important to feed a quality pellet as a staple.


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## THE BLACK PIRANHA (Dec 8, 2003)

b_ack51 said:


> Varied diet is always the best.
> 
> I usually had a few items frozen in my freezer, then just thawed out when necessary to feed.
> 
> ...


Never hurt to feed some good quality pellets to it helps fill any void in the diet.


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## jamezgt (Jun 24, 2008)

Here's what I do - and it's not messy at all.

1. Grab a handful of shrimp and put it in a smaller container
2. Add Kent Zoe (enough so it fills the bottom of the container)
3. Put the lid on, shake it up
4. Now it's all googey, and it's a weird dark greenish color - I pick the shrimp out and pop them in a small bowl
5. Rinse the container, and DRY it. Pop the shrimp back in and either fridge it (lasts 2-3 days, then it starts to smell alittle), or ziploc bag and freeze it.

It's all about timing, just make enough for your fish to eat for 2-3 days, and on the last day, just prepare more. When the shrimp drops in the water, it's pretty green and doesn't mess up my water at all (piranha's just swallow them).


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## roccov12345 (Sep 26, 2008)

Thanks Jamez, I'll give that a shot.....


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## brianhellno (Jun 16, 2008)

I feed Hikari Cichlid Gold and Hikari Algae Wafers. I just switch between them every couple to three days. They seem to be doing great on the combo.


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## Plum (May 4, 2006)

I used to place a lot of emphasis on this but not so much anymore. It was right after watching a video of some brillaint red, deep dark black hummeral spot Caribe's munching on what looked like a dead cow. The body of the cow had already started to decompose and had a layer of what looked to be oil, surrounding it... And here are these beauftiful large Caribe munching away at the body (or whatever you want to call it at this point).

While I am watching this, my buddy is laughing at the amount of $$ i spend purchasing Talapia, krill, Massivore, etc. and time I spend with vitamin soaking etc....

Anyway - I am trying to find a contact for freezer burnt fish since this experience.


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## James Bond (Apr 4, 2009)

I am feeding shrimp raw with the shell on , pellets , and earthworms.

They seem to be growing fine


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## iceh86 (Mar 14, 2009)

jamezgt said:


> I honestly just feed my piranha's shrimp and nothing else. Hope nobody is offended by that - but my water parameters are fine in all my tanks, and I cut them into bit size pieces and there are no left overs.
> 
> I also soak them in *Kent Zero* (vitamin solution) and I feel like that has really brought their colors out. Just my 2 cents :nod:


Can you link where that is available?


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## Trigga (Jul 1, 2006)

Big ALS online


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## pirairtool (Nov 12, 2005)

I feed mine

sea bass
dover sole
talapia
squid (although always ruins the water and stinks but they love it)
mackerel
vietnamese river cobbler (although i have foiund out recently this is tesco renaming it, its actually catfish)
halibut
monkfish (although expensive)
earthworms (packed with nutition and they love it coz they wriggle around in their bellies)

i only ever feed white fish


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