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discus2010
02-08-2006, 07:31 PM
hi everyone
i have 8 (3 in) discus in a 55 g and i feed san Francisco bay brand beef-heart in frozen cubes and it always sink and they never finish it they only eat it while it is sinking and then they barely peck at the food at the bottom what can i do i even tried to feed them blood worms and they eat more but don't even finish a cube because it gets to the bottom and they ignore it i have a suspicion that they don t eat the blood-worms on the floor but the corys do because i saw one gobble up some worms how can i like levitate it in the water or something so that they eat it all. The only thing they finish are flake food

Bainbridge Mike
02-08-2006, 07:38 PM
You can try cutting the cubes into smaller portions and giving just a bit at a time. How long have you had the fish? Sometimes it takes a little while to get them conditoned to feeding time.

Mike

tpl*co
02-08-2006, 08:12 PM
What I used to do when Sampson and Goliath were babies was to hold the cube in my fingers and let them eat from that (Which I guess is why they are so tame, LOL, hand fed).

Tina

White Worm
02-08-2006, 08:37 PM
Cut the cubes in half. Use different brands and foods to see what they really like. Mine prefer hikari over sf brand. Yep, i have fed by hand before also, its really cool when they come up and eat right from your fingers.

candyl70
02-08-2006, 08:40 PM
Plus then you get to pet them and they don't mind it!!! That's my favorite part about feeding time. :D

Timbo
02-08-2006, 08:50 PM
thats one long-*** sentence my friend

yeah feed'em smaller chunks

AmberC
02-08-2006, 09:35 PM
thats one long-*** sentence my friend




LOL.. When I feed mine I dont just drop the frozen block into the tank. I have a plastic cup that had been rinsed in tank water. I put a little tank water in the cup drop in the cube (hikari.. mine refuse san fran bay brand) and let it thaw. Then I use a plastic spoon (also rinsed in tank water) and I scoop out the worms, draining the water off them on the side of the cup and drop them in the tank. They sink slowly. Mine like to eat it while its sinking too. Whatever hits the bottom.. they dont normally eat right away, but I leave it there and within a half hour its gone. They tend to pick at it here and there over that 30 min until its gone.

Side note.. I have NEVER owned a fish that WOULD eat frozen store bought beefheart.

goheel
02-08-2006, 10:37 PM
I don't understand the concept of buying those beefheart brands at store. The main reason people use beefheart is that because it's cheap, but if you buy them from a store, that just defeats the purpose. IMO, it's probably better to use frozen bloodworms if you're buying food from the store.

discus2010
02-08-2006, 11:03 PM
Goheel the reason i feed store bought beefheart is because i dont want to have to pay much and touch all the nasty stuff
i ll see if i can find hickari products instead then
whats the difference inbetween store bought (100% beef-heart) and homemade
i tried melting it first in tank water etc but they peck at some then come looking for more once its not right in front of their faces and then when i move they all get scared
they don't seem to like anything but flakes that much
i tried cutting it into pieces even 16ths but they still let most of it sink
i even tried adding salt for taste and they still dont care much
Only two would ever dar in getting closer then 3 inches away from my hand and get scared with the slightest movement
i have had them 4 over a month now

toomanyfish
02-22-2006, 05:49 AM
how about starving them for a couple of days?

KIWI13
02-22-2006, 06:50 AM
Discus 2010,

I think adding salt to the food wont change anything. But adding salt to the tank has more benificial effects. That however is another story.

Ok tell me, is your tank a bare bottom or do you have gravel ?? how often do you perform water changes and how much do you change ?? Do you check your ph, gh, nitrates, Ammonia levels ???

with the blood worms for example, try defrosting the cube in a little tank water and pouring it in slowly so they can eat little by litte. If they are eating flakes well then I would feed em flakes for atleast 2 meals in the day and then let em pick on 2 more meals of BH.. Beef heart sometimes isnt readily accepted by discus. It depends on what they have been brought up on..

What is your water temp at ?

Sincerely

Jason

marilyn1998
02-22-2006, 11:56 AM
I bought a plastic cone that hangs inside a circular plastic ring that is suction cupped to the side of the tank. You can use the cone, or just the ring. THe blood worms thaw and the fish suck them from the holes in the cone. The fish can take as long as they like to eat that way. I do the beef heart the same. It is harder for them to get the pieces through the holes, but they seem to enjoy the challenge. Having a gravel bottom tank, the tank doesnt foul this way and I can remove any uneaten pieces later.
This cone is like $1 USD.

Kindredspirit
02-22-2006, 04:07 PM
Hey Marilyn~

Interesting idea! Do you have a picture of that? They must push each other out of the way, yes?


http://smileys.smileycentral.com/cat/16/16_4_10.gif

marilyn1998
02-22-2006, 04:38 PM
I have 2 actually. One for each side so they all get to eat. Funny to see them swim back and forth and push away each other. But the little guys get a chance this way!

http://www.petsolutions.com/
Search for item 10810526

it is called a worm feeder. Enjoy!


It is on alot of shop sites. I see them in Michigan at the LFS if you dont want to pay shipping. I also found it at Big Al's under worm feeders.

Timbo
02-22-2006, 06:22 PM
But the little guys get a chance this way!



interesting...thats exactly why i stopped using them. the big guys would guard the rings and eat everything. now i put all in at once, all over the place...so the small guys get a chance. like i say, its interesting how opposite experiences with the same thing can occur in this hobby

Kindredspirit
02-22-2006, 06:45 PM
Exactly~ So many ways to do something, and what works for you may not necessarily work for Joe Blow Down The Street~


Amazing isn't it, Timbo??




http://smileys.smileycentral.com/cat/7/7_5_140.gif

discus2010
02-22-2006, 11:36 PM
well i have gotten to try hand feeding!*
i got most of them to eat but the biggest fish (red melons they are the biggest and least aggressive w/ the little ones strange!) have a hard time getting to the beef heart because the little fish eat more (idk y) and they don't reach easy but i am going to try the worm rings if i can find one locally available and im thinking atleast 2 so that they can all eat
if they eat from that more then ill keep with store bought otherwise im trying homemade w/ carols recipe i beleive w/o the salad cutter thing ($$$$)[:D <--(-$$)] heeheee lol
but any way ill just cut them to regular sizes and try with the ring and hand feeder (whichever works)
if all else fails ill have to get a salad chopper :mad: :mad:

*-once it's been in their for a bit it gets to soft and they just pull the entire big piece out of my fingers