Cook it for 10 minutes, then you can chop it. In my limited expereience, mixes are far more messier. My wild discus loved it and its a staple diet of european wild discus keepers.
Hello Simply,
Anybody feed mussel meat as a staple? I've heard some putting it in their beefheart recipes, but wondering if anybody had success feeding it as a majority of their discus diet. Is it nutritional enough to be a staple? Is it messy compared to other discus foods? Was planning on just chopping (into bite size pieces) the soft part of raw mussel meat (cooked i would think might be messier). And of course do discus really end up craving mussel meat like different other foods once it's offered enough times and devour it eventually?
Any feedback would be great, thanks!
Jason
Cook it for 10 minutes, then you can chop it. In my limited expereience, mixes are far more messier. My wild discus loved it and its a staple diet of european wild discus keepers.
Its much like using scallops and clams... perfectly fine but if you are collecting them becareful. Living as I do along the CT shore....we have so many great mussel locations here, but they are not edible compliments of toxins from the previous era's pollution.
al
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Jason
I'm not sure where you live but here in Ct. I can get PEI mussels in the stores that in my imho
are the best by far. I use them in my mix. So, you might want to try that.
Jay
I used them in the past, bought them in 5 kilos pack. Started having problems and suspected the mussels so i stopped feeding them. Problems went away and after a couple months started using mussels again and short after problems started. So i completely discarded them and since then never any issue again.
Fish would swim erratically, startle for no aparent reason, crash agaist the aquarium walls and one even jumped out and found it dry the next morning.
So no mussels for my fish, after all they are filtering mollusc and with the pollution levels at the seas nowdays they are a potential risk.
These are my own experiences based on my observations on my own fish.
So I've been feeding the mussels for a few days now to try it out. They seem to be really liking it a lot. Not sure if this frozen stuff i've been buying is raw or cooked. It doesn't say on the packaging, but figured it was raw. Amazingly they seem more active now with it in their bellies. Yeah I would imagine this stuff gets very messy if grinded or food processed, so I've been cutting it up. Good to hear other discus keepers have had success with it! Will be interesting to see in the near future if my WC schedule gets ramped up, but I won't mind at all if my discus appear to thrive on it
Collecting them is a great idea Al! I'm in Mass so I have many locations myself. It's too bad about the pollution. I will have to research on the local mussels around here to see if they are safe, but I'm probably in the same boat you are. Too bad if that's the case, it could save a ton of money
I'm in Mass Jay. Did some research on the PEI mussels just now. Couldn't find quite yet where I could purchase them locally. The ones I have now could very well be the PEI brand. Will check the packaging when I get home. Do you buy them in the big chain markets? By bulk? Thanks for the info!
Sorry to rehash an old post, but, my babies love Mussel meat, and it seems to pollute the water column less, but a fish supplier told me that they were " fast food " for Discus and shouldn't be fed as a staple. Does anyone feed as a staple, or as part of a mix?
I tried to feed my growing juvies alternating grated (from frozen) wild salmon with grated (from frozen) mussels, the shelled and presumably pre-cooked ones (Mytilus chilensis), I blanched the grated fragments in boiling water before feeding. After a few weeks the fish seemed less lovely and their movements more erratic. Stopped the mussels and fed just salmon and they went back to normal within 2-3 days. It may be a coincidence but I will not feed them anymore.
Mussels do contain high levels of thiaminase, but I can not find for how long they need to be heat treated to inactivate it.
I find discus love any type of clam type meat. I often mix it in the seafood mix I make. For my Arowanas, I buy seafood medley and they have stuff like clams, mussels, squid, octopus...etc. I sometimes cut the meat into small pieces and throw it is as a once a while treat for the week, they love it. Eat it whole the wild Discus.
Its important to buy stuff that has been frozen, so anything alive has been killed.
Paul,
Check out this article..
https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&sour...JbmHmwNiUbtYHP
5 mins @180f should deactivate thiaminase.
An interesting point is that though clams and mussels contain thiaminase (which breaks down vitamen b1)..oysters do not. But thats one expensive fish food!
Al
AquaticSuppliers.com Freeze Dried BlackWorms and other foods your Discus will Love!!!
>>>>>I am a science guy.. show me the science minus the BS
Al Sabetta
Simplydiscus LLC Owner
Aquaticsuppliers.com
I take Pics.. click here for my Flickr images