Why Beef?

[tlum]

Are there any good reasons that we feed our discus by beef heart or just beef, but not other meats, such as pork, turkey or chicken? I learn from the forum that beef heart is cheaper than lean beef and this is the main reason why more people feed their discus with beef heart. I found from the meat department of a grocery store near my home that beef heart costs about $2 per pound. However, ground pork (97% lean, i.e. 3% fat) costs about $2.7. Gound turkey costs the same price. Extra lean ground beef (96% lean) costs about $4 per pound.

Is 97% gound pork a good subsitute for beef heart? Are that any benefits for feeding discus with beef (enhance color, etc?) that we cannot get by feeding them with pork?



Terry

[nacra99]

I think that the reason is that beef heart (or even pig heart) tends to have very little fat content. Think i heard somewere (probably in this forum) that fatty foods are not too good for discus. see http://forum.simplydiscus.com//index.php?board=3;action=display;threadid=20897

I think even 97-something% ground beef still contains quite a bit of fat... I mean, ever watch your ground beef brown in your frying pan while cooking tacos? There's still lots of fat in it.

Cheers
Marc

[Dkarc@Aol.com]

You can feed ground pork if you cant find BH. If you can find it cheap enough, you can even use a white fish such as cod or scrod or you could also use shrimp as the base of your mix. Seafood mixes are actually better for fish as they contain the proper types of fat that is needed to absorb fat soluable vitamins, which are among the most important.

-Ryan

[tlum]

Ryan and Marc,

Thanks for the responses. I am still thinking about why beef? Do we feed our discus with beef heart just because BH is one of the leanest potein sources? When people say high fat content in the forum, what does the phase "high fat content" really mean? 4% fat (or 96% lean)? Or 7% fat (or 93%)? If fat is the only concern, I think pork or turkey are better choice. Does any one has any data on the fat content of BH? I don't think BH is 100% fat free.

Do we get other benefits by feeding our fish with BH or beef?

thanks.
Terry

[Dkarc@Aol.com]

I think the main reason for BH is of how cheap it is. I mean, for .99 a pound versus 4 a pound, which are you gonna buy? BH is not fat free, but it is one of the leanest pieces of meat on a cow. Depending upon how well you trim it, it is better than the super lean ground beef you can find. I have used the super lean ground beef with no problems. See, fish cannot digest mammalian fat. That is the reason why we use BH because of how lean it is once properly trimmed. Pork or turkey may be better because a lower fat content, but there are disease issue with turkey (salmonella) and with pork (intestinal worms). Of course, if you really want to spoil your fish, go with an all seafood mix. It will contain the proper types of fat and the proper protein content needed for excellent growth.

-Ryan

[ShinShin]

I would never feed ground pork to discus. If you can't find beefheart, 99% fat free ground turkey breast would be the better substitute, in fact, it may be better than beefheart.

[Sanke]

All

[eddiecheng]

heart will be the better meat source as it is easily digestible.

[Crunchy]

somehow I think people have tried all sorts of things to feed and beefheart is the best for growth.