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Hey everybody. I'm coming to the end of my tetramin staple flakes for my fish. I've been reading up on nutrition for fish (high protein, high fiber, low fat, etc.) and I want to switch to another brand of flake food. This is what I have in my tank:
4 dwarf neon rainbowfish
5 rummynose tetra
6 cherry barbs
9 peppered corys
What kind of new staple would be good for me? The corys are good, I'm feeding them Wardley shrimp pellets (I highly recommend these for corys). Thanks for the posts .

Why dont you stay with tetramin?

It is one of the best foods you can feed your fish.

My dad has been using it for more than 20 years now, and it has never failed on us.

I suppose you could say I use bio blend as my "staple".

But I also feed various frozen, and fresh foods as well. It depends on the fish, some like barbs like more vegetable in their diet, others like tetras seem to prefer more protein.

^_^




[hr width='40%']"I'm alright, I'm alright
It only hurts when I breathe"

Omega one

Osi

New Life Spectrum[/font][/font][/font]

I've been using Omega One, but am waiting for my mailorder New Life Spectrum food to arrive. My fish really like Omega One and it seems to be more readily available, espcially in Canada, so try it. I've heard amazing things about NLS, and am looking forward to trying it.

i feed tetramin because its either that or wardly and i am not fond of their flake, betta pellits ect (have u seen the size of them even my biggest bettas have trouble getting them down) but i feed my main tank on flake, tubifex, bloodworm, shrimp pellits, hikari sinking wafers, and for fresh foods i feed cooked carrots, peas, noodles (only on occation and only a few for who ever is the fastest) letace (no one realy liked this), corn (a deff fave) i have also fed meats like yurkey ham, and chiken, but like i said before fatty, starchy stuff is only a treat for like twice a year but they all love the vedgies, come to think of it i havent tryed fruits im gunna have to do that to day but my fish go crazy for tetramin

I've heard lots of excellent things from my LFS (Big Al's), unfortunately they don't carry the brand in their stores. I'm also curious to hear what people think about the NLS claim that they eliminate the need for variety of foods in a fish's diet. They say that fish need a variety of nutrients in the diet, and this is all supplied by the NFS food. Is this too good to be true? It sounds like it is.

Every food is like that.

My dad has fed his fish Tetramin flake food for liek 20 years (like i already said) and they are as healthy as can be.

Personally, I feel it gives them everything they need, or the fish would be dead by now.

I agree that tetramin is a great staple for fish, victimization. But some fussy fish will develop complications in their growth of health if you only feed them flakes. An example would be the congo tetra I owned awhile back. Then I only fed flakes to my fish, and they really started to be come sluggish and some got TB . That's why I like to give my guys some freeze-dried foods (tubifex worms right now) and the odd veggie here and there. I just find it a little hard to believe that NLS will correct the problem I had those years past. Heh, maybe if it is true, those congos would be still here.

I can only go by the experiences of those who have made the switch and fed NLS exclusively. They almost all seem to report that it works well and their fish have never been healthier and more colourful. I'd be a little concerned about feeding it to mbuna or other vegetarians on an exclusive basis, but many people do just that.

I just got my NLS package today and won't be able to feed it exclusively because the community fish formula pellets appear to be too large for some of my smaller fish to handle. I may have to get some of the small fish or growth formula next time -- the pellets are a third of the size. I'll try it for a while and see how my fish like it and report back here.

For the past 7 years my dad had fed the clown loaches tetramin sinking pellets, and flake food to the tetras (although they are only a year old) and the gourami, and everything else, and they are still old.

I feed my fish a varied diet (blood worms, different foods) and To be honost with you, I think my dads fish are healthier than mine are.

NLS is a great food. It has been my staple food for my cichlid/cats for over 6 months now. Just prolly not good for veg fish like Tropheus. Mbuna do great on it. If you folks look at the bottle(ingredient %), most foods vary little in protien %, I believe the fat % is more important to veggie fish. Most spirulina based foods are within 2% protein then others. And if most foods are 40-50% protein,I would say that thats animal matter. I also use Tetramin Pro,Spirulina,frozen,and bottom feeder pellets. Just mix it up a bit. You would not want hamburgers or greenbeans every day would you? I feed live food to my big tank(Bichirs) and I've seen Mbuna/Tangs(even the Tropheus) eat fish with no Ill effects(bloat). Just try to stay "close" to your fishes natural diet.

All my fish go crazy for the NLS small fish pellets but they are a bit small for my congo tetras. They get all excited(smell them?) then take awhile to realize where the pellets are. The rams love them and that's all my lfs feeds their rams. The black neons also like NLS the best. I don't feed it exclusively though. I've got about 10 containers here of various foods as well as frozen foods. My 55g gets wardley flakes or NLS in the morning, something in the afternoon(bloodworms, krill, tubifex...), and spirulina pellets or algae wafers when the lights go out. The other tanks are about the same but only fed once or twice a day. I just alternate their morning food and mostly feed the NLS pellets to the tank with the rams. I haven't noticed much difference between brands when I feed just one food constantly but I do notice a big difference in the fish when I alternate between lots of foods.

Well I hate to say this, but I am corrected(by myself). It appears my NLS(all purpose) has only 34% protein and 5% fat. Now I question my own feedings to my Tropheus as the Nutrafin Spirulina flakes have 44% protein and 5% fat. HHMMMMMM. I will switch back to NLS in my 125 and post further updates. I had been told by a local breeder(very highly recommended cichlid breeder/with web site) that Tropheus could not stand the Spectrum(although its 1 type he has not kept). Maybe its due to the moisture content?