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Lately ive been noticing that it has been pooping footlong strands of poo, and i need to know what is causing it and how to treat it.

Thanx!

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I cannot remember when I last saw that condition from any of my fish. I would put it down to the diet you are using.
Exactly what are you feeding your fish, type, amounts and how often?

Have a look in [link=My Profile] http://www.fishprofiles.com/forums/member.aspx?id=1935[/link] for my tank info

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Betta 11Gal Desktop & Placidity 5ft Community Tank Photos

Keith

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it might be that they arent eating the proper foods...

try feeding some live veggies (ie blanched spinach, lettuce, tomatoes, cucumber... etc) or some boiled and shelled/skinned peas... these might help the BN to digest better and not have as much POO coming out of it.

\\\\\\\"an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of the cure\\\\\\\"

Well, i am feeding it prpared foods, ie flakes, freezedried bloodworm, sinking pellets, granules, and algae wafers. I fed it a bunch of peas yesterday, around 5 shelled, boiled, peas. I have yet to see it eat them.....I mashed it up just slightly, to keep it together. I have some forzen spinach in the fridge. How do i blanch vegetables? Thanks!

Also, should i treat for parasites internally? I want to add some garlic, but i dunno if he will eat it. It is hard to feed him, as he is a bit shy on the eating part....

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freezedried bloodworm

Here is one of your problems to start with. All you are doing there is like feeding a dry product that swells up in their stomach and can cause problems. I only use frozen Blood worms, also many other foods look in MY Profile for more info on feeding.

I buy the frozen spinach and grate it of directly into the tank.

Blanching is placing veges into strong boiling water for a few seconds taking it out and dropping it into ice cold water to stop the cooking process no big deal. This method is often used in cooking some veges also often used in Chinese cooking to speed up the cooking time (take away etc)
freezedried bloodworm
Keith

Near enough is not good enough, therefore good enough is not near enough, and only your best will do.
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Shoot! I really thought them FD bloodworms were good! Ill stop feeding them it? What should i befeeding it?

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Blood worms are an excellent food either live or frozen.

Many do not like feeding live foods unless you know the water they are in and it is 110% safe from introducing any problems.

I feed my 5ft tank 4 blocks of frozen blood worm three times a week and the Betta tank once a week.

I stopped using freeze dried food years ago. It can be used BUT it MUST be soaked first so that it does not swell up in their stomach. Also remember frozen is best also a good variety of foods is very essential in having healthy fish.

Have a look in [link=My Profile] http://www.fishprofiles.com/forums/member.aspx?id=1935[/link] for my tank info

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Keith

Near enough is not good enough, therefore good enough is not near enough, and only your best will do.
I VOTE DO YOU if not WHY NOT?
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Alright, so it must be soaked before....Gotcha. I love feeding bloodworms, but ive never kept frozen foods ever before. Maybe i could try it one day......Oops! I dont think im allowed to have fish food in the freezer......Ill stick with veggies and freeze dried, or live.

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I buy 10 packets of frozen Blood Worms at a time. They are in a sealed container and I put them into a plastic bag before I keep them in the freezer and it is never a problem.

Have a look in [link=My Profile] http://www.fishprofiles.com/forums/member.aspx?id=1935[/link] for my tank info

Look here for my
Betta 11Gal Desktop & Placidity 5ft Community Tank Photos

Keith

Near enough is not good enough, therefore good enough is not near enough, and only your best will do.
I VOTE DO YOU if not WHY NOT?
VOTE NOW VOTE NOW

Goby ... one of the other problems with Freeze Dried foods is they lose up to 90% of the nutrition values . I stopped using it, same as Keith when I learned this . If you can get the Frozen stuff in cubes , just stick it in a Worm feeder after you've defrosted it and your fish will go crazy for it . I feed mine twice a week on Blood worms and Brine shrimp and its a frenzy .

Garry

Hmm......Itll take a lot of persuasion to convince my mom to let me have ffrozen foods in the freezer.....I will try, for my fish's sake.....

Is frozen food at all expensive? How much does it cost? Also, which one should i get?

Thanks Again

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I only buy the Blood Worms, but I believe there are other foods.

As I stated I buy in packs of 10 and it is 50% off.

Have a look in [link=My Profile] http://www.fishprofiles.com/forums/member.aspx?id=1935[/link] for my tank info

Look here for my
Betta 11Gal Desktop & Placidity 5ft Community Tank Photos

Keith

Near enough is not good enough, therefore good enough is not near enough, and only your best will do.
I VOTE DO YOU if not WHY NOT?
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I buy frozen bloodworms as well; in fact, one of my fish only eats them and just about nothing else! You can also buy frozen brine shrimp, mysids, beefheart, and a host of other foods, but bloodworms are insect larvae and are probably the most natural analogue you can find.

On the other hand, my plec doesn't eat bloodworms. Perhaps you should try vegetables with your plec. The fiber will certainly help clear out its system; plecs need fiber and roughage in their diets much more than we do. Unfortunately, there's almost none of that in your typical algae wafer, so veggies can be a valuable addition to the diet of a plec.

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The aquarist is one who must learn the ways of the biologist, the chemist, and the veterinarian.

AARGH!!! Its not moving from the side of the glass!!! The BN has not moved from that same spot for like ages!!! I also havent seen it eat in forever....Im sure it eats when im not here, but.......

What vegies should i try? Spinach is readily avilable, so are carrots and peas. Also, i have celery and apples......Im going to get some pears probably today, so....Maybe i could pick up a cucumber from the market, and slice, blanch, and skin it.......Ill try that......I just want to know what other veggies listed above are ok....

THanks!!!

PS: I have bought some freeze dried tubifex worms for the kuhlis, but it dosent sink......I have no idea what do do with it, as it is too much for just a gourami to eat!

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Cukes are good, so is zuchinni and lettuce. I haven't tried any of the other veggies. Spinach is especially dubious since it contains oxalic acid, a toxin; in humans it would only be toxic if we ate a room full of it, but to fish which are much smaller the effect may be greater.

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The aquarist is one who must learn the ways of the biologist, the chemist, and the veterinarian.

YES!!! The cuke seems to have worked!!! The pleco is now eating wafers hungrily, and is also eating some more cukes!!! How often do i feed peas and cukes? Thanks!

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I feed my rubberlip veggies and fruit 4 times a week and algae wafers 2 times a week. He/She seems to have gotten use to this schedule so I think I will continue with it. The most important thing I have discovered is that he/she really enjoys variety so I mix it up with different fruits and veggies. Good luck before you know it your BN will eat everything in sight!

Justin

Colts Fan For Life
30g platy tank: 2 sunburst wag platys, 2 redtailed white calico platys, 2 red wag platys, 1 fry(not sure who it belongs to), 1 Golden CAE.
Bettas:1 VT male

Feed as much as you want without having too much decay in the tank. Plecs are natural grazers and are adapted to eating lots of food all the time.

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The aquarist is one who must learn the ways of the biologist, the chemist, and the veterinarian.

stay away from tubifex even freezedried as it has been found to still contain parasites - tubifex are dirtyworms - my plecos actually love frozen blood worms - press the cube on the inside of the glass halfway down with the lights off til it sticks and your plecos will go for it in time - my albino gibby used to ignore it at first but now makes a beeline for it almost each time so I often place one for him on one side of the tank and another for the other plecos on the other side - anything that sinks will be gobbled up as well - san francisco bay brand makes frozen brine shrimp enriched with spirulina in cubes also works and sometimes using a product called garlic guard by seachem helps for fussy eaters - you soak the food in it before you feed your fish.