Black Kuhli loaches eating?

Hi! I'm a new keeper, and currently I have 1 tank with some black kuhlI loaches and some assorted mollies.

The mollies get basic tropical flakes, and are voracious eaters. Rarely do any flakes make it to the bottom.

I recently purchased some sinking shrimp pellets from the brand Omega One for the loaches, and dropped a few in the typical areas they lurk.
The mollies preceded to find the pellets and wedge themselves into the tightest spaces to eat them.

The pellets are now gone, with the loaches having gotten none, and the mollies have overeaten (I've learned that they will eat until they die).

I haven't put any other foods in the tank due to fear of the mollies dying from stuffing themselves silly.

Any advice on how to feed the loaches to where they'll eat and I won't end up with dead mollies?

 

Get a mortar and pestle, crush up the shrimp pellets into fine powder then feed to the loaches. My javas get their food and my rams and lemon tetras can't get any.

 

So, because the loaches are bottom feeders they can suck up the powder? i'm worried the powder will dissolve :/

 

I wait a couple hours after lights out then drop some bottom feeder pellets or algae wafers in the tank . Loaches feed mostly at night and the other fish are trying to sleep or whatever they do

 

So, because the loaches are bottom feeders they can suck up the powder? i'm worried the powder will dissolve :/

They'll eat it all in minutes

 

You need to get a large sinking pellet food, you want to drop it in at night because the loaches are nocternal.
The loaches will graze in it for a couple of hours, the mollies will not be able to eat it all.
I have the cobalt algae grazer pellets, they are huge, like the size of a stack of 5 nickels. my loaches love them.

 

FinalFins

I tried this and put the dust into the aquarium, and it all floated atop the water, allowing the mollies to eat it all before any fell to the bottom =/

 

Did you try what I suggested? I've never had an issue feeding my Loaches

 

I did, but my mollies do not tend to rest very much. I turned the tank lights off at 8 pm, and then put some pellets in around 11 pm. The mollies immeadiately proceeded to dart out of the caves and start eating the pellets before the loaches got to them. When the loaches try to go and grab a pellet, the mollies will peck at them and scare them away.

 

FinalFins

I tried this and put the dust into the aquarium, and it all floated atop the water, allowing the mollies to eat it all before any fell to the bottom =/

Take a cup with tank water, swish it around so the powder sinks and pour it in. Sorry I didn't specify that but that's what I do. or take a pinch of it in your fingers and sprinkle it just below the surface underwater.

 

Oh, makes sense! Thank you, I'll try that.

 

Maybe try the algae wafers instead of pellets? They are larger and the mollies shouldn't eat them