DAPHNIA.. How to feed? How much and how often?

I received my treasure box from F&S today.....LOL! I am not sure how to feed this stuff, etc, etc. as in subject line?? Anyone out there. Rose??

And I must tell you how I have been tag teamed by my two boys...who were within ear shot of one another today ( no really).

I put Daphnia on water in Neptunes tank, he looked up at me like " Ya, not in my lifetime"...and kept following my hand and the forcep thingee I use for bloodworms which he jumps for. Storm did the same thing, kept circling and watching the forcep, cuz he knows too that my hand holds the forcep that holds the food. They were having none of it.

So, I weakened and fed them both bloodworms, there was much jumping and circling and chomping going on. Then I had to go to the BBQ, came in and the little turds are both at the top of their tanks............so I went and looked, and sure enough, both of them are chowing down on the Daphnia. Little TURDS!!!

I am so easy to trick.. had to share my cute story.. they crush my heart ;D.....anyway if someone can help with dosing?? Val

 

Daphnia=baby brine shrimp..correct? If so my betta's have never eaten them, they don't seem to notice they are there, so I can't be of much help there. Next time you might want to hide out of their view and trick them.

 

Beats me....the containers says ingredients: Daphnia (LOL -- dahhh ya, think??) and vitamins E,C,B1,B2,B6,B12. I might have to try some! It says it is freeze dried something, but not what and that it is free of parasites. Well, Yay!It is pulverized whatever it is, but my hubby is deathly allergic to shellfish, so I'm thinkin I better find out what it is.

It looks almost like a very small flaky powder and says feed as much as fish will eat in 3-5 minutes up to 3 times a day, which we know can't be right for bettas. The only person I know for sure that uses it is Rose, so hopefully she will be on and see this. I don't know if it is a food, or a treat or just a way to give vitamins??

I removed whatever I could from the tank when I saw them chowing down - I dpn't need to be dealing with constipation....St orm & Neptune's I mean. LOL

 

Daphnia are, alas, tiny crustaceans or barely visible shellfish. They are good food for sick fish and fish that will not eat peas for any reason as they are a great fiber food. They contain a lot of vitamins but are not a high enough protein food to provide a whole diet source for a long period of time. That is why I use them in the hospital tank only and when Marty SR. was still alive he got them instead of peas as he was not going to put one of those green things in HIS mouth NO way NO how and he did not care who knew it. It is okay to use it in amounts bigger than the normal amounts that you would feed for other foods as it spreads in the water and they do not eat it all. I do not count or finger feed. I pour a spot about the size of a quarter and let it spread. Since I do a 50% water change and clean up the stuff on the bottom and around the sides it does not hurt anything that they do not eat it all.

Nate loves it and eats it readily and I tried a really small amount of it on Damon and he took to it right away but he really wants the Betta Pro more.

Here is an article about it:



Rose

 

Yea, sebastian (the little mermaid) would be pale if he saw a can of daphnia. those bettas are funny little characters.. what they do when our backs are turned! and the way they act when they get caught - LOL.

 

I just dig up a spot that looks like the equivalent of 2-3 pellets in size with a small spoon and pour it directly in front of their mouth. They chase and eat most of it but some gets away.
I always thought they were freeze-dried water fleas?

The HikarI Daphnia I have is cream colored and smells almost like vanilla...

 

LOL.. ours have fun chasing the daphnia too. we have the hikari.

 

I read the link site Rose posted, and they are like crustacean ( sp?) water fleas....whatever, I ordered them cuz Storm was still acting weird and I thought well, may as well not waste that $9.99 delivery fee..LOL.

Also, on the can it says it should be used in 90 days once opened...why do they put them in such a large container. I am sure it would last me three life times..wish they did a smaller size for those of us with just a couple fish ( who won't be eating it all that often). Well, I shouldn't say that, I will try to incorporate it into their feedings, for variety. Sure don't need any uppity bettas!!

It was fun to see them fool me though..

 

90 days? The HikarI brand I have is still good for another year, although I doubt I'll be able to use even 1/4 of it by then. They should make them in smaller containers...

 

Or, you could just buy more bettas! ;D
don't listen to me, I have issues.

 

more Bettas is the perfect solution! ;D remember what your parents told you: "don't waste your fish food, fish in other countries will starve if you do!" .. or did they say that about kids?

 

Oh do not worry about the 90 day thing. That is a way to sell more food. You can keep it for 6 months at least. I know you will probably not use it all in 6 months but more than you would in 90 days. I have had mine probably 4 months already and my little ones have a great time eating it and love noshing on the stuff for a long time after the meal is over. It is good for them so I do not care if they keep it and nibble. It is a great fiber food and will not constipate them in fact is excellent to clean them out so I let them eat all they want and they cannot believe mommy is not being stingy with the nummies.

Rose

 

Phlox, my expiry date is 2008..but on the side of the container it says for maximum effectiveness use within 90 days - I read it too quickly. They were both so funny to watch chowing down on that stuff, like it was a neverending treat, and they were sneaking it. As it turns out they were, turds that they are. LOL

So to clarify, it is like a treat? So I can give it to Storm if he won't do the pea thing?

And while I see how Rose cleans the tanks to get the leftover gunk out, a question came to mind.....is there such a thing as a siphon vacuum that isn't quite as long?? I can't fit mine into Neptune's Qtank, it is too long, and the tank has a bowed front so looking for suggestions to overcome this.. Turkey baster wouldn't work with the gravel in there.

 

It was all Marty Sr. would use for a Laxative. NO peas or greens for Mr. Stubborn thank you. It does an excellent job and that is why I let Nate nosh on it all he wants and any of the others I have tried with it. They cannot get constipated with it as it is a lot of fiber and really cleans them out. If you read the can I believe it says this. It is good for sick fish too as it is very easy on the tummy. Storm would find it very easy to eat. Let us hope he not so picky to try it.

They do make minI syphons that a very small but have you tried to get a normal sized one and just cut it down to size? I do not know that it would work but it might.



Size Dimensions Flexible Hose Rigid Tubing


Small 1" x 12-1/4" 1/4" x 6' 1" x 12-1/4"
Medium 1-5/8" x 11-1/2" 3/8" x 6' 1-5/8" x 11-1/2"
Large 1-7/8" x 14-1/4" 1/2" x 6' 1-7/8" x 14-1/4"
X-Large 1-7/8" x 24" 1/2" x 6' 1-7/8" x 2'

Hope this helps some.

Rose

 

Thanks Rose. Why is it sometimes a person can't think of the simplest things?? I will try cutting one down, I just rec'd my $100 order from F&S yesterday, so have to wait a bit, I think.

Storm did eat the daphnia yesterday, after fooling me into feeding him bloodworms..............Thanks. Val

 

It is a great fiber food and will not constipate them in fact is excellent to clean them out so I let them eat all they want and they cannot believe mommy is not being stingy with the nummies.
Rose

lol.. how true! our bettas think they've hit the jackpot on Daphia days. Storm is a smart little guy and he's gonna milk his betta mommy for all the food his hungry tummy can desire. How do you get mad at them? even when they're bad boys/girls, they just make you laugh and love them more.

 

And while I see how Rose cleans the tanks to get the leftover gunk out, a question came to mind.....is there such a thing as a siphon vacuum that isn't quite as long??  I can't fit mine into Neptune's Qtank, it is too long, and the tank has a bowed front so looking for suggestions to overcome this..  Turkey baster wouldn't work with the gravel in there.

I recently bought a biorb cleaner pump that I find to be excellent for tanks that are small or otherwise hard to clean!

I used to have a siphon gravel cleaner that you had to pump up and down in the water to get suction going. This was difficult in the Hex tank and impossible in the divided tanks once part of the water was drained out from one side the water level was too low to get suction going again. This Biorb cleaner has a hand pump you squeeze and it starts suction almost instantly. The nozzle has a short piece and a long attachment. The only thing I didn't like was a grill in the nozzle prevented plant leaves from getting sucked up and it would clog with debris. I fixed that problem by cutting the plastic grill out and now it works great! Maybe something like this would work for you? It is made specifically to clean the tiny 4 gallon Baby Biorbs but can be used on any tank.

 

That is a great idea. Now that I have Nate in the 2.5 gallon for the summer probably, I may have to look into one. What I am using takes forever and he is one of the "Down With Turkey Basters!!!" types.

Rose
;D

 

I've never seen this product in the stores around here, and I've certainly never used it. But it does sound interesting for use in small tanks.

A simple gravel cleaner for smaller aquariums, the Battery-Vac traps dirt in a reuseable filter bag and does not remove water. Operates on two "C" batteries.

A fast, easy and reliable tool for cleaning aquarium gravel. Helps to provide sparkling clear water and give an environment that promotes healthy fish.

Size:
1" W x 16" L (without extension tube), 1" W x 23 3/8"L (with extension tube attached.

Romeo says that Nate is a smart betta, and he's doing the right thing by protesting the evil turkey basters!

 

In the meantime, I use a vacuum siphon for the gravel in my 5gal hex and the easiest way to do it is just to be brave and use it like a normal siphon... suck on the end until you see the water start to flow and then block off the end with your finger until you can get it into the drain/bucket/bottle you dump your dirty water into. This works no matter how shallow the water is... Just make sure to wipe the end off of course before putting it into your mouth

 

Ya, I have been doing that for the 6 gallon ( before this cycling period) and have ended up with a mouth ful a couple times!!! Oh well, anything for the fish!! I am going to also look into that one Phlox suggested. thanks.

 

Same thing happens to me sometimes. BLECH! ewww! I should probably buy a new one too, I like the one Phlox showed as well!

 

Same thing happens to me sometimes. BLECH! ewww! I should probably buy a new one too, I like the one Phlox showed as well!

Maybe it would taste better with a spoonful of filter sludge? mmmm!

 

I use the infamous TURKEY BASTER to get mine started. It takes a while but I crimp the tube and just squeeze the ball on the baster again until it is finally sucked through enough. I just could not get myself to do the put the thing in your mouth thing.....too chicken. I also have the battery operated sludge removers and battery operated syphons but it depends on what I am trying to do which one works best. The battery operated ones do not do a deep cleaning job.

I am also looking into getting one like the one Phloxface mentioned.

Rose

 

That BiOrb cleaner is awesome! I had such problems getting suction going on my other gravel vac and especially in the Hex tank I would have to pump that thing up and down for 10 minutes to get it started! I was always worried about injurying Lava and the others in the process because they get in the way.
Now all it takes is 2 or 3 squeezes on the hand pump and the suction is going, strong! It emptys 2 gallons of water in less than a minute so you have to work fast! You can also turn it around and use it to put your clean water back into the tank. Cleaning and water changes take anywhere from 5 to 10 minutes now depending on tank size.

Just remember if you get it to cut the grill out from the inside of the tube. (I used wire clippers)  I guess they put it there to prevent fish from getting sucked up but there's no danger of that happening in our tanks. I found when I first used it with the grill all the dead leaves got clogged in there and when I pulled it out of the water the leaves emptied back into the water making a mess. With the grill removed it works great!

 

I just fill the entire thing with water stick the suction part in the tank while I hold the other end with my finger, stick it in the bucket below the level of the tank and let gravity do its thing Saves me having to possibly drink nasty fish water or work to hard to get things going. Though that vac thing you are talking about sounds like a great thing to have for my little 1.5 g tank. I'll have to look into it.