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Bean or not to bean

Posted: Tue Mar 07, 2006 3:38 am
by Newjohn
Hello
I have been reading the previous post, and there are sure alot of them, looking for "feeding" shrimp.
Found a few, Spinach and Sweet patato (yams) are listed.

Does anyone know it Green beans or Zucchhini have any adverse affect on shrimp ?

Thanks for your time
John


PS can anyone tell me how to edit my screen name?
I wrote it in all CAPS.

I do not want people think I yell all the time.

Posted: Tue Mar 07, 2006 8:45 am
by Sannie
They also love Brussle sprouts (hope I'm writing this correct), but watch out for polution.. (Don't keep them too long in the tank)
I feed my shrimp all this veggies: spinach, carrots, green pea's, cucumber, paprika, lettuce.
I put them in the microwave for about 30 seconds before feeding.

Posted: Tue Mar 07, 2006 9:38 am
by fishgeek
mini love zucchini, havent tried beans to know

andrew

Posted: Tue Mar 07, 2006 11:37 am
by badflash
The problem with beans and brussels or most members of the cole family is that the break down quickly in water and cause cloudiness. I like collards and spinich in small amounts.

Posted: Tue Mar 07, 2006 12:33 pm
by cheesenips
Have anyone here tried stinging nettle?

I read somewhere that they are benifical to inverts, anyone out there care to give some imputs on this?

Posted: Tue Mar 07, 2006 4:02 pm
by Newjohn
Thanks alot for the replies

( badflash, fishgeek, sannie )

I only feed these in small amounts. 1 or 2 times a week. 1/4 of a cooked bean per tank.
It does not take to long for it to disappear.

Cloudiness is not a problem, I do a 10% water change daily.

Thanks again
John

Posted: Tue Mar 07, 2006 4:08 pm
by Newjohn
Sorry cheesenips
Never heard of stinging nettle.

Thanks
John

Posted: Tue Mar 07, 2006 4:38 pm
by DatDamWuf
I used to feed zuchinni and such but my husband brought home algae wafers a couple of months ago and now nobodies interested in the veggies. Otos, shrimp and kuhli's all go for the wafers.

Posted: Wed Mar 08, 2006 5:36 am
by Sannie
Do you know the ingredients of these wafers? Cause I guess there is some spirulina in it... Shrimp, catfish and crays love that ( even some other fish, like livebearers)! And it is also very good for there immune systems. I've bought some special spirulina flakes for that purpose and they all love them!

Posted: Wed Mar 08, 2006 6:22 am
by DatDamWuf
Lots of stuff in them, here's a link w/ingredients:

http://www.hikariusa.com/algae_wafers.htm

I've never seen my kuhli loaches eat anything except live food before he got these!

Posted: Wed Mar 08, 2006 6:24 am
by badflash
One warning about the wafers. Put only a quarter or less in at a time and don't add more until it is all gone. Left overs will mess up your water quality and start killing shrimp. There is thread after thread in this forum about that. If you find that 1/8 tab gets eaten in 15 minutes or so, do not increase the size, increase the number. Multiple small pieces gives more shrimp the opportunity to feed.

I personally prefer the spirulina flake. I wiz it up in a food processor to a fine powder and put in just a pinch at a time in my shrimp-only tanks.

Heed this warning and read Mustafa's article "Why are my shrimp dying?"
http://www.petshrimp.com/articles/whyshrimpdead.html

Just because it seems OK for a few weeks does not mean it is a good idea. The problems creep up slowly in many cases.

Posted: Wed Mar 08, 2006 6:28 am
by Shrimp&Snails
I sometimes make my own spirulina wafers.

I use cooked veggies (zucchini, sugarsnap peas etc) and high calcium veggies like kale and parsley. I blend it all up to a mush, add liquid calcium, fish food, a sachet of tetra delica range and spirulina powder and mix well.

I spread the mixture onto grease proof paper and bake it at the lowest setting for an hour or two....checking it every now and again. If I had a dehydrator I would use that.
The mixture doesn't smell the sweetest when baking :lol: but when it's baked dry (if it's gooey it will mess up the tank water) I break it into small pieces, pop it all into a container and freeze it.

I tried the recipe using gelatine (you can also use agar agar which is a veggie alternative made with seaweed) instead of baking but found this can be messy with fish and shrimp but ok with my snail only tanks.
I still buy bloodworm pellets, shrimp pellets, algae discs etc but they really enjoy their occassional homemade treat.

Posted: Wed Mar 08, 2006 5:52 pm
by Newjohn
Thanks you .

All of you that posted replies.

There are a variety of natural and home brewed foods to think about and investigate more.

Thanks for the pro's and con's.

Thanks Again for your time.
John