Petshrimp.com Discussion Forum

hey everyone,
I've decided to start feeding my cherry reds some spinach to get more iodine in there diets and also for my amanos. I am wondering what i need to do to the spinach before i put it into the tank like boiling it, washing it, etc. Also is there a certain kind of spinach i should buy or would the spinach out of a salad work? should i avoid the canned spinach? thanks

I feed mine spinach once in a great while (usually when I make it for the goldfish and molly). I have learned to give them a TINY (when I say tiny I mean 2 pieces the size of ball point pen heads for like 30) piece or else it sours quickly. I myself have found using fresh spinach works well if it's well rinsed, steamed and cooled well. No salt, no anything.

I found out the hard way if it sours in the tank its horrid to get out. But if I am ready to retrieve it in say...10 minutes, I am ok. Whatever they dont eat my Molly glady eat.

Spinach contains Iodine?
Well, I've fed M. rosenbergii (which ARE different from Cherries) turnip greens/tops which is high in Calcium ... did so to the female while she was carrying eggs and recurperating from injuries. All I know is she ate the stuff raw.

So I would suggest trying to feed raw at first. Nutrients get lessened with cooking, and I suspect cooked matter rots and fouls faster, even if it may also be accepted more readily. Be sure to rinse them well though.... really well... in case the leaves have traces of pesticides or herbicides on them.

Spinach contains Iodine?

Yes, of the green veggies spinach has a fair bit of iodine, as does asparagus, turnip greens. lima bean and kelp.