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Fahaka food from grocery store
Posted: Sun Jul 31, 2005 3:29 am
by toofazt
I'v got a 4'' Fahaka, not including the tail and I'm wondering what type of food could I pick up from the grocery store for him? Thanks
Posted: Sun Jul 31, 2005 10:28 am
by RTR
See PP's article in the library:
http://www.thepufferforum.org/viewtopic.php?t=12
That is specifically on GSPs, a brackish puffer, but feeding is the same for the Fahaka.
Posted: Mon Aug 01, 2005 1:14 pm
by wolfgang270
I feed mine a variety of food from the seafood section. I feed her the large, uncooked shell on shrimp (one of her favorites). I also buy live mussels and freeze them. one of the other things to investigate is to see if any of the LFS around you carry live crayfish or sell mystery snails (mine sells the snail 3 for $4 so I feed my puff those a couple of times a month. Kinda like giving your fish a jaw breaker [you can hear her crunching from across the room]).
Posted: Mon Aug 01, 2005 2:19 pm
by toofazt
with the live mussels do you take them out of the shell before feeding to your fahaka?
Posted: Mon Aug 01, 2005 3:15 pm
by wolfgang270
I freeze them for at least 2 to 3 days. I then thaw them out in hot tap water. generally the will open a little. I will then open the mussel enough for the fish to get at the middle. The fish will grind it's teeth agains the shell removing the meat.
Posted: Mon Aug 01, 2005 5:22 pm
by Pamela
I bought Robert and Mags a langoustine the other week...I had to smash the pincers so's they could get at the meat...and boy did they go for it! Gave even Robert's teeth a good workout - he's usually lazy.
They've still got the torso in the freezer..should last them ages!
They've also got a load of clams in the freezer, as well as their lfs food. And also a load of triops on the way, which are gonna be gut-loaded.
F8s tend to scrape their teeth on the relatively huge shells and carapaces, whereas bigger fish, like fahakas, will crunch their way through the shells..and yer ankles!
What wolfgang says about freezing is vital...it'll kill off any pathogens. You could cook them to do this, but you'll be removing a lot of nutrients, so freezing it is. Thawing is essential as well.
Pami.
Posted: Mon Aug 01, 2005 8:06 pm
by wolfgang270
You'l want to make sure to rinse the mussels after they are thawed and opened. that way any dirt etc. is washed out and not consumed by the fish.
Posted: Mon Aug 01, 2005 11:39 pm
by YBeNormal
My GSPs love freshly thawed mussels. I reserve this treat for tank cleaning day though 'cause it is one heckuva MESSY meal! I haven't tried clams yet but I'd expect them to be just as messy.
Posted: Tue Aug 02, 2005 1:40 am
by toofazt
What wolfgang says about freezing is vital...it'll kill off any pathogens. You could cook them to do this, but you'll be removing a lot of nutrients, so freezing it is. Thawing is essential as well.
Pami.
Why is thawing essential? If I put some krill in water to thaw then he will just chew it up and spit it out. If I just set the krill out a little bit so that the ice melts a little but it is still half frozen he loves it.
Posted: Tue Aug 02, 2005 1:48 am
by perek
toofazt wrote:What wolfgang says about freezing is vital...it'll kill off any pathogens. You could cook them to do this, but you'll be removing a lot of nutrients, so freezing it is. Thawing is essential as well.
Pami.
Why is thawing essential? If I put some krill in water to thaw then he will just chew it up and spit it out. If I just set the krill out a little bit so that the ice melts a little but it is still half frozen he loves it.
It can be harmful to the fish to each frozen food. I personally run warm water over shrimp before feeding my puffers.
Posted: Tue Aug 02, 2005 2:37 am
by Pufferpunk
I thaw in vitamen water to pack extra nutrients into the foods.
Posted: Tue Aug 02, 2005 5:30 am
by toofazt
When i feed my puffer the krill it is not frozen like a peice of ice, it's about half way thawed. If feeding half thawed food to my Fahaka is harmful I will not do it, I just want to know how it is harmful to them?
Posted: Tue Aug 02, 2005 8:04 am
by wolfgang270
Like Pufferpunk said thaw the food out in vitamin enriched water. that way you are adding a boost the the fish's immune system, etc.
Since these animal are captive, they are not getting all of the vitamins etc. that they would get from the food they consume in the wild. Check some of the sticky subject here regarding basic care, as they apply to FW, BW and SW puffs.
Cheers
Posted: Wed Aug 03, 2005 3:30 am
by toofazt
When i feed my puffer the krill it is not frozen like a peice of ice, it's about half way thawed. If feeding half thawed food to my Fahaka is harmful I will not do it, I just want to know how it is harmful to them?
Posted: Wed Aug 03, 2005 12:20 pm
by RTR
Creatures without built-in temperature regulation should not be given foods (or environmental objects*) sighnificantly different from their environmental temperature. It can adversly affect their metabolism or directly injure them. People have thermoregulation, fish generally do not.
*Unshielded heaters sometimes burn puffers.