Once you have purchased your fish, you need to supply them with the proper food that will keep them healthy and happy. It doesn’t always have to be a big bag of fish flakes. Your fish also need good nourishment that will give them an active life, enhance their growth and stimulate breeding. Their diet should also give them a more efficient immune system against sickness.
One popular type of fish food is the dry fish food. This includes flakes, pellets, wafers, and granules. There are many different formulations of dry fish food to cater to different species of fish. They can be made from plant, animal or fish products. Most of them are fortified with vitamins and minerals for a more complete nutritional diet for your fish. Some are concocted for special purposes like intensifying the colors of the fish or making the scales shinier.
Larger fish, those bigger than an inch, require a more specialized diet. The carnivores or omnivores will prefer meat in their diet. One very popular meat food is bloodworms. Bloodworms are red mosquito larvae that can be purchased frozen from aquarium supply stores. They are considered the more nutritious alternative to flakes and pellets. They look like small ice cubes when packaged and you just drop these cubes in the aquarium water when it’s feeding time.
Other fresh or frozen foods available for your fish are brine shrimp or krill. These are given to fish not just for their nutritional value but also for the way they bring out the colors in tropical fish. The Daphnia, or water flea, a small crustacean, on the other hand is not very big on nutritional value, but is still a favorite with some fish. These two fish foods are available in most aquarium supply stores.
Larger fish enjoy earthworms or other worms. Worms are high in protein, but like the Daphnia, they do not provide a balanced diet, and should not be your fish’s only food source. Large predatory fish enjoy eating small feeder fish, although if you have an aquarium of community fish, they will not routinely go after smaller fish.
These foods can all be purchased at your local aquarium supply store, and can be used in rotation to add variety to your fish’s diet. Like people, fish do get tired of eating the same thing day after day. Live or frozen solid foods can also be used to supplement a diet of dried pellets or flakes.
Herbivores, unlike carnivores, will be happier snacking throughout the day rather than eating at a regular schedule. Fresh plants in aquarium tanks are good sources of food for them, and they can also eat any algae that are present in the aquarium.
You can also give them food that you have prepared yourself. Blanched spinach leaves, sliced zucchini and cucumber, and boiled peas can be allowed to float for an hour or two. Just give enough time for the fish to fill themselves and then remove them from the water. Other food option for herbivores are dried algae wafers.
When choosing foods for your fish, adjust your choice to reflect your fish’s needs, and don’t forget to provide variety. A balanced diet that has been well chosen in accordance to the fish species will ensure that your fish are healthy and thriving in your aquarium. Remember, a diet of dry fish flakes may not be enough. There are lots of simple foods that can keep your fish happy and healthy with a just a little bit of research on your part.
Leonard Boyler has been keeping fish for more than 20 years. His favorite products make aquarium care and maintenance very easy from start up to clarifying cloudy fish tanks. To learn more about how to keep your water clear and your fish healthy, please visit ONEdersave.com.
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