Question: When can I stop feeding BBS?

Aimzs Lotties

Aimzs Lotties

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Hi there, my 20 larvae are going very well, most have started growing their front legs already. I was just wondering how long till I can switch to blood worms/ chopped earthworm? The BBS routine is a little grueling.. :p
 
i've had the same problem! mine have been eating a few bloodworms, i started when they had their full front legs. They have to be moving in the water though, because until they have all legs develop they can't smell. So they will eat the bloodworm if it moves in front of them. I have found putting a mix of brine shrimp and blood worm makes the babies snap, and they will accidentally eat a worm. I'm hoping i can taper them off to worms in the next few months. good luck!
 
Thanks! I wouldn't mind so much except that the air pump for the hatchery is SOOOOO noisy and I have to keep it in my bedroom... It's a good thing my boyfriend lives in the same shared house or I would get NO sleep whatsoever.. Is there any way to quieten it down?
 
Hey if you have the time to do it, I've found that if you use a cocktail stick to dangle a bit of bloodworm in front of your larvae, they will snap it up!(at least mine do..) and this was about a week after hatching. Its really quite incredible considering their size, probably the equivalent of swallowing a loaf of bread in one go :D Although I also give them a few daphnia just to be sure. Try it and see?
 
Lua said:
Hey if you have the time to do it, I've found that if you use a cocktail stick to dangle a bit of bloodworm in front of your larvae, they will snap it up!(at least mine do..) and this was about a week after hatching. Its really quite incredible considering their size, probably the equivalent of swallowing a loaf of bread in one go :D Although I also give them a few daphnia just to be sure. Try it and see?
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Sorry what is a cocktail stick?
 
Ahh cool thanks. Think I'll try that now.. do you think if I managed to get them to eat one each, they wouldn't need food for a while?
 
The Banana said:
Those little toothpicky things! Sometimes they have cute little umbrellas on them. ;)
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lol at umbrellas, sorry for not making myself clear! Yup a toothpick is a better word for it:) I defrost the worms, cut them into bite sized chunks + waggle them in front of the axies head! it sounds stupid' but they need a bit of movement to make then snap as they cant scent their food till after their back legs come in. hows it going? have you managed to get them onto worms?
In terms of how much, I give mine a few chunks a day and they're growing like crazy, so its not like you have to feed them 2417! Twice a day is great:)
 
I haven't tried it yet but I really should get to it. Still feeding once daily on BBS at the moment. They have HUGE orange tummys lol.. :p

If I feed them the worms will they stop eating BBS? I don't want to bite off more than I can chew..
 
I have started my babies on frozen bloodworms and they love it. I cut the cube up still frozen and put the pieces on top of the baby tank as they melt the fall to the bottom and the bobies eat them up. Some babies are coming up to meet the worms as they are falling to the bottom.
 
cool, mine still aren't big enough to hunt for themselves yet. How big are yours Lea?
 
Im guessing about 1 1/2 cm.They have their little front legs now. They are soooo cute. I think I will have to take some more photos.
 
Regarding noisy air pumps, you can try putting the pump on a piece of soft foam. If that doesn't work, buy a new one. There ARE quiet air pumps available, and it may be worth spending $20 to be able to sleep at night! Two very quiet pumps that I know of are Rena and Whisper.
 
Aimzs Lotties said:
I haven't tried it yet but I really should get to it. Still feeding once daily on BBS at the moment. They have HUGE orange tummys lol.. :p

If I feed them the worms will they stop eating BBS? I don't want to bite off more than I can chew..
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Nope mine still go mad for shrimp even though they get worms too, no worries! They're axies,anything that moves= food!
 
So a few of my bigger ones went for the bloodworm when I put it in and agitated the water, the little ones not so much yet. I think I'll just stick to the BBS for now. :)
 
I have ten day old hatched larvae and this blood worm idea sounds interesting, I too am getting a little frantic trying to make sure they get a snack of BBS before and after work its a lot of work! No one knows of anywhere I can get some fresh water mites do they? I will give it a go tonight and let you know how I get on. My babies are pretty feisty!!
 
When I feed my babies I make sure that everyone has some worms in front of them. I use my turkey baster to move the bloodworms around. Then someone(kids do come in handy:p for this job) is on food watch.......While sitting there you have to see each and every baby eat something. It can take some time but I use to do that when I was feeding them BBS as well, I would hate for someone to miss out:love:.
 
you can't buy water mites or daphnia in aust :( but you can find them yourself possibly if you have any ponds or streams nearby, just scoop'em out with a fine net! They are pretty mutch non existant in winter though, but it would depend on your location.
 
i have tried my parents dam and my fish pond with no luck but as you say they may not be around in winter :( whe the weather warms up i will have to go hunting again!!!
 
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