Aquarium science pellets

[sharn]

hi all bought my axies some pellets the other day. just wondering how good these are for them. ill use them as a base diet with their fish stuff. the pellets are so small!!! like 4mm across and i hand feed which is a bit annoying haha. it doesnt tell me whats in them but says: protein 50% min, crude fat 10% min, crude fibre 5% max and moisture 7% max. good.. bad.. alright??

 

[benjamin]

My axie loves pellets, but some axies won't eat them, and others will only eat them as they fall and won't pick up any that have touched the aquarium floor. They're probably good just as long as you give them something else every once and a while.

 

[sharn]

yup thats half of their base diet, i thought theyd be alot bigger and easier to feed to them, the tweezers only just hold onto it (dont laugh i know they dont hurt when they bite you but its still scary!!!) thanks benjamin for your quick reply

 

[daniel]

I use the same brand my axie's love them, all I do when i feed them the pellets is i put a ceramic plate in the tank and just put the pellets on the plate and the axie's just smell them out and eat them. Simple no gravel in the mouth and you dont have to stand at the tank for ever feeding the you just put the pellets in and just watch them eat!!

Dan

 

[cynthia]

For comparison, the Rangen soft moist salmon pellets that Indiana University feeds are:
Protein 44%
Fat 18%
Fiber < 5%
Ash < 8%

http://www.rangen.com/rangen011.htm

 

[sharn]

i wouldnt have a clue where to get them from. i would teach my axies to eat for themselves but theyre very stubborn and i think itd take them ages to find it for themselves. would it help if i led them to the plate with food?

 

[maggie]

You'd be surprised at how strong their sense of smell is. The salmon pellets are very easy for them to find. Axolotls will hunt them down if they are hungry. Mine use their front feet to push the gravel away and get closer when they think they've found one.

 

[sharn]

haha cute, mine probably arent that smart, it takes them ages to actuallty notice the foods there even when i put it on their nose or by their mouths, i do know they can eat for themselves though beacuse they werent hand fed by the people i got them off, should i push them over there?

 

[cynthia]

Sharn -I don't think pushing them over there is necessary. It only took my axolotls about 5 min to figure out where the pellets were. They are frustrating to watch at first, but they will find the pellets if they are hungry.

 

[sharn]

ok i might feed them tomorrow, thatll be their third day unfed, ill put it on a little plate or their big rock and move it over by where they sit (behind their house). ill see how it goes and ill do it everyday until they get used to it, i also want to hand feed aswell. this wont confuse them too much will it?

 

[cynthia]

I drop the pellets in the tank and let them find them. I feed worms with a long grabber tool. My axolotls do not seem to be confused at all. When they see the grabber tool they "assume the feeding position".

(I find it easier to use the grabber tool because I am too short to hand them worms when they are in the back of the tank)

 

[sharn]

well i put pellets in a teeny bowl thing and they didnt take any notice of it so i moved it to over where they sit, still no notice then Cizin (the little dude whos always hungry) started to sniff around it but couldnt find out how to get in there so i led him into the bowl with his walking stick (a plastic knitting needle he follows around when i wiggle it in front of his face) and he sat in the bowl sniffing and eating. after a while i thought he had too much and pushed him away to let the others have a turn but the were scared of the bowl so wouldnt go near it and had no idea that you could climb over it. so i think il hand feed the pellets from now on becuase they eat too much like that and i found two big orage poopies this morning *rolls eyes* thanks heaps guys for your help

 

[cynthia]

I think you just need to give them more time to adjust.

Mine tried to eat all of pellets at first too. They do not do that anymore and they all eventually take a turn eating. It took about 2 weeks for them to really catch on.

If they really did over eat they would throw up.