Fish Foods You Use, Tell Us About Them.

[DMD123]

Been wanting to do a thread for a while now on fish foods. The purpose is just pure information like: brands available, types available, ingredients, what they look like size wise, general thoughts on the product, why we may like using it, etc. I think this would be very informative for all member here and I think all of us should post the foods we use.

Mods: I do not want this to become a duke it out as to why one brand is better than another and I do believe any trouble makers we used to have are gone but just wanted to clarify this.

I am going to begin with some smaller community friendly sizes that I have on hand.

Hikari Micro Pellet
A very small pellet I used to feed tiny fish under 3/4"
Ingredient list


Omega One Color Mini Pellet
A step up in size from the Hikari Micro Pellet, still used on small fish. I use this on 1"+ sized fishes

Forgot to get pic of the ingredient list, this came from Omega One website: https://www.omegasea.net/products/nutrition/color-mini-pellets

Ingredients:
Salmon, Whole Herring, Wheat Germ, Wheat Flour, Whole Shrimp, Pea Protein, Rice Bran, Wheat Gluten, Herring Oil, Kelp, Citric Acid, Ascorbic Acid, Vitamin E Supplement, Mixed Tocopherols, Marigold Extract, Niacin, Inositol, Astaxanthin, Canthaxanthin, Riboflavin, Vitamin A Supplement, Vitamin B12 Supplement

Guaranteed Analysis:
Min. Crude Protein ...42%
Min. Crude Fat …….11%
Max. Crude Fiber …..2%
Max. Moisture .…...8.5%
Max. Ash …………….8%

Tetra Pro Tropical Crisps
Ingredients List

Size comparison of the foods:

Some observations, all 3 of these products float for a bit just due to surface tension on the water but sink relatively quickly. I found the acceptance factor quite high on the Hikari Micro pellet and a bit less on the Omega One. The Crisps are a nice uniform size but a bit much for smaller fishes because it is thicker than a typical flake product.

 

[DMD123]

Sinking type foods

Omega One Veggie Rounds



Ingredients List:
Salmon, Whole Herring, Wheat Germ, Wheat Flour, Rice Bran, Kelp, Whole Shrimp, Pea Protein, Wheat Gluten, Spirulina, Herring Oil, Citric Acid, Ascorbic Acid, Vitamin E Supplement, Mixed Tocopherols, Niacin, Inositol, Astaxanthin, Canthaxanthin, Riboflavin, Vitamin A Supplement, Vitamin B12 Supplement

Guaranteed Analysis:
Min. Crude Protein….35%
Min. Crude Fat……….10%
Max. Crude Fiber…….4%
Max. Moisture………. 8.5%
Max. Ash……………..9%

Ive used these for years now because it seems to have good ingredients and a high acceptance factor by the fish. I would throw in whole wafers for silver dollars and my Pearsei Cichlid which both benefited from more plant matter in their diets. At times batches can be inconsistent with some being a thinner, hard type and the one pictured that is thicker but a bit softer and easier to break into smaller pieces if wafer is too large.

NLS - New Life Spectrum Algaemax (3mm sinking pellet)

Ingredient list:
Algae: Chlorella Seaweed, Ulva Seaweed, Red Seaweed, Kelp, Spirulina, Wakame Seaweed. Whole Antarctic Krill**, Giant Squid*, Whole Wheat Flour, Eucheuma cottonii Seaweed, Spinosum Seaweed, Chondrus crispus Seaweed, Whole Menhaden Fish*, Omega-3 Fish Oil*, Garlic, Ginger, Astaxanthin, Marigold, Capsanthin, Zeaxanthin, Bentonite Clay, Sea Salt

*Naturox (a preservative) used, **Krill vacuum preserved

Vitamins and Minerals: Vitamin A Acetate, Vitamin D Supplement, Vitamin E Supplement, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Niacin, Folic Acid, Biotin, Thiamine Hydrochloride, Riboflavin Supplement, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Calcium Pantothenate, L-Ascorbyl-2-Polyphosphate (Vitamin C), Choline Chloride, Ethylenediamine Dihydroiodide, Cobalt Sulfate, Ferrous Sulfate, Manganese Sulfate

This is the 3mm 'large', they do also make wafers and mini wafers

NLS - New Life Spectrum Algaemax (Mini Wafer)
Wafer size pic. Had not opened container yet so a through the jar shot


Northfin kelp wafers 14mm


Ingredients List:
Kelp, Whole Antarctic Krill Meal, High Omega-3 (DHA) Herring Meal, Whole Sardine Meal, Wheat Flour, Spirulina, Garlic, Astaxanthin (Haematococcus Algae), Calcium Montmorillonite Clay, Vitamin A Acetate, L-Ascorby-2-Polyphospate (Source of Vitamin C), D-Activated Animal-Sterol (D3), DL Alphatocopherol (E), Vitamin B12 Supplement, Riboflavin Supplement, Niacin, Pantothenic Acid, Thiamine, Calcium Pantothenate, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Folic Acid, Biotin, Choline Chloride, Cobalt Sulfate, Ferrous Sulfate, Manganese Sulfate, Selenium, Zinc.

Guaranteed Analysis:

Crude Protein (Min) : 33%
Crude Fat (Min): 4%
Crude Fiber (Max): 5%
Moisture (Max): 9%
Ash (Max): 12%

Wafers are thick!

This was my first time purchasing these. Dropped in wafers and noticed pleco were immediately attracted to them. The bristle nose and L001 both found them quickly and started going at them. Impressed with them so far.

Northfin Carnivore 10mm
I had thrown out package but had some pellets left, will add pics

Ingredients List:
High DHA Omega-3 Whole Herring Meal, Whole Sardine Meal, Whole Antarctic Krill Meal (Euphausia Superba), Wheat Flour, Organic Kelp (Laminariales), Spirulina, Garlic (Allium Sativum), Astaxanthin, Montmorillonite Clay, Vitamin A Acetate, L-Ascorbyl-2-Polyphosphate, Cholecalciferol, Alpha-tocopherol Acetate, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Riboflavin Supplement, Niacin, Pantothenic Acid, Thiamine, Calcium Pantothenate, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Folic Acid, Biotin, Choline Chloride, Cobalt Sulfate, Ferrous Sulfate, Manganese Sulfate, Selenium, Zinc, Rosemary Extract (Rosmarinus Officinalis)

Guaranteed Analysis:
Crude Protein (Min) : 48%
Crude Fat (Min): 7%
Crude Fiber (Max): 3%
Moisture (Max): 9%
Ash (Max): 9%


This is a great substitute for Hikari Massivore which can really stink up the water. This stuff doesnt. It is a very hard pellet that does not snap easily in half. Ive used this to feed large bichirs and also plecos.

Pellet (Wafer) Size Comparison pics

 

[DMD123]

Floating type foods

Fluval Bug Bites (Cichlid)

Called a 'Slow Sinking' but seem to be a floating pellet to me. Decent sized for my fish that are in the 8"-11" range. Very comparable to NLS 3mm float in size.

Ingredient List

Fluval bug bites products seem to have a very high acceptance factor by fish. Others Ive talked to agree. Seems it is very palatable flavor wise to them. Only negative thing I have heard is the higher fat level compared to many other foods that shoot for 8%.

NLS - New Life Spectrum (Large Float 3mm)

Ingredient List

Pellet size, called 'Large' 3mm floating


More to come...

Need to add:
Dainichi Cichlid Food, Medium Floating (5.5mm)
Northfin Tropical Sticks
Omega One Cichlid, Small, Medium, and Large Floating Cichlid formulas

 

[DMD123]

Reserved - possible frozen or freeze dried foods?

 

[lloyd378]

Great thread idea!

I will look to take some pics of my foods tomorrow. But staples are Southern delight and Kens, and supplemental are omega 1 and bug bites

 

[DMD123]

Great thread idea!

I will look to take some pics of my foods tomorrow. But staples are Southern delight and Kens, and supplemental are omega 1 and bug bites

Thanks, I hate the inconsistency in sizes between companies and then having a floating version and sinking that are called the same size but are drastically different. This has led me to buy pellets way to small and large on many occasions. So I thought it would be nice to actually see pics of the food sizes. I really want to show group comparisons between the different brands so if you use a brand and size you can see comparable in different brands.

 

[sir_keith]

The three pillars of successful fish keeping- water chemistry, diet, and tank setup. My approach to each of these can be summarized by two general rules- (1) KISS (keep it simple, stupid), and (2) If it ain't broke, don't fix it.

Diet is hugely important to all aquarium fishes, but especially to those with specialized diets in the wild. I have been keeping Tanganyikan cichlids exclusively for many years, at present about equally split between rock-dwelling strict herbivores (Tropheus) and sand-floor omnivores (Ophthalmotilapia, Xenotilapia, Enantiopus). For the Tropheus, the main component of their diet is Ultra-Intense Spirulina Flakes from Ken's Fish. I've tried all the commercially available spirulina flakes over the years, and I find Ken's to be the most reliable. The Tropheus also get large leaves of fresh Romaine lettuce 2-4 times per week for roughage, and NLS Algae-Max pellets (1mm) once or twice a week. Nothing else, ever.

The featherfins and Xeno's gets Ken's Ultra-Intense Spirulina Flakes for about 2/3 of their diet- fed 2-3x per day- and Ken's Premium Plankton, Krill, and Spirulina Flakes for the remainder. They also get frozen brine shrimp 2-3x per week.

These diets have been working for me for a long time, so I see no need to experiment (see rules 1 and 2, above). I also like dealing with a 'local' company, as Ken's Fish, in Taunton MA, is about 10 miles from where I grew up.

 

[FishBeast]

Great thread! I'm always on the lookout for "just the right size" pellet for different fish. I'll take pics of my foods later. Thanks for doing this!

 

[DMD123]

Great thread! I'm always on the lookout for "just the right size" pellet for different fish. I'll take pics of my foods later. Thanks for doing this!

Having fish go from 3/4” to upwards of 12”+ does present a challenge as to pellet size for sure. Plus there is a point where too big a pellet and the fish make a huge mess grinding up their food. Im at a point where Ive got all the sizes covered since Im raising so many different things.

 

[DMD123]

Been trying to work on this a bit more. Edits have been done with a couple more items added. An issue Ive run into is that you can only do 10 images per post. So I might remove package pictures and pics of ingredients and focus more on the pellet size and pellet brand/size comparison shots.

Just bumping this to see if anyone else would post a couple pics of pellet sizes of the brands they are using. Maybe add something to scale it against like a ruler or coin.

 

[DMD123]

Well I opened up a new jar of NLS “Large” Float and “Large” Probiotix and not consistent with size of last batch I used. Both of these new ones are smaller than last batch I had. No issues since I have fish of all sizes and will be able to use but disappointed that there is that inconsistency. I have had the same issues with Omega One foods too, so not surprised.

I just finished up my bags of Dainichi Ultima Krill, medium sinking (5mm) and Dainichi Cichlid Food, Medium Floating (5.5mm). Well I didn’t get pics of pellet size, thinking I would be reordering and then I just can't find the product available for sale. Ive used Dainichi off and on over the years and availability has always been an issue. So as I consider what to do with that I’m going to add in Northfin Floating Tropical Sticks to the food mix.

Speaking of Northfin, I recently used their Algae wafer or what they call ‘Kelp Wafers’... strangest thing is that my rhino plecos poo would float after eating. I have another bag waiting but am currently feeding NLS Algaemax to him. Right now Im debating with the amount a pleco poops how much nutrients does he really need versus roughage/fiber. The NLS is expensive compared to lets say Ken’s algae wafers. Is the high nutrition NLS worth it?

 

[DMD123]

I contacted Dainichi through Amazon asking about why I could not order my food anymore. Here is the response:


You have received a message from the Amazon Seller - Dainichi Fish Food

Hi David,

We have the food available but unfortunately, Amazon has removed three dozen of our listings for potential brand name violation. It seems that it is rather difficult convincing Amazon staff that using our trademarked name DAINICHI, is not actually violating the intellectual rights of our dba Dainichi Fish Food. No amount of documentation, emails, appeals and letters of authorization from us to ourselves seems to work effectively. Over the last couple of months, we were able to get two listing restored. It seems your desired products are not among these. Until Amazon reinstates our listings, I would suggest getting in touch with us by phone. Availability of the product is not the problem. It is literally a case of Amazon protecting our company’s right hand from the actions of the left hand. Ughhhh!

Sincerely,

DAINICHI signing for Dainichi Fish Food

 

[Madness]

I am currently trying Dr Bassleer food. I like the idea behind how he develops his foods

https://www.bassleer.com/vissen/biofish-food/

 

[DMD123]

I called Dainichi and place an order over the phone. I was sent an email Invoice that let you pay through Quick Books. I should have my order in a couple days. I requested a sample of their Color FX sinking in a small sinking pellet. I saw on the invoice it was a 3oz package (retails for $14.99) that they are shipping at no additional cost. I ended up ordering 3 one pound bags of food. I ordered Color Supreme, Ultima Krill, Cichlid XL Pro

 

[DMD123]

I bought a new food to try on my growouts. Cobalt Ultra Cichlid

INGREDIENTS
PRAWNS, JUMBO SQUID MEAL, DRIED SPIRULINA ALGAE, WHOLE ANCHOVY, WHOLE SARDINE, WHOLE SCAD, JINGA SHRIMP, WHOLE GARLIC, DRIED KELP, DRIED SEAWEED, SOYBEAN MEAL, BREWERS DRIED YEAST, WHOLE CORN, WHEAT GERM, VITAMIN A ACETATE, VITAMIN D3 SUPPLEMENT, L-ASCORBYL-2-POLYPHOSPHATE (SOURCE OF STABILIZED VITAMIN C), VITAMIN E SUPPLEMENT, THIAMINE MONONITRATE, RIBOFLAVIN, PYRIDOXINE HYDROCHLORIDE, VITAMIN B12 SUPPLEMENT, FRUCTOOLIGOSACCHARIDES, DRIED BACILLUS SUBTILIS FERMENTATION PRODUCT, DRIED BACILLUS LICHENIFORMIS FERMENTATION PRODUCT

GUARANTEED ANALYSIS
CRUDE PROTEIN - MIN 44%
CRUDE FAT - MIN 6.5%
CRUDE FIBER - MAX 6.0%
MOISTURE - MAX 4.0%
PHOSPHORUS - MIN 0.9%
TOTAL MICROORGANISMS - MIN 1,000,000 CFU/G
B. SUBTILIS, B. LICHENFORMIS
*COLONY-FORMING UNITS PER GRAM

Thoughts on the food: The RTM's and Red devil seem to like this food. Some pellets sink immediately and others float for a bit before sinking. This does seem like a 'slow' sinking like they say.

 

[Madness]

@DMD123 wow look at those ingredients

 

[DMD123]

The Cobalt does have soybean meal and whole corn which are considered bad but Im really planning this long term. Was kind of a filler until fish grow up.

@Madness, where did you get your Bassleer? Amazon?

 

[Madness]

The corn is the one thing I noticed as well.

 

[Madness]

@DMD123 I ordered through Kens

 

[DMD123]

Was looking at my fish food order history and saw my last Dainichi order was for 2 pounds in August of 2020 and I have enough for a day and a half of feeding. This time around I ordered 3 pounds.
I have always been a food mixer. My primary food has changed over the years but now my main base food is the Dainichi with some Omega One, NLS and Northfin thrown in there too. I find I can add anything to the mix and they are not that picky and have better acceptance than trying just the new pellet alone.