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Post by Emerson on Jul 20, 2003 8:48:38 GMT -5
Hi,
I ordered some of the Nature's Delica by Tetra on line last week, and was wondering how many of you have used this? I know there was some debate on here earlier about "live" foods vs. frozen and so on, and I'm wondering how this product compares with the Hikari freeze-fried Daphnia.
Are there any issues with using the Tetra brand?
I really haven't been impressed with many of their other products, but have heard some good things about Nature's Delica. My main questions are: 1) is it easy to pollute the water with it; and 2) is there any risk of parasites?
My thought was to supplement Horatio's BioGold diet with the Daphnia maybe once a week.
Another pellet that I bought for him for variety, is called BioBlend by Marineland. Is anyone here familiar with it? The pellets are surprisingly large -- about twice the size of a BioGold, so I'm hesitant to use them without soaking him in water first.
Thoughts?
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Post by Betta MVP on Jul 20, 2003 9:42:37 GMT -5
The Nature's Delica can foul up the water, so you will need to be careful how much you use. What I do is squeeze a small amount out and let the fish pull it off the end of the packet so it doesn't fall to the bottom, then if any does fall, suck it out with your turkey baster. All of my bettas love this stuff! I've never had a problem with them turning their nose up at it.
You don't have to worry about parasites from this. It's reconstituted freeze dried daphnia. Also, you don't have to refrigerate if you use it within 24 hours of opening. But one packet is way too much for one betta, so I always stick mine in the fridge after opening.
I've never used the bioblend, so can't really comment on that.
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Megan
Junior Bubble Nester
"Golden Pearl" Plakat
Posts: 158
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Post by Megan on Jul 20, 2003 10:57:17 GMT -5
I totally agree about the Natures Delica, when I had less bettas I used to feed it, they loved it, but it can really foul up the water. I used to feed in on water changeing days only, after they ate it I did water changes so I could get rid of any left overs.
I tried using the bio-blend with some of my adults. Some of them ate it with no problems, some refused to eat it at all, and some tried but couldn't because the pellets were to large. I would try feeding them to him and see how he does with them, if he can't seem to eat them because of the size then you could try breaking them into smaller pieces, or soaking them first before feeding.
As for parasites, the chances of a freeze dried food carrying parasites are practicly non exsistant. You have to be a little more careful with frozen foods since they don't go through the same drying process as freeze dried foods do. Live foods are the riskiest, especially worms like black worms and tubifex worms.
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Post by Emerson on Jul 20, 2003 12:48:27 GMT -5
Hi,
Does the Hikari Daphnia float? I want to be careful, although Horatio is very good about chasing after food -- he actually swam madly after a piece of falling pea last week, but was a tad disappointed to find that all of his effort was for a bit of veggie. LOL
Does once a week sound reasonable?
I like the idea of using it only on a cleaning day. That could be on a Saturday, when I can fish out (pardon the expression) any stray bits.
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Megan
Junior Bubble Nester
"Golden Pearl" Plakat
Posts: 158
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Post by Megan on Jul 20, 2003 14:34:49 GMT -5
The freeze dried daphnia floats. The Natures Delica will kind of float, but it sinks as soon as Mr.Betta touches it, if he doesn't gobble it all up.
Once a week should be fine.
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AmberD
Junior Bubble Nester
Posts: 157
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Post by AmberD on Jul 20, 2003 19:31:25 GMT -5
Daphnia floats  My fish love it, too. Full grown bettas can eat the Bio Blend, but smaller ones will have more difficulty. The biggest problem with that is that some do sink! So make sure he's watching carefully before you put it in, or else he might not notice it. Mine love chasing if it floats, though  Amber |
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Post by Emerson on Jul 20, 2003 19:48:59 GMT -5
Well....Horatio has decided he is not interested in the BioBlend. I cut one in half and fed it to him this afternoon. He grabbed it immediately, then chewed for a second. After realizing it wasn't his usual BioGold, though, he spit it out and then watched as the rest of it sank to the bottom (where mom had to retrieve it). LOL
Same with the BettaMin. He actually did eat a few bites of the BettaMin last week when he skipped a day of feeding, but now that he's back to a regular schedule he only wants his trusty old BioGolds!
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Megan
Junior Bubble Nester
"Golden Pearl" Plakat
Posts: 158
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Post by Megan on Jul 20, 2003 21:45:59 GMT -5
If you persist with other foods he will probably eat them eventually as well. Bettas are very suspicious about new foods...  Pretty much all of my bettas have never really cared for flakes, actually this seems to be the case with males more than females. Females seem like they will pretty much gobble anything up (little piggies), but the males sometimes seem to be more picky. The females I have that live in community tanks will usually eat flakes (competition for food AND piggie tendencys), my young juveniles that are still living in the grow out tanks will usually eat them as well (competition again), but my jarred males pretty much look at me like I'm crazy if I try the flake food with them. |
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Post by BettaBGood on Jul 21, 2003 8:59:52 GMT -5
sef - I always end up jumping in with questions on your threads....Great (newbie) minds question alike? I asked this on another thread, but I think the answer got lost in the shuffle. Do the bettas seem to have a preference between Tetra Nature's Delica Bloodworms, Brine Shrimp or WaterFleas? I, too, like the idea of serving that just prior to a water change. Someone said that one packet is way too much for one betta. With so many bettas, I plan to divide packets between them. |
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Post by Emerson on Jul 21, 2003 22:58:48 GMT -5
BettaBGood -- ask away! What is considered "one serving" of the Tetra/Nature's Delica waterfleas? I just received it in the mail today, and decided to give Horatio some for his supper. I squeezed out a droplet of it on the end of the packet, and lowered the packet right down to the water line. Sure enough, he grabbed at it -- but missed. The little piece fell into the tank and floated around for a bit until he realized he should go after it, and then he quickly gobbled it up. I repeated the process a second time, this time putting a tiny bit more on the end of the packet, and he snatched it right off and ate it in two bites (after spitting it out twice). Would that be considered an ample feeding? The directions on the packet are very vague, but that seemed like plenty for his evening meal. I can see how it can dirty the water though; when Horatio was spitting it out, tiny particles of it drifted to the bottom and I had to try to suction it out. I'm not convinced I did a good job, though, since the debris was so tiny and already dissolved. How can I tell if it has fouled the water? I really didn't feed him that much... Oh the things we do to make our children happy. LOL |
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My fish love it, too.
Pretty much all of my bettas have never really cared for flakes, actually this seems to be the case with males more than females. Females seem like they will pretty much gobble anything up (little piggies), but the males sometimes seem to be more picky. The females I have that live in community tanks will usually eat flakes (competition for food AND piggie tendencys), my young juveniles that are still living in the grow out tanks will usually eat them as well (competition again), but my jarred males pretty much look at me like I'm crazy if I try the flake food with them.