How to feed frozen brine shrimp???

[JohnMcNic]

Hello, I just bought my first fish, a lawnmower blenny. The LFS said they feed him frozen brine shrimp. While he seems content picking at the algae in the tank, I would like to supplement with some frozen brine. I tried dropping 1/2 a cube in the tank, but it quickly melts and gets over taken by the flow, and goes into the overflow. I then tried putting it in a large pore mesh bag and putting that in, but he doesn't seem interested in it, and my crabs/urchin ate all that.

Any ideas how to get a bit of frozen brine down to him? If not, what other foods should I try?

Thanks!

 

[SSpiro]

Take the frozen cube, put it in a bowl. Put some water into the bowl, and let it sit for a few minutes to defrost. You'll notice the bowl fill up with the little shrimp.

Then use a turkey baster and target feed a little.

 

[D to the P]

You should use the spirulina enriched brine shrimp, that way he can get vegetable matter in his diet if the algae is lacking in your tank. If you just use a little cup like a dixie cup and scoop some water out of your tank, put the cube in till it falls apart and then do your best to only add the shrimp to the display tank. Problem with frozen food is it is not always frozen in clean water and you can sometimes end up adding unwanted nitrates or phosphates to the water. Soon he will learn that food comes from above and whenever you stand by your tank he will come to the top anticipating brine shrimp.

 

[jdieck]

What I do is to use a fine net like the ones used for brine shrimp naupili. I put the cube(s) in the net and rinse it/them with tap water until defrosted, let drain for a couple of seconds, turn off all circulation for 10 minutes and add the food to the tank.
Using hte net acomplishes two things, defrosting and loosening while at the same time rinsing away all juices which contain heavy concentrations of phosphates and preservatives.

 

[reefergeorge]

I would feed mysis. Which ever one you choose I would melt in a little rodi water. Add some vitachem, and selcon. Then target feed with a turkey baster.

 

[inachu]

I bought a MADE FOR FISH TANK turkey baster and it was $12

its 38" long and so far I love it. I refuse to touch my anemone bare handed! eeek!

 

[jamest0o0]

haha I'm with you there, anything that feels like a pile of goop I do not want to touch.... anyway what I do is.............

crush some cubes in a plastic bag stick however much I think my fish can eat in a plastic cup, take tap water, ro, tank water...basically whatever I can get my hands on first and let it thaw in that, then I dump it through a net and pour tank water in that cup and put the thawed food in there and I add some vita-chem and garlic and wait about 30 seconds for it to soak in and use a turkey baster to feed my critters

 

[NewFish3]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12249816#post12249816 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by inachu
I bought a MADE FOR FISH TANK turkey baster and it was $12

its 38" long and so far I love it. I refuse to touch my anemone bare handed! eeek!

Hhhhmmmm...What...it just feel like a glob of jelly..??

Turkey baster 38" long ???? where did you get that.....I need to feed my Turkeys.....and I dont want to get that close....eeeuuu......LOL :dance:

 

[jamest0o0]

I was wondering the same thing a 38" turkey baster.... how deep is your tank? or do you like snipe your livestock with food = O

 

[ultimatemusky]

Can you really call it a "turkey baster" after it gets over 2 feet.

 

[D to the P]

yeah those things should come with a scope. 55's are no where near 38" long you must have the bulb of the baster at eye level when you are feeding. I can't imagine the force of the water coming out of it either, hopefully that doesn't blow your anemone right off the rock haha.

 

[jamest0o0]

wow, am I getting some laughs tonight

 

[ultimatemusky]

You could pretty much use it from another room, I gotta get me one. The uses are endless, " Hey honey, guess whats in the baster now!!"

 

[EllieSuz]

Your Lawnmower Blenny is an herbivore, which means that its diet should be mainly vegetable in nature. Frozen Brine Shrimp are about as nutritious as styrofoam peanuts. There are frozen herbivore products you can use as well as Spirulina flakes, dried seaweed products and nori. I break up dried seaweed into bite sized pieces and soak it in tank water until soft and then target my Blenny with the baster.

 

[jamest0o0]

"Frozen Brine Shrimp are about as nutritious as styrofoam peanuts"

Uh oh, all I eat is styrofoam peanuts! =O


anyway I've had too much fun posting on the forums tonight I have to go to sleep and I agree with elliesuz

 

[GraviT]

I usually put frozen food in a small plastic cup (2 or 3 oz) and add tank water, then clip the cup to the side of my overflow. When the food thaws and warms up a bit, I use a plastic fork to scoop it out of the water and feed to the tank.

Maybe the baster is a Kent Nautilus Sea Squirt. I have one and it's pretty worthless until you bore out the nozzle to let food bigger than cyclop-eeze to pass through.