Silversides.
- Thread starter kegogut
- Start date
For want of a better word, it made my nems sick, also some other lps that I fed pieces too.
From what I have heard, It is the packaging procedure that might be the problem or almost out of date fish sold to the pet industry. All I know for sure is that I will NEVER use them again.
From what I have heard, It is the packaging procedure that might be the problem or almost out of date fish sold to the pet industry. All I know for sure is that I will NEVER use them again.
SNAKEMANVET
PREMIUM MEMBER
From what I've read,silversides can spoil/go bad during packageing process.I don't use them anymore.I feed my rbtas and mag mysis twice a week.
kegogut
Active member
Cant anything spoil during the packaging process? Anything thats frozen fresh without preservatives has that chance IMO.
SNAKEMANVET
PREMIUM MEMBER
True,but I don't want to chance it.I have heard alot bad stories about silversides.
kegogut
Active member
Silversides are more nutritious than your "seafood counter" food. With the complete fish including the heads they have definitely have a higher nutritional value than what we eat from the store.
D-Nak
Active member
If you think it's worth the risk of killing your nem by feeding it a silverside for the added nutritional value that you claim it to have, go for it.
I recommend that most people feed their nems soft-fleshed fish such as salmon, or shrimp, or scallop. All can be nutritionally enhanced by soaking or injecting them with something like Selcon that has vitamins, lipids, etc. There's also the added benefit of not having any bones or the head for the nem to have to process. It also doesn't end up getting pooped out by the nem and adding
Silversides are fine for predatory fish that are picky eaters and won't eat anything that doesn't look like a fish. They also have the ability to spit it out if they don't think it tastes good. Anemones don't fall into either category.
Finally, nems don't feed to be fed at all (unless beached and aren't getting nutrition/energy from zoox), so why risk feeding something that can kill it?
rhdoug
New member
It would seem to me that in the wild, anemones are more likely to catch small fish and eat them whole than to have chunks of larger fish fed to them. I'm not saying that feeding them chunks of larger animals is bad, I do it as well. But to me it makes sense for them to have a whole animal, at least from time to time. But I am no scientist and I don't really have a clue what they eat in the wild. I would think it is a variety of small animals, including small fish. I feed my sebae whatever is in my frozen mix of foods, mysis, brine shrimp, cyclopeeze, krill, various chopped seafood, and the occasional silverside. IME, smaller more frequent feedings work better than a huge chunk all at once.
D-Nak
Active member
Sorry I should've been more specific -- the chunks I feed are smaller than a pencil eraser. I also agree that a variety is good. I typically feed my tank Rods Food, which is basically what someone would make at home by mixing all sorts of ingredients together. My nem eats whatever floats into it. I rarely spot feed it, but when I do, it's chunks soaked in Selcon.
The main difference is that in the wild the fish that they eat aren't (potentially) spoiled.
The main difference is that in the wild the fish that they eat aren't (potentially) spoiled.
If you are really interested in feeding behavior, you should read "A functional Biology of Sea Anemones" by Shick. Very quick recap. 90%+ of diet is planktonic in nature, and rarely does the nem eat to saturation and then usually it is some type of crustation.
Great book
JUST SAY NO TO SILVERSIDES LOL
Great book
JUST SAY NO TO SILVERSIDES
LOL
D-Nak
Active member
If you are really interested in feeding behavior, you should read "A functional Biology of Sea Anemones" by Shick. Very quick recap. 90%+ of diet is planktonic in nature, and rarely does the nem eat to saturation and then usually it is some type of crustation.
Great book
JUST SAY NO TO SILVERSIDES
+1. I am slowly making my way through the book. It's very much like a college text book so getting through it is tough. But the key is planktonic = very small.
We also need to keep in mind that different nems have different feeding behaviors. For example, haddoni are known fish eaters in our reef tanks. Gigantea seem to be less likely to eat a fish. Mine eats snails that fall into it though.
xtlosx
Just Reefin'
Seafood counter fresh (already a great meal) soaked with Selcon is a MUCH better solution than silversides.. In general, fresh seafood is much better with with less risk than whole silversides.
Feed at your own risk.. For me it's simply not worth it.
phender
Active member
I fed silversides for a long time as well. I have no proof that silversides killed my anemone that I had for two years, but I have a strong suspicion. That suspicion has been echoed by several experienced keepers on this board who also lost healthy anemones after feeding silversides.
Two reasons:
As said before, studies show that 90% of the food anemones eat is planktonic, so there is little reason to feed whole fish, even if it is chopped up.
The bigger reason is that silversides have no regulations as to how they are packaged, stored, transported or anything else. Since they are whole fish (including intestines, etc) and there are no regulations that keeps them from selling spoiled fish, it is my opinion that it is just a matter of time before you feed your anemone a bad fish. Since there are so many other options, I prefer not to feed my anemones food that is not fit for human consumption or spoils easily.
Two reasons:
As said before, studies show that 90% of the food anemones eat is planktonic, so there is little reason to feed whole fish, even if it is chopped up.
The bigger reason is that silversides have no regulations as to how they are packaged, stored, transported or anything else. Since they are whole fish (including intestines, etc) and there are no regulations that keeps them from selling spoiled fish, it is my opinion that it is just a matter of time before you feed your anemone a bad fish. Since there are so many other options, I prefer not to feed my anemones food that is not fit for human consumption or spoils easily.
G4546
New member
I find that hard to believe, maybe you could sway some of the others here and myself if you could link us to some information regarding this claim? I've opened countless boxes/packs of these little nasty smelling fish over the years, all of which usually have rotted then been frozen. I'd choose the "seafood counter" for freshness anyday. I would say it's just me, but I think a lot of others have said it before me
OrionN
Moved on
kegogut,
Fresh unspoiled silverside is fine. But as pet food, silverside does not have the care it should in packing and transport like it would be if it food for human consumption. We all know that the gut of the fish is full of bacterial and will spoil the fish quickly, if it ever thaw out.
Fresh sea food should not smell. I know because as Vietnamese, we eat a lot of fish. I have yet got a package of silverside that does not smell. Some smell worst than other. I would not feed my anemone anything I would not eat. While we do eat a lot of small fish as small or smaller than silverside (you do see them for sale in oriental food for human consumption) I would not eat ever pick up a silverside package from a LFS that would be in condition that fit for me to eat. I bet that if you take your silverside pack out and smell it, you agree with me that it smells horrible.
The cost of siverside for aquarium is also another factor. Even the most expensive seafood would be cheaper than siverside.
Poorer quality, more expensive, lack variety, why would I want to use them?
I challenge you to find any information that back up your statement that feeding whole fish is healthier for anemone. Just to let you know that What Dr. Ron Shimek word that this is so does not count, at least in my mind.
Fresh unspoiled silverside is fine. But as pet food, silverside does not have the care it should in packing and transport like it would be if it food for human consumption. We all know that the gut of the fish is full of bacterial and will spoil the fish quickly, if it ever thaw out.
Fresh sea food should not smell. I know because as Vietnamese, we eat a lot of fish. I have yet got a package of silverside that does not smell. Some smell worst than other. I would not feed my anemone anything I would not eat. While we do eat a lot of small fish as small or smaller than silverside (you do see them for sale in oriental food for human consumption) I would not eat ever pick up a silverside package from a LFS that would be in condition that fit for me to eat. I bet that if you take your silverside pack out and smell it, you agree with me that it smells horrible.
The cost of siverside for aquarium is also another factor. Even the most expensive seafood would be cheaper than siverside.
Poorer quality, more expensive, lack variety, why would I want to use them?
I challenge you to find any information that back up your statement that feeding whole fish is healthier for anemone. Just to let you know that What Dr. Ron Shimek word that this is so does not count, at least in my mind.
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