feeding molly fry

[bball4life]

I have newborn molly fry who are eating hikari first bites, I am pretty sure that they like it since they eat all that I put in within about a minute or so, but I wanted to know what else I should feed them. I thought I could feed them egg yolk, but how do I prepare it so they can eat it? Also will fry eat those weekend feeder things that you can put in the tank?

 

[Annastasia]

Actually, I wouldn't recommend egg yolk. Not all fry eat it, it sinks pretty easily, and it really pollutes the water. Stick to the Hikari First Bites, and maybe start adding in very finely crushed flakes, and Freeze-dried foods. Or Live Baby Brine Shrimp.

Fry usually won't eat weekend feeders, and I would NOT recommend you use them. They pollute the tank very fast, and I have heard many stories of people coming back to dead fish because of the water quality going down so quickly. Though it's up to you. Do you have any live plants, because fry can pick insuforia from those...Java Moss is especially good.

 

[bball4life]

Ok I dont think I will use the vacation feeders. Can they have other plants, if so what kind? I dont know where to get java moss, I know that petsmart has some different plants, but I dont really know what kind since I have never really looked. Do you think my lfs would have java moss?

 

[Annastasia]

Yes, all plants are good. Just thicker plants tend to have more insuforia. I'm sure your LFS will have Java Moss though, it's a VERY common plant.

(Watch them not have it though, and prove me wrong )

 

[bball4life]

Yeah I will call them tomorrow to ask since they are closed now.

 

[Annastasia]

Okies, sounds good. If worst comes to worst, you can always fast the fish. They should be okay if you aren't gone for TOO long...it's mostly the fact that fry have small tummies that bother me though. Is anyone going to be coming in to feed the other fish, or anything?

 

[bball4life]

I think I will be putting a plant in with them. Yes, I have someone coming by to feed the fish, but he is a little inexperienced with fish keeping, he knows how to feed the fish in the main tank, but I am trying to make it a little easier on him and so he doesnt overfeed them and the tank is dirty and the water quality is really bad and kill the fry. How long do you think the java moss would last? Does it need any special care that I need to know about? If the lfs doesnt have java moss whats the next plant you would recommend?

 

[Annastasia]

I know I'm probably a nut, who cares and babies her fish way to much...but what I do, is get one of those little pill containers, you know the ones that measure the pills out for each day? I put the right portion of food in there, for each feeding on each day. That way I am sure they are never over-fed when I am gone, because I measured it out myself.

The Java Moss should last them a few days...not very long, so it's not the best idea ever, but not a bad one for your situation. How long will you be gone? Not much special care, just some light. It's a very hardy plant, almost impossible to kill. The next best plant...hmm, anything that is thick, and is similar to Java Moss is good. Moss balls seem to be highly rated.

 

[bball4life]

Hmm the pill container idea is not bad actually thats a really good idea. Well the problem is that I will be gone for 3 weeks. Just a quick question, you said that the java moss would only last a few days, but then you said that its almost impossible to kill, why wouldnt it feed the fish if its still in there and not dead? Sorry I have never really kept live plants in the aquarium before.

 

[Annastasia]

3 weeks, wow. I suppose you could use the pill container, and then just cut down to feeding the fry twice a day. They should be okay, Molly fry are pretty tough.

The reason is because, if you have a lot of fry, sometimes they can eat the insuforia faster then it can multiply. I really only suggested it as a short term solution, because they need more nutrients then that if you are going to be gone that long. Though having some live plants certainly won't hurt, because they can help with water quality, and also sometimes food will get stuck from a feeding, and the fry can snack on that.

 

[bball4life]

ok thats good to know thank you. I will definetly do the pill container and the live plants too.

 

[Annastasia]

You're very welcome. Sounds good to me...and I'm so tickled someone actually is going to use my idea...I always thought I was a nut.

Anyway, best of luck! I hope the fry and fish are all fine when you get back, and have fun on your vacation! You'll be surprised how much they have grown by the time you get back.

 

[JackDemp528]

I know I'm probably a nut, who cares and babies her fish way to much...but what I do, is get one of those little pill containers, you know the ones that measure the pills out for each day? I put the right portion of food in there, for each feeding on each day. That way I am sure they are never over-fed when I am gone, because I measured it out myself.

[snapback]849701[/snapback]​

No you're not a nut, I do the same thing, but with baggies that are all labeled and have a date and time on them. We're all a bit nutty, but when it comes to caring for our precious fish, I think the more nutty the better.

 

[Annastasia]

Baggies is a good idea...probably cheaper too, and better if you have more then one tank. The only thing I'd worry is if I put my little bits of fry food in there, and it gets stuck in the crease on the bottom, or the person didn't see it, they won't feed the babies. But it's a great idea for bigger fish.

 

[JackDemp528]

Yeah, I don't have any fry to worry about now, so I don't need to worry about any food. And most of my fish are pretty big and don't eat flakes, just pellets. So the cheaper baggies are ideal.