Frozen or Freeze-Dried?

[snwhawk]

Just a quick question here- what is better for the fish frozen bloodworms or freeze-dried bloodworms? I know the ultimate is live but if that is not available to you what is the better if the two?

 

[Phantom Thief]

Frozen

P.T.

 

[Barday]

Yep I prefer frozen too! (Well my fish do anyway! )

 

[CFC]

Frozen is far superior.

 

[WILDER]

Frozen, but I do use both.

 

[SirMinion]

Frozen.
I tried dried but binned it after having no success at all in getting the fish's attention with it.

Ask yourself this:
What's nicer, a frozen tv dinner such as spagetti bol or a dried one such as pot noodle?

 

[Candyco]

Frozen has 2 b better..... my fish will chase it around the tank for a ehile then fight 2 get 2 it!

 

[OohFeeshy]

At the moment all I've got left is dried daphnia, my guppy loves them.

 

[sylvia]

Frozen is much more nutritious than dried - though fish have different tastes and I used to have a betta who wouldn't touch frozen foods but loved dry...

 

[snowyangel]

I'd have to vote for frozen, but my fish eagerly devour freeze dried just the same. For more predatory/carnivor fish i would reccomend frozen or live.

 

[yossie_ika]

hmmmm...the better one would be the one which just been produced....the fresher the better. The frozen or freeze dried...check their date of production if there is any...

 

[Griz]

Frozen. Vitamins and minerals are better retained by freezing than drying. And flavour too.

 

[Sorrell]

Frozen, I refuse to used dried, flavored cardboard

 

[NinjaSmurf]

Sorrell, have you been eating the fish food again?

Naughty naughty....

 

[Bignose]

I guess I am brave enough to go against the crowd here. I'll start by repeating what the Skeptical Aquarist's page has to say about freeze-dried foods...

Freeze-dried food retains all the vitamins and protein of live food, as long as it's stored absolutely dry. When freeze-dried food isn't kept perfectly dry, the slightest dampness begins bacterial fermentation, which degrades the nutrition. Freeze-dried food goes stale this way. I keep a dessicator canister saved from a medical prescription in each opened can. Don't leave the lid off. Freeze-dried bloodworms have become a stand-by.

About the only problem is that if one piggy fish eats too many too quickly, the dried food can absorb water while in the fish's gut -- this can be a problem as you can imagine. However, soaking the dried food in a cup of tank water for a few minutes right before feeding alleviates this issue.

So, freeze-dried seems to be fine, so long as you store it dry and pre-soak it right before feeding.