cane76
Fish Aficionado
can live food carry harmful disease or bacteria?
Live Food
- Thread starter cane76
- Start date
Yes but it depends on the live food.
Feeder fish are the worst because they can very easily introduce diseases to the fish that eat them or even to tankmates before they get eaten.
Things like live tubifex worms are often carriers of disease. Similarly, not all frozen tubifex worms are safe either.
Bloodworms and blackworms are somewhat safer and, as long as you did not collect them yourself, are probably healthy.
It's always a bad idea to collect live foods yourself from local waters as you never know what pollutants may be present.
Things like daphnia are a lot safer and brine shrimp can be fed without worry because, being a saltwater species, they are unlikely to carry any diseases that can effect freshwater fish.
Frozen foods are always safer than live foods but less stimulating for the fish.
Freeze-dried foods are usualy completely safe but have little nutritional value and can cause constipation and bloating.
Also note that live/frozen foods coming from freshwater environments can also carry parasites or even predatory creatures (eg: dragonfly larvae) - some of which may be dangerous to fish.
edit: spelling
Feeder fish are the worst because they can very easily introduce diseases to the fish that eat them or even to tankmates before they get eaten.
Things like live tubifex worms are often carriers of disease. Similarly, not all frozen tubifex worms are safe either.
Bloodworms and blackworms are somewhat safer and, as long as you did not collect them yourself, are probably healthy.
It's always a bad idea to collect live foods yourself from local waters as you never know what pollutants may be present.
Things like daphnia are a lot safer and brine shrimp can be fed without worry because, being a saltwater species, they are unlikely to carry any diseases that can effect freshwater fish.
Frozen foods are always safer than live foods but less stimulating for the fish.
Freeze-dried foods are usualy completely safe but have little nutritional value and can cause constipation and bloating.
Also note that live/frozen foods coming from freshwater environments can also carry parasites or even predatory creatures (eg: dragonfly larvae) - some of which may be dangerous to fish.
edit: spelling
cane76
Fish Aficionado
thx for info 
im still not sure whether to continue feeding live foods i know the fish prefer it 
im still not sure whether to continue feeding live foods i know the fish prefer it Mbuna Dave
Fish Crazy
On the subject of live food what is the procedure of adding live food to your tank.?
Do you just tip the lot in or catch the food in a net before adding to the tank.
Also,what is the red dye colour in these bags,is it some kind of antiseptic or is it colour bleeding from the food themselves?
Dave.
Do you just tip the lot in or catch the food in a net before adding to the tank.
Also,what is the red dye colour in these bags,is it some kind of antiseptic or is it colour bleeding from the food themselves?
Dave.
Teelie
Fish Aficionado
The red dye is probably some kind of an oxygenator. What it is I don't know but there is also a blue chemical that dyes the water and is meant to keep the oxygen level high for long trips. I don't use live food at the moment but the best way to do it is to take some out in a net or strainer and add it that way.
kris-b-
Fishaholic
Don't add the water that the live food comes in into your tank. You do not know what is in the water or where it has come from.
cane76
Fish Aficionado
i net the food then pick out the bits of crap then add to tank.it never has coloured water tho
Teelie
Fish Aficionado
This doesn't make sense. The food/fish/plants/etc are from that water source and so anything in the water is likely on the addition to the tank anyways. I've heard various other, slightly more probable reasons for not adding water from the other source but with live food, most of those aren't applicable. If you don't trust the water source, don't trust anything coming out of it either.
kris-b-
Fishaholic
Do you add the water that is in the bag when you buy new fish? I don't!
Let me make one thing very clear. When it comes to feeding live food, blackworms and tubifex worms in particular, they should NEVER be added to the tank without cleaning them very well first.
Since I live in the US and we don't find live bloodworms for sale, I'll let someone else talk about how to clean and keep them, but I do use a lot of blackworms and some tubifex myself. They are safe if bought from a reliable lfs and washed and stored properly. Never put any dead ones into the tank and if you are in doubt about their safety, throw them away. Since they have a limited life expectancy, it's usually best to buy small portions often rather than to buy a lot at once.
To clean them, pour them from the cup or baggie into a clean container. I like to use a plastic measuring cup because the spout makes it easy to pour the excess water out. Fill the container with cold running water. Stir the worms gently to break up clumps of them. You will see the water cloud with dirt. Pour this water off and repeat this step as often as it takes for the water to run clear.
They might look like this when you first start, but when you are finished, the water should be clean.
When you are cleaning them, or feeding them to the fish, handle them gently so they don't get injured or die. Dead worms are often the reason you hear about fish becoming sick after eating them. They are, after all, meat and it does go bad fast once it's no longer living. Remove anything that is white or that looks like it shouldn't be in there.
This is what healthy and safe blackworms should look like:
This batch is not as lively as some, but it's clear that they are alive.
To store them safely, after you have cleaned them, pour them into a jar or dish with just enough water to cover them and store them in the refrigerator. Rewash them each day following the steps above. They will most likely not be as dirty as when you bought them, but wash them anyway. It's also a good idea to wash the container they have been kept in.
Tubifex worms are treated the same way. Both are nutritious foods and your fish will love them. For conditioning and preparing fish to spawn, I have found nothing better.
Since I live in the US and we don't find live bloodworms for sale, I'll let someone else talk about how to clean and keep them, but I do use a lot of blackworms and some tubifex myself. They are safe if bought from a reliable lfs and washed and stored properly. Never put any dead ones into the tank and if you are in doubt about their safety, throw them away. Since they have a limited life expectancy, it's usually best to buy small portions often rather than to buy a lot at once.
To clean them, pour them from the cup or baggie into a clean container. I like to use a plastic measuring cup because the spout makes it easy to pour the excess water out. Fill the container with cold running water. Stir the worms gently to break up clumps of them. You will see the water cloud with dirt. Pour this water off and repeat this step as often as it takes for the water to run clear.
They might look like this when you first start, but when you are finished, the water should be clean.
When you are cleaning them, or feeding them to the fish, handle them gently so they don't get injured or die. Dead worms are often the reason you hear about fish becoming sick after eating them. They are, after all, meat and it does go bad fast once it's no longer living. Remove anything that is white or that looks like it shouldn't be in there.
This is what healthy and safe blackworms should look like:
This batch is not as lively as some, but it's clear that they are alive.
To store them safely, after you have cleaned them, pour them into a jar or dish with just enough water to cover them and store them in the refrigerator. Rewash them each day following the steps above. They will most likely not be as dirty as when you bought them, but wash them anyway. It's also a good idea to wash the container they have been kept in.
Tubifex worms are treated the same way. Both are nutritious foods and your fish will love them. For conditioning and preparing fish to spawn, I have found nothing better.
Teelie
Fish Aficionado
Not normally, no. One of the more believable reasons is the shock the water difference will cause a fish once it goes from the "local" water it's in to the water in your aquarium. Most people use acclimation of moving some water from the aquarium into a container holding the fish over the course of 30 minutes to an hour. With saltwater, this is a required procedure if you expect the fish to live. I usually move my fish fairly quickly from the container to the tank and haven't as yet had any casualties from it but my water is similar to that of the water from the LFS so I can push my luck just a little.
kris-b-
Fishaholic
It is also because of the ammonia that the fish will give off into the water in the bag. With worms the water has more than likely some sort of food source within the water for the worms creating more polutant in the water.
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