Sea Monkey Vs. Brine Shrimp

[GuppyGirl20]

Okay so I know sea monkeys ARE brine shrimp but here's my question: Are they the exact same thing or is there some sort of nutritional value difference???
 
I know brine shrimp hatcheries are cheap but sea monkey kits are cheaper (being a broke college kid, I like cheap lol). So what I was thinking was getting the sea monkeys and just keep buying more egss when I need them (if I am remembering right they have them for cheap at Hobby Lobby which is kind of strange) or maybe even get a thing of legit brine shrimp eggs to see if they will atch in the little sea monkey set up.

 

[DiddleBug]

I believe sea monkeys are bred to live longer and are a lot healthier than the brine shrimp that are hatched and used for food.  I was thinking of buying brine shrimp once for pets but then researched and saw they would probably not live long compared to the sea monkeys sold as pets.  

 

[GuppyGirl20]

I would use them for food for my betta or that's what I have in mind.

 

[attibones]

I'm on my second attempt at sea monkeys and I don't think they're making it this time either. Might just be better to use a small tank instead of the thing that comes with the sea monkeys. I keep getting a weird fuzz at the bottom of the container. I may just try that, use a small air stone and a lamp and then see how they hold up.

 

[Chad]

The brine you purchase for your tank are often gut loaded to make them more nutritious for your fish. Check with the place of purchase to see if this is the case. Sea Monkey brand of artemia or artemia you hatch yourself will not have this benefit. 
 
I like to use Hikari's frozen Spirulina Brine Shrimp as they are gut loaded with algae which is nice for the fishes. 

 

[GuppyGirl20]

The brine you purchase for your tank are often gut loaded to make them more nutritious for your fish. Check with the place of purchase to see if this is the case. Sea Monkey brand of artemia or artemia you hatch yourself will not have this benefit. 
 
I like to use Hikari's frozen Spirulina Brine Shrimp as they are gut loaded with algae which is nice for the fishes. 

How are brine shrimp you hatch yourself gut loaded (since I really don't intened to try and keep that many at one time to where I would really have to care for them)
I know they have the frozen stuff but I'm really trying to find cheap and easy sources of live food for my betta (I haven't been able to find a local store that sells live food. Petco gave me the name of one but I haven't had time to check it out. My thing with buying though is that I only have one betta and I don't want to have to get a whole bag full that I'm not going to be able to use and I can't fit another any sized tank anywhere in the space avalible to me).
This idea was given to my by a Petco worker which is why I wanted to ask what the difference between the two on the forum before making any decision.

 

[Chad]

Gut loading just means you feed them certain types of food then when the fish eat the artemia they also get whatever food is inside them. 
 
However, gut loading is not required at all. 
 
For a betta I would lean toward worms or larvae as my live food source.

 

[GuppyGirl20]

Alrighty, noted.

 

[GuppyGirl20]

Well looks like I'm going to have to get an actually brine shrimp hatchery I got sea monkeys because it was cheaper and did everything right and I woke up this morning to find all of theme dead... I put the food in two nights ago because it was the fifth day (like the instructions said to do) and now they are all dead. I was aerating their little "tank" everyday and everything.  
My problem with the actually brine shrimp hatchery was that every instruction video I saw you had to hatch a whole bunch and I only have one betta. I don't want to hatch a lot only to have to throw them away because i don't have an extra tank to keep them in. Is there a way to only hatch a few?

 

[Chad]

Yes, you can simply put in fewer eggs. I have a vile that contains thousands of eggs but it allows me to put in as many or few as I see fit. There are simple air-driven hatcheries and nice in-tank ones where the shrimp just swim right out and get eaten. 

 

[GuppyGirl20]

Okay, thanks for being so helpful. Do you think I can use the sea monkey "tank" to let the brine shrimp grow a little (I've heard if they're too small then the betta won't eat them" as long as I change the water everyday? 

 

[Chad]

Sure you could use that tank. I do recommend an air stone to circulate it. 
 
I actually love growing out brine shrimp, they are terribly fun to watch and the fish love them. They require little extra work on our part and to me are quite beneficial for fish. Not only for food but to provide them an environment where they can exhibit natural predatory behaviors. 

 

[tunagirll]

I use a betta tank clipped inside the actual fish tank, and the brine shrimp you can buy that are already mixed with sea salt.
5g of brine shrimp mix and 200mL of water go into the tank and that's it. They hatch the next day and survive long enough to feed out the next few days. No aeration. I just use a syringe to suck them out of the tank.

 

[GuppyGirl20]

My tank isn't big enough to do that

 

[tunagirll]

How big is your tank? I use a 30 litre breeding tank, but I put the brine tank (about 1/2 litre volume) clipped inside my 60 litre because it's more convenient.
 
I don't feed baby brine. Three days after hatching I dispose of any left over, as they have little nutritional quality, and make a new batch. They are a pain to try to keep alive past that stage.