meat VS veges

hi all,<
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>i heard that b/n fry grow significantly faster if they are fed meat on a regular basis. Is this true and if so does anybody know why this is the case?<
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>thanks  

[nemo1981]

i''m not sure, but i feed my
istlies osi growth flake, sinking pellets, algae wafers, and weekly zuchinni.<
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>i also blended up some beef heart (mixed with some water) and poured this in a jar and froze it, just scrape some out for them time to time.<
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>haven''t noticed any vast difference, but then i dont'' give it to them as often as vegies.<
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>still, they snap it up though.<
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>hth Steven & Amy<
>Ipswich<
>Email: nemo19_81@hotmail.com<
>Our Photos<
>

hmmmm i am thinking of setting 2 tanks up with about 5
istlenose of equal lengths in each and feeding 1 tank a total vegetable/spirulina wafer diet and the others the same but with a mixture of meat into their diet aswell (maybe give them meat 4 out of 7 days). I will carry out the test for about 12 weeks and measure them regularly to test if which grow faster. The tanks will be of equal volume, have the same filter etc, be the same temperature, and will undergo the same size water changes.<
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>Still, if any1 has already noticed anything to do with this topic or has any explanations please let me know.<
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>thanks!!!  

[DeagonTheo]

In my opinion young Bristlenose do need a reasonable amount of meat in their diet, they do poorly on a complete vegetable diet. The worst growth rate I have noticed is on a sole algae diet, even to the point of young ones dying.<
>When talking about meat, it doesnt have to be actual meat, just a high protein flake or pellet.<
>Older
istlenose are different and can live quite well on a mostly algae or vegetable diet.<
>Theo<
>

thanks for that Theo, greatly appreciated.  <
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>does anybody know why it helps the growth rate of young b/n, is it just the protein that does it, and if so why is this the case?  <
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>thanks alot!!!  <
>

[DeagonTheo]

I would definately say that protein helps fish grow faster, it also helps animals and humans grow faster, I dont know the exact science behind it, I just know that its the main ingredient for growth.<
>Having said that, it doesn''t mean that you should feed ever more protein, as on the opposite scale it can also do a lot of damage. As in all things there should be a happy medium.<
>Theo<
>

thanks again theo, u have been very helpful!

I have a 2 footer with abt 50 BN fry in there, I placed a 5 cent piece size lump of beef heart at one end, and some spirulina wafers at the other end, ... 90% of them went to the meat! Personally I feel zuchinni and lettuce etc only produces B\N shit, very slow growth, as per Theo''s  comments, they need protein, as we all do to grow, now, think abt this, would u feed ur own baby, child on lettuce and such alone? no, why? they won''t grow! der, not exactly rocket science is it?<
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>Cheers Dave "I believe that sex is a beautiful thing between two people. Between five, it''s fantastic."

[Anakist]

Mine go absolutely ballistic for bait prawn.<
><
>James Rockhampton QLD<
>ja_mez(AT)hotmail(DOT)com<
>0408 189 343

thanks guys!

[Dyce]

whats the best way to feed beefheart to bn? Just raw out of the fridge? blended? frozen? blended and frozen?<
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>Cheers, Dyce. fish fish fish fish turkey fish fish gobble

yeh i wud also like to know this....  

For best results it still has to be beating.<
>  

[nemo1981]

dyce, <
>i blended up some beef heart with a bit of water, put it in a container and then froze it.<
>when it came to feeding it to them, i just scraped a bit out under the water. <
>the water temp helped to soften up the top layer a bit so it came out in nice little pieces.<
>they go apeshit on it too.<
>be alright if the bloody guppies and mollies didn''t smash it all before it hit the bottom........ Steven & Amy<
>Ipswich<
>Email: nemo19_81@hotmail.com<
>Our Photos<
>

[Alan Caboolture]

Basic biology!!!!!  there are three types of feeders...--Primary, secondary, and tertiary.<
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>Plants are primary feeders, they feed and grow using chemical elements  (Plants cannot use anything organic..."organic farming" is a scientific misnomer)<
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>Secondary feeders consume primary feeders,,,plants (herbivores) rabbits, horses, cows  etc... and quite a number of fish.<
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>Tertiary feeders eat secondary feeders....carnivores.<
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>But then we have an inbetween,,,,omnivores! which feed on primary and secondary feeders to a greater or lesser extent.<
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>Bristlenose are omnivores,,,there mouth is designed to
owse on algae in nature. But in doing so they also ingest insect larvae, crustaceans, mollusks, bacteria, fish eggs and fry etc..<
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>So keep this in mind when feeding.   A diet of pure veg..,algae wafers, spirulina etc..is not enough.   BUT !!! don''t over do the meat or you will have all dead B/N instead of slow growers.<
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>Alan.<
><
><
> When life gives you lemons ask for a bottle of tequila & salt.<
>The only danger I find in life is to take too many precautions. Some people walk in the rain, others just get wet.<
>