# Earthworms



## Binner (Jul 20, 2007)

Hello everyone, *** read on this site that cichlids like earthworms so I tried them and my fish went crazy over them!! How acurate is this and are they any good for them? Dolphins, frontosa and electric yellows are my stock. Thanks.


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## chapman76 (Jun 30, 2004)

You should be alright with those. Just use them strictly as treats though. No more than 1-2 times per week I'd say.

There really isn't any benefit to them besides being live food and sometimes live food helps to stimulate breeding.

As far a negatives go, the only thing I can think of is if they carried any disease with them, but I'm not sure earthworms do carry anything that can transfer to cichlids.


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## Fogelhund (Dec 3, 2002)

The issue with feeding earthworms is that there is the potential for them to have harmful chemicals, from feritilizers, weed controls and other chemicals that might be in the ground from where they are collected. If you don't use chemicals in your yard, than go ahead. If you do, you might want to think about how long it has been since you've used them, and how they might harm your fish.


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## Number6 (Mar 13, 2003)

and consider what your neighbors and even a few houses down might do... earthworms can travel a fair distance...


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## cichlidaholic (Dec 7, 2005)

And if you chicken out of doing it again, there are some great earthworm flakes available! :wink:


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## Dave (Feb 9, 2003)

Or you can always raise your own chemical-free worms!


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## lloyd (Aug 24, 2005)

i feed both home compost and bait shop worms to many of my omni and carnivore fishes. the results have been 100% positive. in particular, for weight gain, appetite renewal of new imports, and as a delivery vessel for various medications. HTH:
Earthworm as a potential protein resource:
The chemical composition of the earthworm (Eisenia foetida), worm casts and worm body fluids was investigated and compared with common foods and animal feeds. Common nutrient analysis showed that Eisenia foetida meal has a high protein content in the range of 54.6 to 71.0% dry matter. Protein content and amino acid composition were close to that of fish meal and hen egg, and higher than that of cow milk powder and soybean meal. Casts of E. foetida had a protein content of 7.9% dry matter, which is similar to that of corn meal, and hence worm casts could be used for partial replacement of corn meal or wheat bran in animal diets. Worm body fluids contained 9.4% protein and 78.79 free amino acid per litre and were found to be rich in vitamins and minerals, particularly iron (Fe). Our nutrient analyses suggest that earthworm (Eisenia foetida) could be an excellent source of protein to supplement animal feed and human food.


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## football mom (Feb 19, 2006)

Sorry, I'm not eatin' no worms! lol


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## Guest (Jun 25, 2008)

football mom said:


> Sorry, I'm not eatin' no worms! lol


Well there's insects in chocolate and feces in fast food burgers... Not kidding...

~Ed


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## football mom (Feb 19, 2006)

Just don't tell me there's worms in whatever it is. 
Does anyone remember the movie "Soylent Green"?


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## dogofwar (Apr 5, 2004)

I feed earthworm, actually "red" worms which are a little smaller and more heat tolerant, to my cichlids and other fish that are large enough to eat them.

I get them from my local bait store, quickly rinse them, cut them into pieces (for smaller fish), and drop them into the tank...where they are devoured.

I feed them as a conditioning food for CA/SA cichlids a couple of times per week...and also to large haps (like venutus, livingstoni, etc.). They'll help females recover weight and strength much more quickly than other foods.

I'm also a fan of "superworms", which are beetle larvae...


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## Binner (Jul 20, 2007)

Thanks so much for the replys, I think I will feed them one or twice a week.


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## dogofwar (Apr 5, 2004)

If you're conditioning, then you can feed them more than that...


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## football mom (Feb 19, 2006)

Can you feed large carnivores mealworms?


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## BenHugs (Jan 13, 2007)

Thats great news to see how good worms are for fish (depending on species) because that's all my Elipsifer eel will eat.
A tip for anyone serving them as an aquarium treat I put them live into the freezer to kill them, then once frozen they can be easily broken up into the size you need.


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## Binner (Jul 20, 2007)

If you're conditioning, then you can feed them more than that...
Sorry I dont understand, what does that mean?


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## BenHugs (Jan 13, 2007)

I think when they say conditioning it's to get the fish into breeding mode??????


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## dogofwar (Apr 5, 2004)

Correct - getting them ready for breeding, showing, recovering from breeding, etc.

Large carnivores will go nuts for earthworms (or superworms).

Some people feed superworms flake food to gut load them prior to feeding.

Great tip on freezing worms. I hate tearing live ones apart


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## lloyd (Aug 24, 2005)

dogofwar said:


> Great tip on freezing worms. I hate tearing live ones apart


 i'll try freezing them. sounds like a better option than 'tearing'  . or use a razor, if the fish you are feeding can't eat the whole thing, but still prefer some action.


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