# What do you feed your Mbunas?



## Kevin007 (Jul 20, 2008)

I just brought 7 yellow labs, they are so cute and awsome!

I know they are herbivours and my tropical flake food is not good for them, I went ahead and brought some Hikari cichlid food, I didn't know which was the best and most suitable, so I just brought the "staple"

http://www.hikariusa.com/products/ci...id_staple.html

the yellow labs are 1.5 - 2 inches long, is that suitable for them?

What do you feed your cichlids?

I have a red tailed black shark with them, can i feed normal fish flakes for him? Do i have to worry about the cichlids eating the flakes? Is bloat common among these fish?


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## smidey (Mar 15, 2007)

i feed a few things to mine. they get sushi wrap, jbl novo rift sinking sticks, jbl novo vert flake, blood worms (once a week) & shelled peas on a regular basis. also feed sera granumeat & granugreen when my lfs has it.


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## t.karkoulis (Aug 21, 2008)

good work on those labs!

bloat is very common in malawis im afraid, and somewhat contagious. I feed my labs TetraPhyll which is based on plants etc, with meaty treats every now and again.

Your cichlids will eat the flakes in a flash, if you feed them to your shark. But the shark should be ok with some cichlid food, my bala shark was eating cichlid food and was doing great.


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## Timkat4867 (Jan 11, 2008)

I think Hikari "excell" is geared more towards herbivours. It contains a good combination of spirulina as well as aqautic proteins which labs do good on. Does the food you bought have similiar ingredients? I feed my malawis dainichi pellets.

In my opinion, I think when you feed your labs, the shark will get enough food from the crumbs left over from the messy labs.


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## plow (Feb 19, 2008)

I stay well clear of anything that has meat products in it. I used vege based pellets always like NLS, which is high in vege protein.

I haven't had a single case of bloat yet. They are vegetarians, so why feed them anything else?

I would only feed mine this hikari product if I had to choose Hikari.

http://www.hikariusa.com/products/cichl ... excel.html

this is what I use, in a combination with New Life Spectrum

http://www.aquatic-nature.be/2eng_afcifoodexs.html


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

Another vote for NLS. And there have been several warnings against feeding bloodworms to mbuna recently posted here...not even as a snack but certainly not as a staple.

Cater your food choice to the mbuna since they have the more exacting requirements, and the other fish will be fine.


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## natalie559 (Dec 6, 2007)

Kevin007 said:


> I just brought 7 yellow labs
> I know they are herbivours


Actually the yellow labs are omnivores,

"Diet: Omnivore"

http://www.cichlid-forum.com/profiles/s ... hp?id=1669

So you don't have to be as strict with the diet as if they were true herbivores.

I feed Eds almost natural fish food, the super green flakes and color balls, http://www.almostnaturaltropicalfishfood.com/index.html


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## Joea (May 25, 2004)

Realistically, all mbuna can be considered omnivore to some extent. Even the strictest "herbivores" ingest animal protein from grazing algae which contains a great deal of protein matter including insect nymphs and larvae, micro-organisms, zoo plankton and more.

High protein doesn't cause bloat. Bloat is thought to be a direct result of a single-celled eukaryote, known as flagellate protozoan. These cells are always present in fish and are likely aggravated and multiply due to a number of different reasons, most notably, stress. Cheap foods with cheap fillers can cause intestinal blockages, which can lead to stress, thus, bloat. Specious reasoning has lead many fish keepers to believe that it was the _food _that caused the bloat, not the stress, which is why an "improper" diet is so taboo to some old-schoolers.

plow, NLS main ingredient is krill, which is a type of shrimp-like marine invertebrate animal. Very high in protein. It's an excellent, all-purpose food which has been found to be gentle on the most delicate of fish digestive systems. It's what I feed all my fish, carnivores, herbivores, omnivores, piscivores, detritivores... everyone is happy!


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## smellsfishy1 (May 29, 2008)

Good point Joea, in trying to prevent bloat from occuring the diet should be considered so that the food consumed is easily digested and the fish can easily defecate and there is no blockage.
The high quality ingredients in the high quality food are better at aiding the fish in this process.
You may consider using epsom salt, many use as a laxative included in the homemade buffer mix found in the chemistry section.
However, there is much more to consider.
Stress is a huge factor,as Joea stated, so try to minimize stress factors (there are many) in the tank.
Temperature- has the effect of speeding up the metabolism if higher or vice versa..
Age/Size- older fish may need less protein in its diet.
Water quality/chemistry- poor water quality can weaken immune system, slime coat, and many internal processes.
I only named a few so just something to think about and keep in mind.


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## Kevin007 (Jul 20, 2008)

In a nutshell, can i feed this to my Cichlids?










and










http://www.hikariusa.com/products/cichl ... taple.html

From the response, I think I would do better with excel, but it wasn't there at the petshop yesterday, is the staple ok?

I also have some expired algae warfers, cna i feed those too?

I will be adding some Aceis soon, I assume they have the same diet?

thanks!


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## Timkat4867 (Jan 11, 2008)

I personally wouldnt. I would look for a flake food that is labeled as "spirulina" or at least has spirulina as one of its ingredients. nutrafin should have a brand.

As far as the hikari goes I have never used the staple brand. If you cant find excell, I would find a pellet food such as NLS or nutrafin "spirulina sticks"

Algae wafers would work, but would be too much if you ask me. all you need is one good quality food.

Aceis will eat the same things as Labs.


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## frankeyser (Jul 29, 2008)

I feed my mbuna's spirulina veggie mixes. Usually spurlina with peas, carrots, romane lettuce, green beans ect all dried and then crumbled. they stay healthy and colorful.
I also introduced fast breeding snails into my tanks just for my yellow labs as that is what they also eat. at night when the snail babies take to the water the labs and supprisingly my chaolosi's go nuts and eat them up. I have only seen one snail since I introduced the eggs. the labs really keep there numbers down.
it does make it hard to judge how much to feed the fish when it comes to the spurlina flakes but they have been doing well for 6 months so I am not to worried. i do a day of fasting every sunday where no one gets any food. sometimes i will sprinkle in a snack if aggression is overly high.


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## Timkat4867 (Jan 11, 2008)

Frankeyser, you have a very interesting veggie mix.

Is it some kind of binder in it? how does it all stay together?


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## frankeyser (Jul 29, 2008)

Timkat4867 said:


> Frankeyser, you have a very interesting veggie mix.
> 
> Is it some kind of binder in it? how does it all stay together?


it does not stay together. i finley chop all the veggies frezze dry them in a machine i got of ebay for 500 bucks mixed together the ingrediants with the spurlina and store till needed. the fish go nuts and eat everything before it can even make it 1/4 of the way down the tank. it is basically making my own flake/freezedried food kind of.
when i run out and need to make more i just chop of the veggies blanch them and put them in the fish automatically run to the top and eat them. I only do all the freeze drying for easy storage.


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## frankeyser (Jul 29, 2008)

Timkat4867 said:


> Frankeyser, you have a very interesting veggie mix.
> 
> here is one on ebay for around 300
> http://cgi.ebay.com/BOC-Edwards-Micro-M ... dZViewItem


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## frankeyser (Jul 29, 2008)

Timkat4867 said:


> Frankeyser, you have a very interesting veggie mix.
> 
> Is it some kind of binder in it? how does it all stay together?


it does not stay together. i finley chop all the veggies frezze dry them in a machine i got of ebay for 500 bucks mixed together the ingrediants with the spurlina and store till needed. the fish go nuts and eat everything before it can even make it 1/4 of the way down the tank. it is basically making my own flake/freezedried food kind of.
when i run out and need to make more i just chop of the veggies blanch them and put them in the fish automatically run to the top and eat them. I only do all the freeze drying for easy storage.
here is one on ebay it looks different than mine but is only 300.
http://cgi.ebay.com/BOC-Edwards-Micro-M ... dZViewItem


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## Timkat4867 (Jan 11, 2008)

And the spirulina is just powder added?


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## frankeyser (Jul 29, 2008)

oh i see what you are asking. the spurlina sticks to the veggies before I freeze dry them. I typed it in the wrong order. the powder sticks to the mosture of the veggies and then after it is freeze dried it seems to just stay on the food. I think it is because of the zuccini and yellow squash i put in in. after I cut them up and mix them in everything is really sticky. then i sprinkle in the powder and put it in my freeze dryer that has a canister. 
when I sprinkle it does not seperate as far as I can tell. they eat it so fast I dont think it gets a chance to.


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## Timkat4867 (Jan 11, 2008)

I understand how you do it now. very interesting, very healthy for the fish.


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## frankeyser (Jul 29, 2008)

they show great colors and always seem healthy since I have been doing it, also i dont have to worry about anything I do not want them eating getting in the food like fish meal or additives.


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## LuciousLeftFoot (Jan 27, 2008)

I use the Hikari Cichlid Excel(mini pellets) as my main food, their algae wafers every couple days and frozen peas as a treat sometimes. I usually feed them twice a day everything they can eat in less than a minute. I have had sick fish twice and it was my fault both times. Once from being a slacker, not keeping my maintenance up and the other was I didn't quarantine some new fish. The only fish who got sick were the new ones thankfully enough.

For you NLS users out there.......I am thinking about switching to NLS, should I vary between the Hikari and NLS while slowly weening them off the Hikari? Also has anyone switched from floating to sinking pellets and had any issues with your fish not noticing them since they don't float? Sorry to threadjack, I figured this would be a good thread to ask without starting a new topic.....


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## Timkat4867 (Jan 11, 2008)

I think slowly weaning them off hikari to NLS is the best way to do it. But I personally never did it that way. I remember when I switched from hikari to dainichi, they readily excepted it without weaning.


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## Kevin007 (Jul 20, 2008)

http://www.bigalsonline.ca/BigAlsCA/ctl ... rmula300gr

Are you guys recommending this? Darn its expensive!

I might get this instead.

http://www.bigalsonline.ca/BigAlsCA/ctl ... el88ozmini


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## Floridagirl (Jan 10, 2008)

The NLS is worth it, IMO. Buy a large quantity to save money. It will last you. Especially, if you supplement with frozen peas, etc.


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## Joea (May 25, 2004)

Hang on Kevin007, don't fall for sticker shock.

Hikari 8.8 oz works out to $2.04 per ounce

NLS 10.5 oz works out to $2.64 per ounce and a far superior food IMO. Not to mention that I feed a lot less NLS each feeding, than any other food I've used.

If you buy the large 80 oz of NLS for $109.99 it works out to $1.37 per oz. A lot cheaper than the Hikari.


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## smellsfishy1 (May 29, 2008)

That is a good deal but you may be able to get it even cheaper.
Actually I just bought a 5lb. bucket from a LFS for $50.
That would be $0.62 per ounce.
Darn cheap in my opinion.
Many people on ebay, aquabid, and craigslist sell NLS in this quantity for this price.
If you need it shipped it would cost you about $60.
This would cost you $0.75 per ounce.


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## danhoy (Feb 10, 2008)

I use NLS and Spirula flakes. Fish inhale both, Never had 1 case of bloat in my 7 tanks. I supplement with spirulina flakes because I feel I get better color in my fish when adding it every couple of days. The fish are perfectly healthy without it. If looking for NLS support a sight sponsor and get a good price. Check in the trading post and you can get a 5pould bucket shipped for $60. I have between 100 and 200 fish, my bucket is about half gone after 6 months. With the spirulina flakes and NLS I figure I'm less than $10 a month for all my fish.


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## Floridagirl (Jan 10, 2008)

I couldn't remember what I paid for my large size, but it seems like I've had it forever. They seal on the bucket is awesome. I take out some and keep it in my ziplok storage container. That way, I don't have to open the NLS container as often. The food smells as fresh as when I bought it......about 5-6 months ago? I use it for my 3 cichlid tanks as well as my salt water reef.


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## Hoosier Tank (May 8, 2007)

IMO you are fine... Hikai Staple with a Crude Protein 35% is about as low as I can find and has been the "staple" of my Mbunas diet for 3 generations. I have NLS small pellets that I add in as well for the wee ones because I can't find Staple in the "Baby" size. Also have a bag of Hikari algea wafers I ground up to "Pellets" in an old coffee grinder. :lol: I have used Hikai "Gold" with its higher 40% Protein. But the H. Staple is what they get on a regular daily basis. For my fry I even put Staple pellets in a Pepper mill and grind it into small pieces.


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## Denny (Sep 27, 2008)

I've been feeding mine pellet Red Top and live grass shrimp. The shrimp are natural food and all the cichlids enjoy them. Also they get a lot of good exercise chasing down the the shrimp and hunting them down when they get hungry. The live shrimp don't foul the water either and the cichlids aggressive natural has been greatly reduced when the shrimp are on the menu. Have even witness the cichkids all working together in their capture without aggression towards eachother.


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