How to make sure Otos get enough food

[maronov]

I've been adding algae wafers every few days, but I've never seen the Otos eat them, maybe because of the very enthusiastic way my Corys attack whatever food is in the tank. How can I add food to be sure the Otos are getting their algae supplemented?

[musho3210]

try zuhcinni or cucumbers, not many omnivorous fish eat these crazily, my danios wouldnt eat cucumbers.... Maybe not as nutritious as algae but it does the job.

[RoseFishWatcher]

Second the zucchini. You can try blanching it or raw, I don't know which ottos would prefer. I tried feeding a bit to my cories and they weren't interested.

[maronov]

That's a good idea, thanks. Blanching is just throwing it into boiling water for a few seconds?

[hitman12131976]

To Blanch:

1. Boil the water.
2. Throw in the veggie for about 30 seconds
3. Take out the veggie and rinse in cold water.

then feed it to the Oto's.

I recommend when you cut the veggie into slices (1/4 inch or smaller) that you get the GLAD PRESS N' SEAL bags so you can individually freeze them on a large sheet and just use scissors to cut out what you need. Here's a link to what I'm talking about with the GLAD product.

http://www.glad.com/plasticwrap/pressnseal.php

[llamabob]

Blanching is probably better but I always just used raw zuchini for my Farlowella and Rainbow shark, the Farlo would leave deep pits until it was all gone!

I just bought Otos 2 days ago and my algae problem is pretty much gone so I will probly try the blanch method for the little guys.

[BrkD]

imo, zucchini floats if its not boiled for a few minutes. i throw it in boiling water for 3-5 minutes, rinse with cold water then throw it in the tank.

[Kuhlifan]

Easy fix: my otto loves shrimp pellets. He'll sit and eat them for hours, completely ignoring everything around him. Just drop some in and your ottos will be happy.

[Caius]

Hi-
I just added 2 oto's to my 20 gallon. There's plenty of algae right now (the flat, green kind), but I was wondering if their diet should still be supplemented. Is feeding them veggies just for when there isn't enough algae in the tank, or is the variety for their diet important?
Thanks!