Hi, I'm new to the site, we have an oscar who is addicted to anything besides pellets (spectrum large). Is it normal for rosies to die early? I don't want to put any of these dead ones in my tank, since half died in 24 hours. Could those have just died from stress or water temp changes, or are they actually diseased. None of them seam to have any discolorations or lumps.
personally i wouldn't risk feeding any fish to my oscar if i didn't know for sure that they were healthy, and i would pretty much never feed him dead fish unless i euthinized perfectly healthy fish specifically to feed him
Personally I wouldnt use them if they are dying off. It just increases the risk that the oscar will catch something...I have also heard of carnivorous fish not going after anything that is already dead anyways
feeder fish like guppies, rosy reds, and 12-cent goldfish are not meant to live for very long, and so are never given the same standard of care that a fish intended as a 'pet' would receive. they are often sickly, infected with bacteria, internal parasites, or fungus, and kept in extremely overcrowded/poor water conditions that just make things worse. a fish getting sick from store-bought feeders is a question of 'when', not 'if'. in addition, rosy reds and goldfish contain an enzyme called thiaminase. this enzyme, when consumed by other fish, causes an inability in your fish to absorb thiamin (vitamin B). over time this leads to skin/structural/nervous system problems and a lowered immune system.
if you want to continue using feeders, i would suggest you set up another tank or even a smallish plastic tub (10-20g or more) and start breeding your own. guppies, mollies, or even a pair of convict cichlids will provide a fair amount of food over time.
I have a 20-gl, w/ a breeding pair of convicts, no babies yet, and I can't see in their cave good enough to see if their are eggs or wrigglers yet, but if I were to have a 10-gl. set up w/ lots of live plants and put cheap rosie feeders in it and took out all that look bad at all or die for atleast a week w/ a multi med & good food, would that be fine to use aswell? We also use ghost shrimp, crickets, spectrum (sm. & lg.) pellets, & frozen (bloodworms & brineshrimp). I use to feed turkey breast (99% fat free), until I found out that I guess fish can't digest animal fat?.? So it is bad to give them that, and stopped, but my would eat that or anything else besides pellets. Which I would prefer to have him eat primarily, since I know it's healthier. Would it be recommended to not feed for 2-3 days and then try feeding pellets? I have a gar that I was told will only eat feeders, I wouldn't want him to starve.?.?
lean animal meats are okay as a treat, though beef heart may be a better choice as it is cheaper (if you buy it at the grocery store and prepare it yourself) and very very lean. cheap seafood trimmings would be better. ask the seafood guy at your store if he has any scraps left over. everything else you listed is good, and you may also want to try earthworms. quarantining the rosies for at least 2-3 weeks would be better, but there is still the vitamin deficiency issue.
