k9outfit Posted June 14, 2005 Report Share Posted June 14, 2005 Ok people, I bought the stuff, now what? I've been hatching & feeding live baby brine shrimp for over a year, but decided to switch to the cyclops-eeze since I really can't expect the person looking after my fish for a week while we're on holidays, to be hatching them. I bought the powdered stuff (rather than the wafers). Would I put a bit of powder in a cup, add tank water and then squirt some in the tank with an eye dropper, like I do with the bbs? For how long would I feed it to fry before graduating them to the NLS 1mm pellets? Or is there something in between before they graduate to the larger stuff? Any suggestions welcome! P.S. Probably under the wrong section, so please feel free (mods) to place where it's supposed to wind up. ...Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vallisneria Posted June 14, 2005 Report Share Posted June 14, 2005 Would I put a bit of powder in a cup, add tank water and then squirt some in the tank with an eye dropper That is what i do I feed my fry FD cyclops for a couple weeks untill they are big enough to eat the NLS grow pellets. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FishBrain Posted June 14, 2005 Report Share Posted June 14, 2005 I have my babies hatch in a well established tank and they always seem to find lots to eat until they are big enough to eat the NLS Growth formula 0.3mm (I think the size is) Is cyclops eese that good? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vallisneria Posted June 14, 2005 Report Share Posted June 14, 2005 canadbis- are you saying that you dont' feed your fry anything untill they are big enough to take NLS grow? My fry usually aren't big enough to start eating NLS untill they are about 2 weeks old. Are you saying you dont' feed your fry during that whole time? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RD. Posted June 14, 2005 Report Share Posted June 14, 2005 (edited) Would I put a bit of powder in a cup, add tank water and then squirt some in the tank with an eye dropper, like I do with the bbs? yes For how long would I feed it to fry before graduating them to the NLS 1mm pellets? You can start them off on it from the get go, but I try & make the bulk of their diet crushed NLS Grow (.35 mm pellet) formula as well, and feed it in the same manner as the cyclops. Once they hit the 2 week mark or so, then you can go with 100% NLS Growth, and/or continue to supplement with cyclops if you feel the need. Crushing the 1 mm pellets up works as well, but it's designed as an adult maintenance formula, not a growth formula, and has much lower protein/fat, compared to the growth formula. The 1mm Cichlid pellets can be fed as soon as the fish can fit them in their mouth (approx 1" for most Africans) but I like to use the TherA+A 1 mm pellets for a few months as it too is a bit higher in both protein as well as fat, and I've had good results with my juvies on this mix. 0-2 weeks ..... cyclops-eeze & finely crushed NLS Growth 2-6 weeks ..... NLS Growth along with some cyclops-eeze as a supplement 6-60 weeks .... NLS TherA+A 60 weeks & on .... NLS Cichlid Formula Edited June 14, 2005 by RD. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
African_Fever Posted June 14, 2005 Report Share Posted June 14, 2005 I think you guys go through too much work with putting it in a cup, using an eye dropper, and 'making sure' that your fish get it. My fry either start out with a tetra billi sponge filter or an AC mini (due to lack of space). I just put a pinch of the FD cyclops-eeze right in and let it sink itself (with help of the filters). They learn pretty quickly that if they go to the surface they get more food, and by the two-week mark when I start feeding NLS grow pellets (with cyclop-eeze still as there are often many different sized fry in the same tank and they often can't/won't all take pellets at the same time - sorry Neil!), they know right away that anything on the surface is food. As an aside, this has even worked really well for raising my Syno fry. As I'm out of town working most of the time, FD cyclops-eeze is cleaner/easier to feed than frozen BBS, so I've had the g/f feeding that to all my Syno's, just putting a pinch on the top and letting it sink. They too have learned that the food will come to them, and am coming along at a great pace on it (with frozen BBS and frozen cyclops-eeze when I'm home). After about a month they've reached 3/4". Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RD. Posted June 14, 2005 Report Share Posted June 14, 2005 (edited) Kyle - Keep in mind that my fry are raised in a 29 gallon tank, and in such a large tank the food seemed to get lost (or sucked up) before many of the fry found it. I also run 2 AC filters, which doesn't help in that regards. Cyclops-eeze is designed as a supplement food, and that's why I try to also incorporate finely crushed NLS in the first few weeks. It's more of a balanced fry food, and beats the he11 out of Hikari first bites. Edited June 14, 2005 by RD. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
African_Fever Posted June 14, 2005 Report Share Posted June 14, 2005 That's a good point I forgot to add. I prefer to keep my fry in 5/10's for the first while b/c I can load the tank with food to ensure that they're always able to find some. That's also why I really prefer to use sponges as first filters, b/c the food that gets trapped in the outside of the sponge can still be picked at and eaten by the fry all day rather than sucked up and gone in power filters. If I had to use larger tanks (like a 29), I'd probably have to find a way to ensure that they get the food. I do use NLS grow a little earlier than two weeks (as well as the wafers), b/c some fry will pick at pellets sitting on the ground all day, and some just won't. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RD. Posted June 14, 2005 Report Share Posted June 14, 2005 Oh, I agree, ideally a sponge filter would be the best way to go with fry tanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nevchewy Posted June 14, 2005 Report Share Posted June 14, 2005 Where can you purchase cyclops-eeze? thanks! nev Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rahim101 Posted June 14, 2005 Report Share Posted June 14, 2005 I believe Gold's sells both the freeze dried and frozen. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vallisneria Posted June 14, 2005 Report Share Posted June 14, 2005 I found cyclops at dad's fishroom. Its not the cyclops eeze brand,its Sera FD cyclops. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
African_Fever Posted June 14, 2005 Report Share Posted June 14, 2005 All Gold's had the last time I was in was the frozen stuff, and I know that I'll be ordering more FD stuff from Jehmco right away here. The Sera stuff won't be the same thing. Cyclops are naturally occuring in many of our ponds/sloughs around here (I've collected them along with daphnia on numerous occasions), but the cyclops-eeze brand is essentially GE'd to have more nutritional/colour value for fish, and is therefore superior IMO. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nevchewy Posted June 14, 2005 Report Share Posted June 14, 2005 Is the powder or the frozen stuff better? I'm in edmonton, so thanks Val... I'll have to head down to dad's. or maybe i'll order some. I have seen pics of your fry kyle and they do color up very fast... I'm sure there are other foods they will eat... but their color or possibly their growth may be stunted. What you are doing seems to work wonders! My Yellow lab is still holding ands its been 1 week and 1 day now... I have to start thinking about what i am going to do with the babies. thanks again! nev Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
k9outfit Posted June 15, 2005 Author Report Share Posted June 15, 2005 Where can you purchase cyclops-eeze? I picked up a tin at Big Al's yesterday, Nevchewy. Definately not cheap, but then buying brine shrimp eggs which I never had great luck hatching, I'd say it's a better price overall. Anyway, thanks for all the advice, peoples! Sure do appreciate it! :thumbs: (I suspect my fishies do too.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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