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Vegetables for Plecos

25K views 25 replies 11 participants last post by  tophat665 
#1 ·
Greetings,
I have rescued my Bulldog pleco from the turtle tank. He's not been getting enough to eat and I am going to try to fatten him up a bit. Right now, he is in my 20 gallon holding tank with 12 pygmy cories (1/2 inch long and cute as a button) 7 Otos (about and inch each), some Java Fern and Moss, and a couple of swords. He's only about an inch and a half himself.

To the question then:
In addition to Hikari tablets (which I will toss in there presently) I have a slice of zucchini clipped to the tank. However, the otos seem to be ignoring it, and the pleco (yclept Jumbaa) is ignoring it as well. Should this be blanched first?

What other veggies should I try out? I have some kale I could give him, and, as my wife goes through an entire cottage garden's worth of produce every day (I exaggerate. A little.) I will be able to get just about any other veggie that would work.

Advice is heartily appreciated. Jumbaa is hanging on your words.
 
#2 ·
Source from another site..
Bean, Green (Blanched and open the pod slightly), Capsicum, Green, Red, Orange, Yellow, Carrots (Blanched), Cauliflower (Stem), Corn, Cucumber, Eggplant (Aubergine), Lettuce, Peas (Blanched and skinned), Potato, Regular (Blanched or raw), Potato, Sweet (Blanched or raw), Pumpkin (Dirties the water), Spinach, Zucchini (Courgettes)

Hope that helps.:thumbsup:
 
#4 ·
Depending how big your bulldog pleco is, it is noted to EAT SMALL FISH. So your cories or otos might become a meal.

What do you try to feed it?

My L18 Gold Nugget is an omnivore, much like your bulldog, and it eats bloodworms, sinking carnivore pellets, shrimp pellets, zuchini (blanched), and frozen peas (skinned).
 
#5 ·
i would like to try to feed my fish some veggies, but i have a couple of Q's...will my fish eat them? and what is "blanched"? i see this word alot when talking about fresh veggies for fishies...but im not familiar with the process....anyyways...thanks!

bri
 
#6 ·
My plecos eat the veggies I give them, which are either zuchini or peas. My clown loaches love zuchini also, but the inside part, the plecos love the skin. The bits and pieces that float around from the zuchini, all the other fishes eat. I drop the frozen peas in over night, which I assume the plecos eat, as well as the loaches. I know my angels will eat them too.

Blanching vegetables basically is just letting it sit in boiling water (or extreme hot water) for a few minutes to soften it up. Some people do it, some do. The people that don't say that you lose some vitamins in the water. I do it for the zuchini (corgette) becuase it sinks a little better when it's blanched.
 
#8 ·
I also put a weight on my blanched zuchinis. I use an old spoon which I bend. But even blanched, it will tend to float, but very slowly. So the pieces will stay in the water longer, compared to no being blanched.

Frozen peas just sink, so no worries. I just stick it in warm water to thaw it out.
 
#15 ·
I have read that my silver dollars would probably like to eat some romaine lettuce, and zuccini. My question is, how do you keep it from floating around, and how long should you leave it in there without spoiling the water?
 
#16 ·
blue_gourami45 said:
I have read that my silver dollars would probably like to eat some romaine lettuce, and zuccini. My question is, how do you keep it from floating around, and how long should you leave it in there without spoiling the water?
Blanching will help. If not, weigh it down with a spoon or lead weights. I'd remove the veggies after an hour to prevent pollution of tank water.
 
#21 ·
crazie.eddie said:
You're not really cooking it. Blanching helps to soften the vegetables, which makes it easier for most fishes. Some fishes will still eat it, blanched or not. Besides, I doubt you see fish eating carots, peas, zuchini (courgette), etc. in the wild either.
Your still cooking it some.

If you want it to sink get something stainless and plop it in, or get a screwcumber.
 
#22 ·
crazie.eddie said:
You're not really cooking it. Blanching helps to soften the vegetables, which makes it easier for most fishes. Some fishes will still eat it, blanched or not. Besides, I doubt you see fish eating carots, peas, zuchini (courgette), etc. in the wild either.
Your still cooking it some.

If you want it to sink get something stainless and plop it in, or get a screwcumber.
 
#24 ·
I admit I blanch. It really is only for a few seconds. About 60 seconds is all it takes to make the vegs sink. I'm not making soup or anything like that. If cooking food really did remove so many nutrients and vitamins humans would have been extinct a long time ago. Another way to get them to sink is frezzing them. It causes the cell walls to burst and lets trapped air escape.
 
#25 ·
There are a lot of foods you can try as others have stated but I am a little concerned that it isn't a food issue. If you had to rescue him from the turtle, he might be stressed, either from an attack or from the water conditions. The little guy may just need some time to acclimate.

One more idea is since he was in with a turtle, give him some sinking turtle food. Maybe he developed a taste for it and if I remeber right, most turtle food is both vegative and a good protein source, shrimp or fish although this is from memory so don't rely on it.
 
#26 ·
Jumbaa is coming along fine. I toss a pleco pellet in there every night for him and the ottos, and it's gone every morrning. He also cleans up any shrimp pellets the corys don't get. He's put on some weight, and seems to be doing well. :)
 
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