Feeder fish for my RES crew

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mel262011

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I have 2 juvenile RES in a tank with some feeder fish. I bought 16 small fish about 3 weeks ago. There are still 10 of them left. How long does it take for them to eat them? I bought 10 of them 3 days before I got these and those fish were gone in 10 hours. My 2 RES turtles are 4" long. I see them hunt the fish every once in a while, but they never eat them. Just curious as to why they aren't eating them.
 

Yvonne G

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Hi Melinda:

Turtles usually won't expend too much energy in chasing down fish that swim too fast for them. If they can catch them easily, they'll eat them, but if the fish are to crafty or fast, they'll ignore them.
 

doubletorts

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I used to have RES and I would buy several dozen of the feeder fish as well. What kind are you buying? Rosies or regular gold fish? Mine preferred regular gold fish because there is more meat on them. Although they would eat the rosies they weren't big fans. Another factor can be the size of tank, if it is one of a bigger size they would have to swim around quite a bit before catching a fish and might become very tired therefore giving up. Keep an eye on them and that can also help answer your question. :) ..hope this helps!


emysemys said:
Hi Melinda:

Turtles usually won't expend too much energy in chasing down fish that swim too fast for them. If they can catch them easily, they'll eat them, but if the fish are to crafty or fast, they'll ignore them.

Good way to put it, I tried saying this but I think mine may have been a little more wordy. lol. But just like us, we don't mind putting out a little effort going to the store to buy our food, but if we have to chase after it to be able to eat it we will easily give up. :)
 

Baoh

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I maintain sizable populations of various endlers for animals ranging from hatchlings to ~12". I also have self-sustaining shrimp and snail populations. They eat the vegetation I grow in their tanks, too.

Mind you, I still feed them Reptomin pellets, but the above provide, IMO, a dietary range that provides variety and some exercise.

Larger animals require different prey items (if I am giving them prey items).
 

mel262011

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I have been feeding them the feeder fish from PetSmart. I usually feed them the little ones. Since they were eating them like candy, I bought the slightly bigger feeder fish.

I feed them shrimp and krill too, along with a pellet diet.
 

Saloli

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don't feed them minnows or goldfish. guppirs and mosquito fish are better by far. see my notes in the feeder fish tread. also if you didn't know res diet changes as they grow from carnivore to omnivore to herbivore as they grow up. Zoomed natural pellets are good to use for sliders though i still add other things to their diet but what i add depends on their size.
 

ascott

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Story;

So my son had a RES and then one of my co workers fell in love with him...so needless to say he is now enjoying a pond of his own :D

However, when he was smaller, my son wanted to get him a couple of the feeder fish...so figured a couple would not harm him...so we put them in with the turtle---that crazy turtle would swoop them up, carry them in his mouth to the top of his ramp which extended out of the water, and lay the fish on the top platform and then rush back into the water and caught the other one and did the same thing....was so weird he acted as though he just did not want them in the water with him.... :D
 
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