Freshwater

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Part II: Fish and How to Care for Them
Frozen foods are usually mixes of live food, such as brine shrimp, silversides,
bloodworms, daphnia, meat, or vegetables. You can purchase this type of
food in a variety of forms, such as sheets and cubes.
Little frozen cubes are a great way to keep an accurate account of exactly
how much you are feeding at every meal. You must keep frozen foods from
thawing before you need them because once they melt, they cannot be
refrozen without a major loss of nutrients. Also, melted brine makes your
house smell like a shrimp boat. Before feeding, take the frozen food and thaw
it in a small cup of dechlorinated water (tap water with dechlorinator added)
or bottled water. Dispersing the food in water allows the food to move
throughout the entire tank so that aggressive feeders don’t get a chance to
eat it all before the rest of their tankmates get any.
Freeze-dried foods
Freeze-dried foods contain preserved small crustaceans, shrimp, larvae, and
worms. This is one type of food that fish seem to love or hate, so just keep a
little bit around for a treat or emergencies.
Spirulina
Spirulina is a natural micro-algae that is rich in proteins, helps enhance color,
and promote a healthy mucus layer on your fish’s skin. Adding spirulina to all
your fish’s diets gives them healthier fins and increases their resistance to
skin infections. You can usually purchase spirulina in both flake and frozen
form. Spirulina has a soft cell wall and can be digested quite easily. It contains
fatty acids that are important in proper development of the body’s
organs, and is also rich in A and B vitamins, iron, and calcium.
Research shows that most of a fish’s color comes from the food it eats.
Spirulina contains a high percentage of carotenoid pigments that give your
fish outstanding color.
If you want the best of both worlds, you can purchase spirulina-enriched
brine shrimp. These are shrimp that have been fed on dry spirulina powder.