What's the difference?

[Mrs.JayMay23]

I have goldfish, which I feed goldfish food, and tropical fish, which I feed, you guessed it, tropical food.

My question is: What is/are the main differences between the two?

I know that there are differences in the food for different reasons but I am unsure of what makes them different from each other.

Thanks for the help in advance. :22:

[Fisharefriends27]

I've been reading about food alot cause I want to get better quality food for my angle. I don't know the difference, but you can check the back label. I think it's something like this(I read this somewhere online not sure if it's true) you want at least45% crude protein, something like around 10% moisture, something about fat but I don't remember. What ever has meal after it is usually that ground up. For example fish meal is ground up fish.(so I heard) But the problem with that is it's hard to digest, so top quality meals have that lower on the list, therefor a lower amount. Meaning higher quality food has fish meal lower on the list so the food is more digestible. I think I found this on another forum. I'll try to find the link if you want it. This isn't exactly what you were looking for, but I'm happy to share what I read.

Edit
Found this link on some forum. I'll look for more
http://www.shinerscoop.net/tropicalfish/whats-the-difference-between-tropical-flakes-fish-food-and-goldfish-flakes-food
Not sure if these sites are a reliable one though
Another link
http://www.fishforums.net/index.php?/topic/330208-tropical-and-coldwater-fish-flakes/
Another
http://www.mombu.com/aquarium/aquarium/t-feeding-goldfish-flakes-to-tropicals-9545728.html

It seems like the majority say tropical flakes are more meaty and goldfish flakes are more vege based

[Strider199]

Different species of fish have different food requirements in the wild, those fish food companies try and match as closely as possible, that species food requirements in their products. For all we know it's a scam but people buy what the product advertises for the most part. As Fisharefriends said, the label on the back has the different ingredients in it which you could check to see what the difference is.

[Mrs.JayMay23]

@fisharefriends: I checked out the link and it seems to be what I've been finding on the net. It's really hard to find any good information on this subject.

Let me know if you find something. :)

Thanks for the help. :thumbsup:

[Mrs.JayMay23]

@Strider: my thoughts exactly. I would think that what they add to the food would be close to what the species need, hence the labeling of "goldfish food" and "tropical fish food" but at the same time you have to wonder if they are also doing that to scam you as well.

[Scrup]

those fish food companies try and match as closely as possible, that species food requirements in their products.


If only. Most big name brands of fish food are enough to keep your fish alive, but if you look at the ingredients, most of it is total crap. Goldfish food is normally just lower quality than the generic tropical fish food.

There are ideal foods for certain fish, but for the most part it is better to look at the ingredients and know what type of diet the fish needs. Most aquarium fish do well on a high fiber diet. Lots of plant stuffs.

One thing that always kills me is "Cichlid sticks". If you really think you can feed any cichlid with that, you are wrong. Most cichlid sticks I have seen are high in protein, which is death for some types of cichlids.

If you want healthy, read about what the fish eats, and go for the least amount of crap you can't pronounce. I made my own food for a while and still would if I weren't so lazy. That would be the healthiest option.


Tetra fish flakes-
Ingredients:
Fish meal, dried yeast, ground brown rice, shrimp meal, wheat gluten, feeding oat meal, fish oil, potato protein, dehulled soybean meal, soybean oil, algae meal, sorbitol, lecithin, monobasic calcium phosphate, ascorbic acid (source of Vitamin C), yeast extract, inositol, niacin, L-ascorbyl-2-polyphosphate, riboflavin-5-phosphate (source of Vitamin B2), A-tocopherol-acetate (source of Vitamin E), D-calcium pantothenate, thiamine mononitrate (source of Vitamin B1), pyridoxine hydrochloride (source of Vitamin B6), Vitamin A palmitate (source of Vitamin A), menadione sodium bisulfite complex (source of Vitamin K), biotin, cyanocobalamin (source of Vitamin B12), choleocalciferol (source of Vitamin D3), manganese sulfate monohydrate, zinc sulfate monohydrate, ferrous sulfate monohydrate, cobalt nitrate hexahydrate. Color includes: Beta-carotene, bixin, Blue No. 2 Lake, oleoresin (capsanthin and capsorubin) Red No. 3 dye, Yellow No. 5 lake, Yellow No. 6 Lake. Ethoxyquin as a preservative..


Tetra goldfish flakes-
Fish meal, ground brown rice, torula dried yeast, feeding oat meal, shrimp meal, wheat gluten, soybean oil, fish oil, algae meal, sorbitol, lecithin, l-ascorbyl-2-polyphosphate (vitamin C). Artificial colors including yellow 5, red 3, and blue 2. Ethoxyquin as a preservative.



new life spectrum (touted as a high quality fish food)-
Typical Ingredients: Whole Antarctic Krill Meal, Whole Herring Meal, Wheat Flour, Whole Squid Meal, Algae Meal, Soybean Isolate, Beta Carotene, Spirulina, Garlic, Vegetable and Fruit Extract (Spinach, Broccoli, Red Pepper, Zucchini, Tomato, Pea, Red and Green Cabbage, Apple, Apricot, Mango, Kiwi, Papaya, Peach, Pear), Vitamin A Acetate, D-Activated Animal-Sterol (D3), Vitamin B12 Supplement, Thiamine, DL Alphatocophero ( E ), Riboflavin Supplement, Folic Acid, Niacin, Biotin, Calcium Pantothenate, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, L-Ascorby-2-Polyphosphate (Stable C), Ethylenediamine dihydroiodide, Cobalt Sulfate, Copper Proteinate, Ferrous Sulfate, Manganese Sulfate, Choline Chloride.

I don't use either or support either, just showing you that in fact there is a huge quality difference between brands. Pretty similar to eating processed foods vs organic/natural foods.Yeah its better for you, but is it worth the cost?

[Lab_Rat]

Some foods are made to be lower in protein and higher in veggie matter for herbivorous fish. I don't really pay attention to what it says in the name, I look at ingredients and percent protein and ash. I buy the marine formula NLS because for some reason it's a dollar cheaper than the cichlid formula.

[Scrup]

yeah, what she said. (teach me to post when I'm in the middle of a caffeine binge)

[Taurus]

Some foods are made to be lower in protein and higher in veggie matter for herbivorous fish. I don't really pay attention to what it says in the name, I look at ingredients and percent protein and ash. I buy the marine formula NLS because for some reason it's a dollar cheaper than the cichlid formula.

I use the marine formulas of NLS and Ocean Nutrition for both of my fresh water tanks. It's good stuff for omnivores and herbivores.

[mermaidwannabe]

I give my fish a varied diet, so they get a more balanced blend of nutrients.

For veggie matter, I give them Ocean Nutrition Spirulina flakes and Omega One Veggie Rounds (algae pellets). I also give them a blended flake food. For more meaty-type protein, I use the New Life Spectrum foods, and occasionally throw in freeze-dried bloodworms and frozen mises shrimp.

Not all at once, of course! I give just a little of one or two different foods at each feeding. The ground-feeders have to have the sinking pellets, which the other fish also go for, and those that usually feed at the surface need floating stuff, or stuff that sinks very slowly so they can catch it easily.

I have a mixture of coldwater fish in my coldwater tanks -- goldfish as well as minnows, danios, dojos, etc. It didn't seem quite right to feed those other fish goldfish food that was intended just for goldies. Yet, the tropical foods were for warm-water fish. So I once asked someone at F&S if they made any other coldwater fish foods besides goldfish foods, and would it be okay to feed tropical fish foods to the other coldwater fish. Their reply failed to answer my question.

Whenever I look through their catalog, I see only tropical flake foods or goldfish flake foods, separately, but nothing listed among the flake foods that says any are specifically for other species of coldwater fish. So, I try to supplement the flakes with other forms of veggie and meat protein so everybody gets what they need. That's the best I can do, since there's a lack of any more specific information.

I think a varied and balanced diet is a good way to go. My fish have great color and all are healthy and happy.

-- mermaidwannabe

[Taurus]

Labby said it best. Read the ingredients, not what it says on the front label.

Goldfish are omnivores.

[Mrs.JayMay23]

Yeah, All this food stuff is so confusing... It's just as bad as people food.

I do give my fish plenty of varied foods and they seem to be doing great, so I guess what I'm giving them is good. I was just wondering if anyone else seemed to be as confused as I was.

Thanks all for helpin me figure it out and have a better understanding! :)