Baby Bushynose Feeding Question

**Plectoman** · 06-13-2012, 11:05 PM

On Monday, I picked up a baby bushynose who is only about an inch long for my 55. He seems very healthy as he is very active and is constantly searching for algae along the glass. However, he has yet to touch the wafers or the cucumber slice I clipped to the side of the tank. Is there any tricks I can try to get him to eat the other food I provide? Or is he just too young to be eating these other foods? Thank you for your help.

**ScottishFish** · 06-13-2012, 11:10 PM

My method of pleco feeding has never failed me yet;

1 chunk of cucumber or courgette (zuchinni for the americans)
1 stainless steel fork.

Stick fork into chunk, place on gravel, turn lights out and leave until the morning

**Strider199** · 06-13-2012, 11:10 PM

I'm sure when he's hungry he'll eat the wafers and the cuc.

When I feed cucumber or zucchini I use a knife and gently score the surface with shallow up/down and side to side cuts, pour boiling water over it for a few seconds, let it cool for a few minutes and stick a couple of tooth picks into one end. I stick the tooth picks into the gravel so the slice is on a shallow angle. It may take the new pleco a while to get use to his new food offering but once he does, he wont be able to get enough.
My rubber lipped bulldog protects his wafers and veggies like a junk yard dog protecting his territory.

**Goes to 11!** · 06-14-2012, 01:06 AM

Depending on what he was being fed before you got him he might not recognize that they are food yet. I would just keep trying until he stumbles across them and makes that discovery.

Do be sure to remove all uneaten food in the meantime to preserve your water.

**Cliff** · 06-14-2012, 01:11 AM

You got some great answeres already

It took my plecos a few weeks befor they realizd the zuchinnie (a.k.a courgette) was actually food and started to eat it.

Keep trying and they will catch on to it with time

**Plectoman** · 06-14-2012, 01:57 AM

Is it alright to try vegetables every night as long as I take it out in the morning? I don't want to pollute my water too much.

**fishmommie** · 06-19-2012, 02:18 AM

I would just watch it. YOu could probably leave it for a day or 3 without worry of pollution, A method I use is fastening a piece of cuc or zucchini or watermelon to small stone with a rubber band and just dropping it into the tank. The pleco will eat around the band. Works pretty slick.

**ameliaaahx** · 06-19-2012, 08:20 AM

Careful it doesn't somehow get stuck in the rubber band -- I remember hearing a story where that happened to someones pleco when they had some plants stuck together with rubber bands.

**Lady Hobbs** · 06-19-2012, 09:41 AM

I do like Scotty does.......raw and stick a fork in it. It's doesn't get soft as fast as it does when you blanch it and they eat it just fine.

**MuckyFish** · 07-29-2012, 06:26 PM

I've done blanching and fresh. I prefer fresh, lasts longer and doesn't separate and decompose into a sticky goo before it gets eaten.

I put a peice of zuchini in my tank for my fish before I went away for a week. Absolutely no sign of it when I came back. I presume that if there were any left overs that the snails would have consumed in a frenzied like manor.

I have seen fresh zucchini keep good for three or more days in my tank running at 75F. Blanched cucumber needs to be removed at about 48 hours in my book.