Feeding and Nutrition :: Don't let the FISH FOOD fall into the tank!

[Oshynlover]

I JUST DID the major cleaning of the tank like a week ago. I spilled only about 1/10th of the cup of fish flakes but OH MY GOD it spilled everywhere in it! It was crazy... Took the turtle out, took 1.5 hrs sucking food out of the tank and rocks.... it was not fun!

[theartbook35]

What would fish flakes do to them, if they ate them?

Can they even chew and shallow them, since they are such an odd shape?

My mother tried suggesting "turtle flakes" to me over the weekend. I gave her a somewhat bogus story that "flakes are flat, and too hard for them to chew because their tongues are attached to their bottom jaw" and somehow we got on the subject of how they don't make saliva, and have to eat underwater. Anything to get her to leave me alone.

My mother has no reptile common sense either. Like, last night, she was asking what would happen if I turned their lamp off. She knows it makes heat...

[Oshynlover]

well flakes are for the fish in there... and too much food will congest and infect the tank with high ph levels, ammonia levels, and nitrate levels.

as far as the turtle eating flakes... flakes are thinner than paper... once hit water they start to break down ... so a turtle can easily eat them, it wont harm them but eating a million flakes that fell in would not be good.

[Azfar]

fish flakes not just break down but also meltzzz in the water like wet soft tissue in the water.. and yes it easy for turtles to eat it. I give my turtle eat fish flakes once in a blue moon. They will the chase the flakes because the fish smell were so strong and attract them yet the fish flakes comes with many mix colour.

And yes, if they eat like a million of fish flakes also not good because the amount would be same as one big goldfish full with protein.

[Shady08]

I feed my turtle only fish flakes. The brand is Wardley tropical fish flakes. Every once in a while I give it pellets. After reading the post above, I guess it isnt a good thing. He/she seems to love it. I've had the turtle for quite a qhile. About 7 years now. Unless mine is rare, one of the few ?

[geekyturtle]

Shady08, the fish flakes probably have enough nutrients in them to be more acceptable to turtles than say feeding them only brine shrimp, so I wouldn't worry about it too much. You might want to check out the nutrition section to get your turtle on a better diet though.

I have a chiclid in my turtle tank and setup an automatic feeder to feed both, so I mixed the flakes and pellets in the feeder. The turtle tends to eat more of the flakes than the fish, but he seems to be doing fine.