# Verify the Shrimp Veggies Once and For All



## Studman0143 (Mar 20, 2011)

So I have done what Homework I can on what kinds of veggies to feed to shrimp, but I am wondering if there are any other options. I also have questions about some. 

Me being a picky eater, and only having a small 10G tank of Cherry Red Shrimp I am setting up this week, I'd like to know what I can buy that I will also eat, haha.

Here is what I have found to be ok:


Cucumber
Zucchini
Romaine Lettuce
Snow Peas
Yellow Squash
Peas - skinned
Broccoli (both parts)
Potatoes
Spinach
Carrots
Butternut Squash
Cabbage
Sweet Potatoes (moderate success)
Chinese Broccoli

Other:

Dried Indian Almond Leaf

Questions:
I've also read you can microwave some of these, would anybody disagree that this is effective for all above mentioned veggies?

*BLANCHED *= Boiling until soft and immediately putting in ice cold water, or cooler water to stop the cooking process.


What other Vegetables have you had success with?
~I think I saw somebody use Snap Peas, any confirmation that these work?
~Celery, green beans, kale?

And Fruit, has anybody tried fruit before? It seems weird to try it, but you never know.

I also found the thread yesterday that was an experiment of plants and leaves from the yard/nature. Very well done, I will be following that one!

Maybe once we get good enough feedback, maybe we can sticky something like this cuz it seems like somebody is always asking. Just a thought mods.


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## PinoyBoy (Mar 14, 2008)

Spinach. The way I prepare it, is to microwave a leaf in a shallow bowl of water. The time you microwave it depends, usually less than 30 seconds for me until it is soft, but won't melt once it hits the tank.

Have you tried rabbit pellets? I want to try it, but afraid to use my shrimps as the test subject. At my LPS, it's about 80cents for a pound of rabbit pellet.


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## shrimpzoo (Sep 27, 2011)

I had success with carrots. Feel free to try that out because some people's shrimp like & dislike certain veggies. I guess they can be picky like people lol... it's good that you're trying to find a variety of foods for their diet so good luck finding that meal plan that works for your shrimp!


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## diwu13 (Sep 20, 2011)

Blanched green beans work. One problem is how readily they flow though. Has to stick mine into a PVC pipe shelter for shrimps to even notice it. When they did hey seemed to like it


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## Studman0143 (Mar 20, 2011)

shrimpzhu said:


> I had success with carrots. Feel free to try that out because some people's shrimp like & dislike certain veggies.


*Noted*



diwu13 said:


> Blanched green beans work. One problem is how readily they flow though. Has to stick mine into a PVC pipe shelter for shrimps to even notice it. When they did hey seemed to like it


*Noted*
Have you done garden grown or the Big Green Giant kind?


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## Studman0143 (Mar 20, 2011)

PinoyBoy said:


> Spinach. The way I prepare it, is to microwave a leaf in a shallow bowl of water. The time you microwave it depends, usually less than 30 seconds for me until it is soft, but won't melt once it hits the tank.
> 
> Have you tried rabbit pellets? I want to try it, but afraid to use my shrimps as the test subject. At my LPS, it's about 80cents for a pound of rabbit pellet.


*Noted*
Rabbit Pellets is an interesting idea. Not sure I want to try it on my first batch of shrimp though.


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## diwu13 (Sep 20, 2011)

Studman0143 said:


> *Noted*
> Have you done garden grown or the Big Green Giant kind?


Got them from a friend who grows them in her garden. I am not sure if the Big Green Giant kind uses fertilizers. To be safe you could buy frozen green beans. Freezing already denatures the cells so right after you let it thaw the shrimps should be able to eat it.


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## somewhatshocked (Aug 8, 2011)

Broccoli tends to really foul water up if you forget it after more than an hour. I would avoid it if you have something else to offer.

As far as fruit goes, most avoid fruits because of the sugar content and tendency to also foul water.


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## mach_six (Sep 12, 2005)

I would avoid rabbit pellets. Most of it is probably ash or filler. They would disintegrate as soon as it hits the water so you have to direct it to a dish or something through a tube.


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## gil_ong (Jul 10, 2008)

I tried some Chinese flowering broccoli/cabbage (caixin/Choy sum) over the weekend and no one wares anything to do with it.


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## Studman0143 (Mar 20, 2011)

somewhatshocked said:


> broccoli tends to really foul water up if you forget it after more than an hour. I would avoid it if you have something else to offer.
> 
> As far as fruit goes, most avoid fruits because of the sugar content and tendency to also foul water.


*noted*


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## ValMM (Feb 22, 2011)

People who talk about potatoes usually use sweet potatoes.


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## ramawo (Jun 12, 2008)

> I tried some Chinese flowering broccoli/cabbage (caixin/Choy sum) over the weekend and no one wares anything to do with it.


Did you boiled it ?


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## gil_ong (Jul 10, 2008)

yup. boiled it as i was making dinner. cooked it a little longer than what i usually do for myself.


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## Studman0143 (Mar 20, 2011)

gil_ong said:


> yup. boiled it as i was making dinner. cooked it a little longer than what i usually do for myself.


Interesting. I guess we can rule those out then.


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## Betta Maniac (Dec 3, 2010)

ValMM said:


> People who talk about potatoes usually use sweet potatoes.


 
I've tried those. Not even the snails were interested. Snails did love spaghetti squash though (shrimp didn’t touch it though).


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## parkadge (Jun 22, 2011)

*Butternut squash*

I hung a slice of butternut squash in my tank for my bristlenose fry but the shrimp really liked it too. They also like cabbage.


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## gil_ong (Jul 10, 2008)

a little off topic, but i seem to remember my dad feeding fry yolk from a hard boiled egg. anyone heard of this before?


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## shane3fan (Nov 2, 2009)

my shrimp love zucchini, spinach and sweet potatoes


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## JSA (Jun 3, 2011)

My fish enjoy cooked brussel sprout. Not sure if shrimp would.


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## parkadge (Jun 22, 2011)

*egg yolk*



gil_ong said:


> a little off topic, but i seem to remember my dad feeding fry yolk from a hard boiled egg. anyone heard of this before?


I have very old books that mention hard boiled egg yolk as a food for fry. You strain it through a very fine net. I've fed it to fish fry but not to shrimp.


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## sayurasem (Jun 17, 2011)

1. anyone ever try dried seaweed? (seaweed for sushi / seaweed from petco)?

2. Ipomoea aquatica a.k.a. asian spinach a.k.a. water spinach a.k.a. kangkung?


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## Studman0143 (Mar 20, 2011)

*Yolk?*



parkadge said:


> I have very old books that mention hard boiled egg yolk as a food for fry. You strain it through a very fine net. I've fed it to fish fry but not to shrimp.


How would you strain it throw a net? just put the yolk in the net (fish net?) and push it through the holes yourself?


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## gil_ong (Jul 10, 2008)

any reason to not try the egg yolk with shrimp?



sayurasem said:


> 2. Ipomoea aquatica a.k.a. asian spinach a.k.a. water spinach a.k.a. kangkung?


i love me some kangkung. stir fried with some sambal and chili.


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## Lesley (Mar 18, 2011)

Sounds Yummy!!!!!


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## Sharkfood (May 2, 2010)

> And Fruit, has anybody tried fruit before


Depends on your definition of fruit.

5 of the "vegetables" you listed are actually fruit.

Aquarists feed fruits to Pacus, but they devour them much more quickly than shrimp would.


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## shane3fan (Nov 2, 2009)

sayurasem said:


> 1. anyone ever try dried seaweed? (seaweed for sushi / seaweed from petco)?
> 
> 2. Ipomoea aquatica a.k.a. asian spinach a.k.a. water spinach a.k.a. kangkung?


 
The dried seaweed from pet stores was a flop with all of my critters. It just made a mess and was hard to keep it from floating away. 

I will stick to sweet potato, spinach and zuchini. I also feed them frozen blood worms, fish flakes and various sinking wafer type foods.


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## Studman0143 (Mar 20, 2011)

Sharkfood said:


> Depends on your definition of fruit.
> 
> 5 of the "vegetables" you listed are actually fruit.
> 
> Aquarists feed fruits to Pacus, but they devour them much more quickly than shrimp would.


I'm gonna define fruit as the common person would. The typical person can look at the list of veggies I have put up and have no clue any of the are fruits. So the less technical we get on veggies vs. fruits, the better. I don't think it truly matters that much. My goal here is to generate a list of successful fruit & vegetable feedings.


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## ramawo (Jun 12, 2008)

> any reason to not try the egg yolk with shrimp?


I won't do that, because of water contamination


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## parkadge (Jun 22, 2011)

*Eggsactly*



Studman0143 said:


> How would you strain it throw a net? just put the yolk in the net (fish net?) and push it through the holes yourself?


That's eggsactly (Sorry) what you do for fry. Feeding to shrimp I would just crumble a very small piece off an see if they like it. If they don't then just eat the rest of it yourself.

As for contaminating the water- any overfeeding will do that


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## Studman0143 (Mar 20, 2011)

parkadge said:


> That's eggsactly (Sorry) what you do for fry. Feeding to shrimp I would just crumble a very small piece off an see if they like it. If they don't then just eat the rest of it yourself.
> 
> As for contaminating the water- any overfeeding will do that


Score, I'm going to try it. I just got my first Cherry Shrimp last night, so here down the road I'll through in some egg!


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## mayanjungledog (Mar 26, 2009)

Anyone ever try sweet potato leaves? I heard they could be cooked and eaten the way you would spinach.



shane3fan said:


> my shrimp love zucchini, spinach and sweet potatoes


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## jostas (Jul 21, 2011)

mayanjungledog said:


> Anyone ever try sweet potato leaves? I heard they could be cooked and eaten the way you would spinach.


yes! young sweet potato leaves & shoots are the best. also snow pea leaves & shoots. yum. never thought about feeding them to my shrimp though.


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## mayanjungledog (Mar 26, 2009)

I will give it a try with my cherry shrimp, and if they like it, I'll try it with my CRS. Maybe I'll try some myself too.


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## mayanjungledog (Mar 26, 2009)

I nuked a sweet potato leaf for about a minute in the microwave, then put it in the shrimp tank for a couple of hours. I saw one shrimp land on it only briefly. I guess they don't like it.


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## shrimpnmoss (Apr 8, 2011)

gil_ong said:


> yup. boiled it as i was making dinner. cooked it a little longer than what i usually do for myself.



Hey, my shrimps eat Chinese broccoli all the time.


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## Studman0143 (Mar 20, 2011)

shrimpnmoss said:


> Hey, my shrimps eat Chinese broccoli all the time.


Good to know. I don't think I even truly know what Chinese Broccoli is, but if you've had success, I'll add it.


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## sayurasem (Jun 17, 2011)

you guys forgot to mention Indian Almond Leaf (dried). they will munch on this after being soft enough under water.


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## Studman0143 (Mar 20, 2011)

sayurasem said:


> you guys forgot to mention Indian Almond Leaf (dried). they will munch on this after being soft enough under water.


*Noted*

Would that be considered a veggie though? Or a different category?


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## parkadge (Jun 22, 2011)

00001 by parkadge, on Flickr

some of my shrimp devouring a piece of broccoli


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## Lesley (Mar 18, 2011)

My RSC won't touch Cucumber. Snails attack it from all sides. How is broccoli prepared for placing in tank? Lightly blanched?


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## parkadge (Jun 22, 2011)

Lesley said:


> My RSC won't touch Cucumber. Snails attack it from all sides. How is broccoli prepared for placing in tank? Lightly blanched?


It was just a piece of lightly boiled broccoli from my dinner plate that I put in for my bristlenose catfish that the shrimp got to first.
I have to say though that my shrimp are not fussy they eat any vegetable I put in the tank including cucumber.


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## dhgyello04 (Jul 11, 2008)

I don't get it!!!
I have a 46 gallon that I breed my OEBT's in and a 7.9 gallon nano that I have CRS, bee shrimp, and ******* shrimp (mutt). I know that when I put a piece of zucchini blanched in the nano tank, they tear it up. I put it in the 46 gal and nothing. Even the otto's won't touch it. So I tried spinach. A clump of it whent into the 46 gal (blanched) and nothing. I put the spinach in the nano and BAM!!!! They devoured it. I guess the ******** will eat anything, and the up scaled breed of the snooty OEBT's need a menu where everything is in french or something. I will go down the list on page one and find a veggie that the OEBT's will eat.

-Don


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## Studman0143 (Mar 20, 2011)

dhgyello04 said:


> I don't get it!!!
> I have a 46 gallon that I breed my OEBT's in and a 7.9 gallon nano that I have CRS, bee shrimp, and ******* shrimp (mutt). I know that when I put a piece of zucchini blanched in the nano tank, they tear it up. I put it in the 46 gal and nothing. Even the otto's won't touch it. So I tried spinach. A clump of it whent into the 46 gal (blanched) and nothing. I put the spinach in the nano and BAM!!!! They devoured it. I guess the ******** will eat anything, and the up scaled breed of the snooty OEBT's need a menu where everything is in french or something. I will go down the list on page one and find a veggie that the OEBT's will eat.
> 
> -Don


Picky eaters! It's like their your children or something. I guess when it comes to eating healthy, there aren't any exceptions for picky shrimp too. haha


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## Studman0143 (Mar 20, 2011)

parkadge said:


> 00001 by parkadge, on Flickr
> 
> some of my shrimp devouring a piece of broccoli


Wow, thanks for the picture. I have been reading that they will only eat the stem, but it's good to see they go after the leafy part too.
NOTED


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## Studman0143 (Mar 20, 2011)

*Snow Peas*

So I decided to try out snow peas with my Cherry shrimp. The first 2 days it was in there, I would occasionally find 1-2 shrimp on it, but it looked untouched. By the third day, this is what I found. 
I guess they got hungry


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## MagicalAlpha (Aug 5, 2011)

Studman0143 said:


> So I decided to try out snow peas with my Cherry shrimp. The first 2 days it was in there, I would occasionally find 1-2 shrimp on it, but it looked untouched. By the third day, this is what I found.
> I guess they got hungry


isn't it bad to leave vegetable in the tank for 3 days?


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## longbeach (Nov 2, 2011)

Keep trying... my OEBT's love spinach, and zuchinni, ok with carrots too. First time I tried only 2 or ate it.. next time Ismushed it a little in the water, they all started looking for it.


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## Aquasapien69 (May 7, 2011)

*Natural foods*

You were wondering about what to call these things and where to put almond leaves....how about "A list of Natural Foods?" No matter what you try to name it though, someone will offer something different or crab. So, Just name it what you like. Most of us just appreciate the effort. 

I've tried boiled egg yolk with limited success. I think it fouls my water more than it feeds my shrimp. I've just gone to mashing a tiny bit of veggie or dried food each time I feed and I think the babies get to it easier that way. 

I've tried a few different "greens" (collard green, etc) and they seem to like them just fine (blanched until softish). I would imagine any mild cooked green they would eat. Mine turn up their nose at cucumber. But as a lot of us have noticed, different shrimp and different tanks like different things. 

Organic. IMHO - go organic if you are worried about Big Name Brands. That's what I do. Freeze and thaw unused portions. 

Hardwood Leaves of all types my shrimp eat too. They seem to really love Silver Maple. Pesticide issue here too to consider.....especially fruit tree leaves. 

My $0.02.


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## jasonpatterson (Apr 15, 2011)

I feed mine turnip greens all the time rather than spinach. I prefer them over spinach as they are generally cheaper, easier to clean and cook, and taste better.


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