I was wondering if anybody here has ever fed their fish earthworms for a snack.

I have,,only for a snack every once in a blue moon. At first I was skeptical of doing it,,, but when I heard that some people did it, (and I mean people I trusted on forums)I tried it with my WC Calvus.

They loved it.

Anybody???

In the summer I find some in the yard or on the sidewalk after it has rained.
I usually just rinse them off, and cut them up with the kitchen scissors (then I may rinse the kitchen scissors LOL)
Heck, I eat the sport fish I catch with them so they shouldn't be too bad for the cichlids. The fish love it.
The only concerns I can think of would be if the lawn/yard is pesticide free and the effects of acid rain on the worms and the soil they live in.

Stratofish, the kitchen scissors?? :blink:

Most of my fish are not carnivores, so I never even thought about feeding them worms.

But I used to have a snake that liked those big slimy nightcrawlers! I would go out after a big rain with a plastic cup and pick them up from the street and sidewalk. I'm sure the neighbors thought I was crazy, but no one ever asked me about it. Giggly

When I kept Oscars I would go out after a rain and pick some worms up off the sidewalk to! I would cut them into small pieces and rinse well then feed! They loved them!

Earth worms are one of the best foods you can give your fish ( except herbivores of course ). I feed them whenever I can get them. The larger fish get the whole worm and the smaller ones get the cut-up version.

You don't try to soak them and get their insides cleaned out first?

Yes Mark, I leave them in some clear water for about a day.

This topic was discussed in other forums before.

I am surprised that not a single person said anything about:

OH my god,,,you feed your fish WORMS. yikes

WHAT ABOUT THE CHEMICALS YOU USE ON YOUR LAWN?????? yikes

NO CHEMICALS ON MY LAWNS Nanananaa Nanananaa Nanananaa

I feed all kinds of "live" foods to my fish. WIth earthworms, I will go buy a pack of nightcrawlers at the local fish bait mart. I then leave them between a couple of pieces of damp newspaper over night. That way they clean out their system. I then just rinse them under water and feed. For smaller fish I will cut them up, but i just throw whole ones to the big guys. I also feed mosquito larve during the summer. I have a clear plastic tote that I cut a hole in and siliconed a faucet onto. I fill it up and cover it with a screen that will let the mosquitos in and lay their eggs. Once I have a nice crop of larve, I drain the the tote and rinse off the larve under cold water. I then freeze them in a couple of old ice trays. When I get ready to feed, I just pop out a cube and let it thaw right into the tank. That way you dont get live larve, and you get a great cheap food source. I also put rocks in the tote when I have mbuna. I can grow a nice green carpet on the rocks along with the microscopic organisms. I just rotate the rocks out and keep a nice "salad bar" for any vegitarians I am keeping. The Mongolings used to have great joy in feeding my oscars junebugs and crickets they had caught around the house and yard. Now they feed the green terrors the crickets and just about any other bug I will let them drop in the top of the tank.

In the spring, I feed my frontosa worms- the Mpimbwe's loved them, but for some reason my Burundi liked them the most

i feed my stingray about 70 worms and 50 live ghost shrimp a week. i buy the worms from my gas station at 3$ a tin. never had problems

Brad, what kind of ray do you have? My motoro ate only blood worms...

I guess most folks figure earthworms are okay no matter where they come from. If you have expensive fish, though, why take a chance on chemicals and other crud (bacteria, viruses, parasites) they may have in them? Worm farms raise theirs on manure and worse. Yuk! I prefer feeding them freeze dried as whole worms or pieces. It costs more, but it is safer.

Hi! I've kept fish for many yrs, & now have discus & some other cichlids...I raised earthworms in the past successfully, so I tried again & have a plastic "box" with holes for ventilation....feed them corn meal, coffee grounds, fish flakes, etc, others use food scraps, but my culture is inside & I don't want fruit flies or other parasites even if the fish would eat'm....they are in soil from the barn with (old) horse manure, shredded newspaper & some potting soil....the fish love'm, even my new wilds, (a little difficult to get onto different feeds)....they do not carry any diseases that would hurt the fish....when you raise your own culture, you get the varied age groups, the babies are .5-.75" & are white....juvies little larger & coloring up...no need to feed adults, leave'm to reproduce & keep the culture going....good nutrition & not expensive & self replicating....what more could we ask?......lol, JMO...

Dottie