Frozen crayfish as food

[MonsterMicah]

Hey guys, I've always wanted a fahaka puffer as a pet and I think I might finally be able to turn this dream into a reality. There's one problem, though. I want to make sure I can adequately feed a fahaka before I buy one.

I know puffers need hard shelled foods like clams, snails, and crayfish. I was wondering if I could catch crayfish and freeze them to use as food (freezing them to preserve them and hopefully kill parasites). Would this be a safe/good idea?

 

[tlindsey]

Hey guys, I've always wanted a fahaka puffer as a pet and I think I might finally be able to turn this dream into a reality. There's one problem, though. I want to make sure I can adequately feed a fahaka before I buy one.

I know puffers need hard shelled foods like clams, snails, and crayfish. I was wondering if I could catch crayfish and freeze them to use as food (freezing them to preserve them and hopefully kill parasites). Would this be a safe/good idea?

Welcome aboard
Yes freezing the crayfish will be fine before feeding to the fahaka.

 

[MonsterMicah]

Welcome aboard
Yes freezing the crayfish will be fine before feeding to the fahaka.

Thank you, I know cooking crayfish kills parasites, but I wasn't sure if freezing them would kill parasites.

 

[RD.]

Freezing does not kill all pathogens.

 

[RD.]

From a past discussion regarding feeding fresh/frozen .......



Just a couple things I wanted to add. Although certain fish (and it's a very long list of fish species) such as smelt can sometimes have excessive amounts of thiaminase, the workaround to that is simple. Supplement B1 (thiamin) a few times a week. Problem solved. Boyd Vitachem is one such supplement. If one is primarily feeding frozen food from the supermarket then vitamin supplementation should already be part of the feeding regime. This is how public aquariums, zoos, etc, keep their frozen fed fish healthy long term - vitamins & trace minerals are not just a good idea, they are mandatory to anyone feeding these kinds of foods as the main portion of a fishes diet.

My advice when dealing with fresh fish products, buy fresh, freeze for 48 hrs at 0F (-18C) to destroy any potential parasites, and use up within 30 days or so. Freezing will not destroy all micro-organisms, so there is still some risk involved in feeding frozen products, but freezing certainly minimizes those risks. Also note that frozen fish that have been unthawed under refrigeration, should be fed within 24 hrs. (or discarded)


Freezing tends to also increase the concentration of thiaminase in tissue, so the shorter the duration in the freezer, the better. Little is known as to how thiaminase affects various species, and according to various studies the amounts found (even within the same species of fish) tend to vary as well. As previously mentioned most public aquariums tend to supplement to avoid deficiencies. (especially B1, vitamin E, and vitamin C) IMO fish kept in captivity require full vitamin & trace mineral supplementation to some degree or another. This is a non-issue if one is feeding a commercial pellet as the staple, or even stuffing "some" pellets into frozen foods, or supplementing via a commercial pre-soak such as Boyd Vitachem.


I posted the following years ago in another discussion, some good info for anyone feeding insects to their fish.

https://nagonline.net/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/NAG-FS003-97-Insects-JONI-FEB-24-2002-MODIFIED.pdf

 

[MonsterMicah]

Freezing does not kill all pathogens.

Do you think a fahaka would eat a cooked crayfish?

 

[RD.]

FahakaPapa

 

[FahakaPapa]

I would not cook the crayfish. In my opinion, the best would be to setup a small tank and house the crayfish for a while before feeding them. But taking anything from the wild always comes with the chance of brining in unwanted pests and pathogens as mentioned above. Freezing them would definitely help, but not get rid of everything.

You could also just buy frozen uncooked shrimp/clams/mussels from the grocery store. I have a Fahaka that is over 12 years old and a bag of shrimp lasts her 3 months. The cost isn't much of an issue.

 

[MonsterMicah]

I would not cook the crayfish. In my opinion, the best would be to setup a small tank and house the crayfish for a while before feeding them. But taking anything from the wild always comes with the chance of brining in unwanted pests and pathogens as mentioned above. Freezing them would definitely help, but not get rid of everything.

You could also just buy frozen uncooked shrimp/clams/mussels from the grocery store. I have a Fahaka that is over 12 years old and a bag of shrimp lasts her 3 months. The cost isn't much of an issue.

I guess I could try raising crayfish in a separate tank or quarantining them. The only problem is that in my state, it is illegal to move live crayfish from a body of water. You have to decapitate the crayfish if you are going to remove it from the body of water it was caught in, so I'd be taking a gamble every time I do that...

I'm just on a budget and trying to find the cheapest way to do this. I have a creek a few miles from my house where I can get crayfish for free, but a few hundred a year for frozen shrimp/clams isn't terrible either.

 

[FahakaPapa]

I guess I could try raising crayfish in a separate tank or quarantining them. The only problem is that in my state, it is illegal to move live crayfish from a body of water. You have to decapitate the crayfish if you are going to remove it from the body of water it was caught in, so I'd be taking a gamble every time I do that...

I'm just on a budget and trying to find the cheapest way to do this. I have a creek a few miles from my house where I can get crayfish for free, but a few hundred a year for frozen shrimp/clams isn't terrible either.

I live up in Canada and a bag of raw Zipperback Pacific White Shrimp (presidents choice brand) costs me about $15 (probably closer to like $12) and lasts me a few months at least. My puffer is full grown and eats about 3-4 shrimp per week. A small Fahaka would eat less at once, but more frequently.