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Feeding wheat germ based pellets in tropical climate water

 





 


Roger89
Koi Lover


Jun 6, 2007, 4:51 PM

Post #1 of 4 (734 views)
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Feeding wheat germ based pellets in tropical climate water Can't Post
Hi all,

As far as I know wheat germ is better for digestion in colder climate, and koi can digest fish meal protein food better in warm water. I'm wondering what are the benefits(or disadvantages) of feeding wheat germ based pellets to koi compared to fish meal as a source of protein in our warm tropical water?

Thanks.


Toan
Koi Lover


Jun 8, 2007, 3:16 PM

Post #2 of 4 (712 views)
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Re: [Roger89] Feeding wheat germ based pellets in tropical climate water [In reply to] Can't Post
hey Roger,
i'm assuming you're talking about wheat germ compared to growth performance or more protein-based foods .. i look at wheat germ as a staple only for the sole purpose of feeding my koi during the winter .. its low in protein, generally in the low/mid 30% , making it easy to digest all year round, something light to handle in the cold .. and it can be used the whole year .. however, thats all it can do .. from what i know , most wheat germ only provide that much .. and because it isnt high in protein, you won't see as significant results with growth rates as compared to more fish meal/protein-based foods

however for protein-based , i want to feed this to my koi as soon as warm weather hits .. since you're in the tropics, i think it would be ideal to feed them this .. its high in protein, high 30% - low 40% .. which is tremendously great for it helps growth rates a lot ( well for my koi at least ) .. it can still be digest easy because it is warm weather .. and with warmer waters, they need more energy .. hence providing them with protein-based foods will surely be helpful .. and most of the time, there are other ingredients in which manufacturers such as Hikari, Saki-Hikari and Hi-Silk 21 include such as Silk Powder, Spirulina, SoyBean meal, as well as wheat germ .. so all-in-all, you're getting the benefits of wheat germ and then some .. the only downfall i can see is that if fed in large amounts, it can quickly dirty your water because more protein, more food being fed, more waste .. but as long as you have a good filter, it shouldn't be a problem .. and also, its not ideal in cold weather, but that isnt an issue for tropic weather ..

when in doubt, you can always mix the two .. its always good to give your koi a variety of foods, not just one type .. and dont forget you can always add treats like fruits, silk worm, shrimp, etc. inbetween also ..

Cheers
-t0an


Roger89
Koi Lover


Jun 9, 2007, 10:51 PM

Post #3 of 4 (694 views)
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Re: [Toan] Feeding wheat germ based pellets in tropical climate water [In reply to] Can't Post
Hi Toan,

Thanks for the reply. I was actually wondering because Hikari Hi-Growth uses wheat germ as their main ingredient. Anyway although some foods main ingredient is wheat germ their protein level is somewhat quite high. Maybe it's their other ingredient that is bringing up the amount of protein..

I did not understand what you meant by "since you're in the tropics, i think it would be ideal to feed them this .. its high in protein, high 30% - low 40% .. which is tremendously great for it helps growth rates a lot".

Regards.



Toan
Koi Lover


Jun 10, 2007, 4:27 PM

Post #4 of 4 (681 views)
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Re: [Roger89] Feeding wheat germ based pellets in tropical climate water [In reply to] Can't Post
hey Roger,
sorry about the confusion =\ .. you said in your earlier post that you live in the warm tropics , correct ?? .. and with warmer weathers, it's easier for koi to digest foods higher in protein because theres much more activity in the pond .. whereas if you were to feed them the same food in colder climate, it's much harder for them to digest because there isn't much activity in the cold, therefore they cant process the food as well .. and as far as growth rates , i have had a better history with foods higher in protein as compared to wheat germ or color enhancers ..
i have three ponds actually .. one for koi 12" and up ( large ) , one for 7" ~ 12" ( medium ) , and the last is for fingerlings .. and with fingerlings, i feed mines strictly growth enhancers ( Hikari Growth Performance to be exact ), which are high in protein .. and i've had koi grow way, way faster than the ones that were already in the medium pond .. i've grown fingerlings from 4" to about 7" in less than two months .. compared to koi in the medium pond, i feed color enhancers along with wheat germ and they seem to stay the same for those two months .. now i've changed the diets and growth rates have seemed to improve ..
so in short , some protein = good .. more protein = better .. foods that are higher in protein such as Growth Performance seem to help koi grow faster .. and because you live in warm weather, feeding foods high in protein is great because the koi are enduring much more activity, digesting the food as they 'play' ..
i must apologize in advance if im still unclear

Cheers
-t0an

 
 
 



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