Re: blackworms

["Mike Jacobs" <mjacobs2@tampabay.rr.com>]

Folks....as almost everyone has said, there are stories flying around
everywhere about the worms.  I would suspect that "most" of the "stories"
deal with 1) the old red tubiflex that was the nasty of the nasty.....but
those even weren't too bad if you would clean them EVERY day and when the
worms went bad just throw the rest away.  The "red tubiflex", as a culture,
it seemed would not last as long as the black.  I began using the "red
tubiflex" somewhere about the last 60's.....I was real glad to see the Black
worm come into the hobby......in Indiana they came into the hobby about
1969-70.  2) the black worms of course had the same reputation that the red
tubiflex........the black worm is not a "tubiflex", but some people still
call it the "black tubiflex".......is really a very clean culture if you
work very hard at it.......and it is a GREAT conditioning food!  Rumor:  It
carries all kinds of "junk" that kills the fish.  Fact:  Not according to me
but according to Barry Cooper, DVM and head of the Vet. school at Cornell
University.........collector of Nothobrancius in Africa, and one of the most
respected people in the killifish hobby will tell you that the black worm
DOES NOT CARRY ANYTHING THAT WILL GIVE FISHES DISEASES WHEN THEY ARE CLEANED
PROPERLY......Barry has sworn on that for the last 5-6 years that I have
know him.  Still even some of the killifish people still are telling people
that the blackworm will "kill" your fish........this man has really
researched the idea in a lab.

My thought on the idea is that indeed some fish will get a bloated
condition....not bloat.....after eating the black worms.  POSSIBLE
THOUGHT......NOT FACT BUT POSSIBLE THOUGHT........I think people don't ever
cut the worms up and the worms cannot be swallowed entirely by the fish and
trouble sets in.  Folks we learn from observing.......that's what I have
observed since I have started chopping up the blackworms when I give them to
apistos and smaller fish.  I have been using black worms consistently since
1970.......and I have lost a few fishes to that "bloat" condition but I
would bet a nickel that the intestines are physically being blocked instead
of a disease taking over......I know, the result is the same and therefore
SEE MIKE YOU STOOP!!!..........OK, but that comes to aquariology, not
diseases......try it for a while......take a few minutes extra and cut the
worms on a cutting board before feeding to apistos and smaller fish.  You
know even a fish gets "full".....and if there is still a worm all the way to
the gut and sticking out of their mouth when the brain signals to "stop, I
really don't want any more" there can be a problem cropping up here!

I could be all wet..........but I'm
trying.................!!!.....;-).................hey, you guys have a
great day........I'm on spring break!!!

Mike

Mike Jacobs
Center for Advanced Technologies
High School Math Instructor
St. Pete, Fl.
----- Original Message -----
From: "Rich Grenfell" <rgrenfell@snet.net>
To: <apisto@listbox.com>
Sent: Saturday, March 23, 2002 6:15 PM
Subject: Re: blackworms


>
>
> Never had any problems with em' i have used them for conditioning
> apistos, and raising baby discus. it is improtant not to overfeed them,
> but personally I think they are a great food
>
> Rich
>
>
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------
> This is the apistogramma mailing list, apisto@listbox.com.
> For instructions on how to subscribe or unsubscribe or get help,
> email apisto-request@listbox.com. apisto-digest@listbox.com also
available.
> Web archives at http://lists.thekrib.com/apisto
>




-------------------------------------------------------------------------
This is the apistogramma mailing list, apisto@listbox.com.
For instructions on how to subscribe or unsubscribe or get help,
email apisto-request@listbox.com. apisto-digest@listbox.com also available.
Web archives at http://lists.thekrib.com/apisto