FOOD AND FEEDING 



of worms and other living creatures; but when this cannot be procured or 

 its condition is such that it may be unclean, or that parasites or disease 

 fungi might be introduced with it; then surrogates in the form of prepared 

 foods should be fed. One of the first requirements in feeding artificial food 

 is frequent change of diet and care taken that only such quantities are feed 

 which will be at once consumed, and not a particle left over 15 minutes 

 after feeding. 



Substitutes for the natural live food are prepared of the following ani- 

 mal and vegetable substances: — Scalded and dried earthworms; lean raw 

 or dried meat and liver; fish roe and flesh; ant-eggs; raw and boiled eggs; 

 milk curds; dried daphnia; dried prawns (fresh or saltwater shrimp) or 

 lobster; rice wafers, rice flour, pea flour, fine corn meal, dry or boiled oat 

 meal, vermicelli, egg noodles, water crackers, dog biscuit and other hard 

 biscuit. For very young fishes the best substitute foods are rice flour 

 sprinkled on the surface of the water, and oat meal broth. Blood has also 

 been tried but has been found to be objectionable, except for pond feeding. 



Raw Meat Food. Any kind of lean meat may be finely scraped, 

 slightly rinsed in cold water and carefully fed to the fishes. 



Earthworm Food. The worms should be kept a few days in moist 

 moss, to clean themselves, then immersed a few minutes in scalding water, 

 quickly rinsed with cold water, finely chopped, and either immediately 

 carefully fed or dried for future use. 



Dried Liver Food. Liver is boiled and either dried in a low heat 

 and scraped from the piece when perfectly dry; or finely minced and dried. 

 Care must be exercised in its feeding. 



Fish Roe and Flesh Foods. The roe of the sea-bass, smelt and shad 

 is an excellent fish food. It should be freed from the membrane, parboiled, 

 dried at low temperature, and fed either in this form or rubbed into and 

 fed with boiled oat meal. Finely dessicated boiled fish flesh, prepared in 

 similar manner, is also used. 



Ant Egg Food. The pupae of ants, known as ant eggs, may be ob- 

 tained of dealers, and if crushed and mixed with oat meal or with boiled 

 corn meal, salt, and the yolks of hard-boiled eggs, make a most nutritious 

 and readily digestible food. They may also be fed in the dry state. 



Egg Food. The yolk of boiled eggs, mixed with any of the farinace- 

 ous foods, preferably oat meal, is an often used food. Also granulated 

 water crackers into which beaten raw eggs are mixed and thoroughly dried, 

 make a good food. 



Mixed Foods. Milk curds, corn meal, boiled rice flour and eggs, 

 with their finely crushed shells, together with hard biscuit or water-crackers, 

 make a nutritious food. It should be perfectly dry, and crumbled when fed. 



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