| mashed peas and garlic?
while researching constipation in fish, i have seen many references to the use of mashed peas. do these peas need to be fresh or would it be appropriate to use a canned variety? can i also assume that peas would be a suitable addition to my fish's vegetable intake? in my case, i have just one tiger barb that has a fat belly. it is still very active and doesn't seem stressed. i feed all the fish twice daily on a varied diet of several different brands of tropical flakes, freeze-dried tubifex and brine shrimp. the latter two only once a week each. so the flakes really represent 80 to 90 percent of what they eat. i only feed them a small pinch of flakes at a time. (10-15 small flakes) once or twice a week i put some romaine lettuce in the tank too. i have pretty much ruled out overfeeding and holding eggs but here's some water parameters...
amm-0
no2-0
no3-<20
gh-75
kh-180
ph-7.8
temp-79 F
the tank was set up at christmas and has been cylcled for two or three weeks now. all of these values have remained stable since. i have been doing a 40 percent water change every five days since the cycle completed. i use aqueon tap water conditioner at the directed dosage of 1tsp per ten gallon. my tap water comes complete with about 5 to 10 ppm of nitrAtes so it only takes five days for that level to reach 20 ppm.
also, i read that the use of garlic additives are effective in treating internal infections. i haven't seen any signs of disease in my tank, but i understand that garlic can be used preventitavely. are there certain products i should use? or perhaps i could make a puree from fresh garlic i have in my pantry? in general, i find myself curious about doing other food prep for my fish as well. so any leads to good resources for that information would be appreciated.
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29g High Tech Planted w/ Rainbows, Platies, Cories, and Shrimp
12g freshwater w/ 1 blue paradise gourami | 
