Feeder Fish For Turtles: What You Need to Know

Turtles love fish, which is one reason why feeder fish are popular. However, you should know what to look for when choosing turtle feeder fish. Some common fish, like goldfish, are not good for your turtle. Stick to low fat fish with few bones, like Killifish, Platies, and Guppies. It’s good to know what’s safe and what’s not for your turtle to eat.

Feeder Fish Basics

First, let’s take a look at what feeder fish are. Feeder fish are simply fish that are commonly fed to turtles. These are typically fish that are easy to raise in captivity, and reproduce quickly. These factors make them inexpensive, so turtle owners can afford to purchase them as food for their pet.

What to Consider When Choosing Turtle Feeder Fish

When choosing feeder fish for your turtle, there are several things you should avoid. This includes fish that are high in fat, contain a lot of bones, and wild fish.

High Fat

Just like humans, turtles need the right amount of fat in their diet. A diet too high in fat can lead to vitamin E deficiency, which is a big health concern for turtles.

An occasional fatty fish won’t harm your turtle. However, if you are feeding them fatty fish often, it could lead to health issues.

Too Many Bones

Bones can also pose a danger to your turtle. Turtles bite into the fish, and swallow them in pieces. If the fish has lots of bones, these can injure your turtle.  The bones can cause cuts in their throat or stomach as the turtle tries to swallow them. They can also get caught in their throat, causing them to choke.  A few fish have bones or spines on the outside, which can also injure your turtle.  The biggest concern with bony fish is that the damage is often internal. You may not realize your turtle is injured until it’s too late.

Thiaminase

Thiaminase is an enzyme that prevents the absorption of thiamine, or vitamin B 1. If your turtle eats fish that are high in Thiaminase, they will develop a thiamine deficiency.  One fish with Thiaminase won’t hurt your turtle. However, if they eat them frequently, it becomes problematic.

Wild Fish

It can be tempting to feed wild fish to your turtle. Perhaps you have a pond nearby, and you can simply catch feeder fish in a net. Why not bring them home for your turtle? Bacteria and parasites are major concerns for your turtle, and wild fish often contain them. Commercially raised fish are raised under strict conditions, which greatly reduces the risk of bacteria and parasites.

Fish Your Turtle Can’t Catch or Eat

Lastly, you should avoid fish that are too large or fast for your turtle. Turtles are at home in the water, and can move fairly quickly. However, they are not as fast as some fish.  If you place fish that are too fast for your turtle in the tank, they won’t be able to catch them. If the fish are left in the tank, they will begin to breed. This can quickly become a problem, because many fish reproduce very quickly.  You should also avoid fish that are too large for your turtle. If they do catch them, they will have a difficult time eating them. These fish include neon tetras, and tiger barb.

Which Fish to Avoid

Let’s take a quick look at some of the fish you should avoid, because of the reasons listed above.

Feeder Fish to Avoid Include:

• Goldfish
• Fathead minnows
• Swordtails
• Carp
• Shiners

The Best Turtle Feeder Fish

By now, you probably know that the best fish for your pet turtle will be low in fat, with few bones, and no Thiaminase.  The good news is there are plenty of feeder fish at your local pet store that meet all of these criteria.

The best turtle feeder fish are:

• Killifish
• Guppies
• Platies

Larger turtles can also enjoy:

• Bluegills
• Bass
• crappies

Alternatives to Feeder Fish

Feeder fish are beneficial to turtles, but they aren’t a necessity. If you don’t want to give your turtle feeder fish, you do have other options. These include worms, insects, and snails.

Worms

Worms are a great choice for turtles. You can feed them earthworms, mealworms, and super worms. They are high in fat, so they shouldn’t be fed to your turtle often. Save them for an occasional treat.

Insects

Insects can be fed to your turtle often as part of a balanced diet. These include crickets, beetles, and grasshoppers.

Snails and Shrimp

Snails are another interesting feeder food for turtles. Turtles eat snails in the wild. They provide protein, calcium, potassium, and vitamin A.  Types of snails suitable for turtles include apple, bladder, pond, garden and nerite snails.  Shrimp suitable for turtles include ghost shrimp and cherry shrimp. They provide healthy fats, calcium, and other nutrients.

Dried vs. Live Food

Insects, shrimp, and worms can easily be found dried as well as live. It may be tempting to feed your turtle only dried food. It’s certainly more convenient, and easier if you are squeamish about handling live insects.

Dried or canned food is fine to include in your turtle’s diet. However, feeding your turtle live food is essential. Live food encourages your turtle to exercise, and stimulates their appetite. Dried foods should not completely replace live food for your turtle.

Do These Alternatives Carry Parasites?

Just like fish, you’ll need to purchase these from a reputable source. Wild insects and amphibians can carry parasites. Unfortunately, feeder insects aren’t completely immune. Studies have shown that feeder insects can also carry parasites that are harmful to turtles.

This comes down to how they are raised. Improper practices, including feeding insects feces from pet stores or animal carcasses, lead to parasite infection. Feeder insects produced in clean facilities with proper feeding practices are at a very low risk of parasites.

How to Feed Turtles Feeder Fish

Most experts recommend feeding your turtle in a separate tank, particularly when feeding them live food. A small tank with filtered water that’s the same temperature as their standard tank is all you really need.

Turtles are not prim eaters. They rip apart their food. They will often allow food to come out of their mouth.  This creates a lot of small pieces that will float around the tank. This can cause some cleanliness issues when you are feeding them plant-based foods.

It’s a bigger problem when feeding them live feeder fish. When they eat the fish, pieces of raw fish will get into the water. This will quickly make the water disgusting and smelly.   Another concern is that the turtle may struggle to catch the fish. If your turtle has a nice large tank with plenty of interesting items, these give the fish plenty of places to hide.

This isn’t always a bad thing. It can give your turtle exercise. However, if the turtle doesn’t eventually eat the fish, you may wind up with many more than you intended. All it takes is two fish to create many fish.

What Should a Turtle’s Diet Consist Of?

To understand what you should feed your turtle, consider what they would eat in the wild. You may think turtles in the wild eat a lot of fish. This isn’t true.  Turtles do eat fish in the wild. However, wild fish are difficult for turtles to catch. They are not a staple of their diet. Instead, they are a rare treat.  What do turtles eat in the wild, when they can’t catch a fish? Most turtles are omnivores, which means they eat both plants and animals.

Most turtles begin their lives by being more carnivorous, and eat more vegetables as they get older.  An adult turtle typically needs 50% of its diet to come from plants. Another 25% should come from commercially produced turtle pellets, and the other 25% should come from live animal protein.  Remember, this can vary based on the turtle species, so be sure you know what your turtle needs.

How Often to Feed Your Turtle Feeder Fish

You should feed your turtle feeder fish no more than once a week. Typically, once or twice a month is fine, particularly for adult turtles. This applies to most turtles, but carnivorous or herbivaceous turtles will have different needs.

Turtle Feeder Fish FAQs

Can you keep fish in a tank with turtles?

This depends on the turtle, and the fish. Carnivorous or omnivorous turtles may prey on fish in their tank. Since your turtle only needs a limited amount of fish in their diet, this isn’t an ideal feeding method. Herbivorus turtles or omnivores who are adults may not prey on fish in the tank, particularly larger fish.

How often should I feed my turtle?

Juvenile turtles must be fed at least once a day, preferably more often. At 6 months, they can be fed once a day. Adult turtles can be fed every 2 to 3 days.

Can turtles live in tap water?

No. Tap water contains fluoride and chlorine, which are harmful for turtles. Use filtered or dechlorinated water for your turtle’s tank.