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Bought a mouse to feed my piranha

5K views 42 replies 13 participants last post by  Diztrbd1 
#1 · (Edited)
Put him in an empty 20 gallon i had laying around. Problem is the piranha doesnt express an interest before the mouse gets tired of swimming and drowns. I had to rescue the mouse, and he is still alive until i figure out what to do
 
#3 ·
he is a cute little feller. Feeding him Crispix cereal and some banana this morning.
 
#7 ·
I just went to King Ed and picked out a mouse. I dont think they carry many species.

would it be better to feed them pinkies? just throw it in and let the fish sort it out?
 
#8 ·
I dont want a new pet! I am not buying a cage for this guy. He is a special treat for the piranha, and im not sure my landlord would approve of a type of pet that could escape and cause problems in the building.
 
#10 ·
His tail bothers you? lol
 
#11 ·
Feeding a live mouse to your fish just seems like a bad idea to me. It's a cruel death for the mouse, the mouse can end up injuring your fish, and it can make a big mess in your tank. We don't even feed our pet snake live mice.
 
#12 ·
Youtube Piranha Vs Mouse

There are many clips to watch

in the wild, your snake eats live prey. I fail to see the issue here.
 
#14 ·
No issue, just my opinion.

In the wild my snake would be in an open space, not confined in a 40 gallon area. We feed our snake frozen/thawed mice for his own safety.
 
#13 ·
double post
 
#15 ·
while some may not like the thought of a mouse being eaten it is in fact a food source what you choose to feed them is your gig , but i would say this, take the mouse back , go get a pinkie , and i would starve your fishies for a day or so before attempting a meal as large as this ,

also pamela is right there is a good chance that when the mouse is bitten it could rip your fish up , even potentially kill it , blind it ect ect . thats why i would try for a pinkie..

your not gonna get the responce from your rbp that your thinking though , your piranha wont act like a piranha untill it has some friends, and your bb doesnt count lol, i think there is a higher likely hood of your bb eating it
 
#16 ·
youre not gonna get the responce from your rbp that youre thinking though , your piranha wont act like a piranha untill it has some friends, and your bb doesnt count lol, i think there is a higher likelihood of your bb eating it
When I put the mouse in, the blackbelt was very interested and even nipped at it a few times, but didnt break the skin. The rbp didnt come near it afterwards, and the mouse got tired, started sinking and almost drowned. I had to step in and save it. I think I'll try starving them for a couple days and see what happens.
 
#19 ·
oh really? I thought RBPs were more aggressive.
 
#22 · (Edited)
You've been watching too many re-runs of the low budget cult film "Piranha".

RBP's may eat live in the wild, but they usually feed on dead, dying or injured animals which are a lot less likely to hurt them, or on other fish. The Vancouver Aquarium feeds their piranha live and dead fish (healthy feeders and also chunks of fish flesh). As others have pointed out, a single RBP won't exhibit the same feeding behavior that you see from a school like Mac's, and most of these fish have likely never seen a live mouse and are quite rightly wary about it because they don't know what it is. If you insist on feeding him to the fish, try killing the mouse quickly first to minimize damage to the fish and make sure there is some blood in the water. Frozen pinky mice are a better bet, or something like a chicken wing, keeping in mind that none of these are good as a staple diet and will cause all kinds of hell with your water and filters.

If you want to see something ripped apart, go to IPU Burnaby for the shark feeding. Risking your fish and torturing the mouse all to post a "cool" video on YouTube or for your own sick, juvenile entertainment is stupid for all the reasons stated above, but if you are going to do it I'd suggest not posting the vid on here. :mad:

Of course, another solution to the "bred for food" thing is to find a neighbour with a cat...
 
#23 ·
I wont be filming it
 
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#25 ·
lol at the 1978 movie Piranha.... not that Jaws (film) hadn't already created a fear of swimming in the ocean, Piranha came out and made me a bit worried about swimming in lakes and rivers when I was younger lol
Phoenix, in the event your fish don't ever eat the mouse ...before he drowns anyway lol lemme know and I'll take him off your hands.
Also it's "bred" not "bread" :p
 
#29 ·
Phoenix, in the event your fish don't ever eat the mouse ...before he drowns anyway lol lemme know and I'll take him off your hands.
Also it's "bred" not "bread
Deal.... and thank you, I wont be making that mistake again :)
 
#27 ·
now that my rbp are settled in there getting nastier and nastier , feeding used to be hit or miss for excitement , now that they have a regular feeding schedule and are more comfortable with there surroundings they are really starting to show pack feeding its pretty neat, I will post a vid tomorow of mine eating a big ole hunk of tilapia and that will provide piranha feeding frenzy entertainment for the day anyways, i would have posted today but i already fed them..

and they made a big ole mess, which is the downside to entertaining feedings, when its pellet time , no clean up which is nice,
 
#28 ·
they made a big ole mess, which is the downside to entertaining feedings, when its pellet time , no clean up which is nice,
You know my RBP doesnt make a mess! I buy him feeders every weekend, and he doesnt leave ONE piece behind. he finishes every last scrap.

Well if u change your mind and want to keep the little guy I will b selling some hamster/mice cages and accesories......just saying :D
LOL
 
#31 ·
the mess phoenix is caused by them all latching on and trying to go in 7 directions at once, they go around after the melee and clean up but by that time the filters , overflow sump all end up with chunks and small its and bits and thats how you get a amonia spike , by not doing massive frequent water changes those hunks could become toxic, thats why a filter sock on your downpipe is a good idea takes 5 seconds each day and no big unwanted debris gets in the sump.

feeding small pieces is a better way to feed ... however 7 big ole fishies ripping a hunk of meat is a lot of fun to watch, when they go.... buddy they go, just a bunch of teeth and silver flashes ... pretty neat, so either buy some more rbp's and rehome the bb, or you could find a pack of rbp's near your guys size and make a trade for a better tank mate , OR.... whenever we meet up one day i'll take your rbp and i will swap you for a flowerhorn, or another fish i have on hand whatever tickles your fancy at the time, and your loner can join my pack.....
your call , good excuse to come to the island..
 
#32 · (Edited)
Keri, it isnt cruel to the mouse, he was bred to be food. You only think its cruel because you think the mouse is cute.

And you dont think freezing a mouse to death isnt cruel either? come on. we own meat-eating fish.

I expected this kind of response on facebook, but not here. We're all supposed to understand eachother because we all love to care for our fish.
 
#37 · (Edited)
Keri, it isnt cruel to the mouse, he was bred to be food. You only think its cruel because you think the mouse is cute.
And you dont think freezing a mouse to death isnt cruel either? come on. we own meat-eating fish.
I expected this kind of response on facebook, but not here. We're all supposed to understand eachother because we all love to care for our fish.
lol Phoenix, now your starting to sound heartless. I have to disagree ....they are bred for several reasons & being a pet is one of them. They are not bred just to be food. Besides that, If you were bred for food would you just accept that?? Safe to say if you knew that was your destiny, you'd be doing everything possible to escape. And it is cruel. Maybe you should take a swim in a pool with a couple hungry great whites and see if you still feel it isn't a cruel way to go lol and as for the frozen mouse thing.... well any unnecessary death for any living creature sucks no matter how it's brought on. Though I would still rather be frozen to death before being ripped apart piece by piece. I believe they are sedated before the freezing process anyway, so thats pretty painless.
And though this is not facebook , Im sure a huge majority of the members have facebook, for that matter we are on facebook lol so you can probably expect the same reactions here lol except without all the foul language. Understanding each other is one thing, but people are going to have their own feelings on certain things... and most likely voice it lol Again, some people are alot more compassionate about animals, than others. This might be a site for fish lovers, but alot of fish lovers love all animals and will look at this as a cruel act. BTW Keri has bunch of snakes and is like the head honcho of the BC Reptile Club lol.....safe to say she knows a little about feeder rats and mice as she has meat eaters too lol.
Just because some things happen naturally in the wild doesn't mean they have to react the same way in a domesticated environment. I dunno anyone who is feeding birds and mice to their cats intentionally. If they were ,it would only be for entertainment , again. Thats probably why most people frown on using a live mouse ....is that it's more about the "entertainment" factor and the fact that the mouse is being somewhat tortured while your waiting for your fish to eat it. Anyway as I said...to each his own

lol Kim and Claudia
 
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