₦airaland Forum

soft777:
WATER MANAGEMENT : This is a very important aspect of fish farming because it determines the growth and wellness of your fish for maximum profits .
We have to know that water management start with preparation of your pond. Use the methods i mentioned in my earlier topic using formalin and water to soak the concrete pond for 3 hours and using a plastic bowl to take the water mixed with formalin to splash all the walls of your pond, Then after 3 hours rainse it with salt and water using same splashing method .NOTE the water and formalin solution should be 1/4 of your pond.
For earthen pond use the agric lime and chicken manure method ,explained in my earlier post .
Having done that the next step is to test your water of its physical and chemical properties .
A good fish farmer should have a water test kit ,if you dont have one then ,its like a crop farmer without hoe or cutlass
The major things that determine a good water quality are PH , TEMPERATURE AND DISSOLVED OXYGEN:
When u follow the right amount of these parameters strictly, then you will have a successful harvest.

PH:
Catfish require the range 6.5 to 8 ph for optimal result.
Your ph can be corrected using simple but effective materials, in concrete ponds ,use crushed oyster shell by placing them in a sack and place under the ponds water at the point were your water inlet enters your pond .Other shells that can be used are periwinkle shell the ones the calabar call insam , snail shells and palm cannel shell can also be used to correct your water ph.
You can also use lemmon grass or elephant grass ,but cutting fresh grass ,wash it and put them in a sack and place them under the pond were new and fresh water enters your pond or at you water inlet .This 2 simple material help balance your ph from acidic to neutral. because they are natural buffers.This will help you reduce cost ,instead of buying the chemical buffers ,which sometimes you have to be vigilant with.
For ponds with high basic water,though its not common to have high basic water. Most water problems are acidic but for those with high basic water , cut some woods that are decaying or tree backs ,then cut them into smaller pieces and put in a sack placed under your water .this is also a cheap and effective way of reducing cost in your water ph problems
For best result with your fish make sure you check your water ph 1 time a day mostly in the afternoon to get an accurate value of your water ph for concrete ,plastic and tarpaulin users
For earthen ponds users , water ph is more and easily maintained by using the agric lime and chicken dry poo .and this can last till the end of a cycle but still try to check your ph once a week , especially those who get there source of water from nearby streams, because flowing streams tends to have fluctuate in ph rapidly, due to different human activities done on open streams.

Temperature should be maintained between 26 degree to 30 degree not that catfish can not grow at lower temperatures but these particular range of temperatures give them the best chance to have good metabolism ,breaks down there feed better for flesh and weight .
How to increase your pond temperature in time of cold using concrete pond ,is to close your pond with a tarpaulin , using a dark color tarpaulin, so it can help absorb heat from the environment help retain the heat in the pond and make the pond dark at same time warm...,which the cats like ...
To reduce heat in your pond like some temperature in the north ,is to try to open your ponds tarpaulin cover and try to do partial water change in your pond.
For earthen pond users during hot season try to allow fresh water from streams wells or bore hole in to your ponds .And to increase temperature like raining or cold season , add more chicken manure in your pond to allow or to facilitate the growth of algae and other aquatic plants in your pond so they can form some reasonable amount of shade and help keep the water under the pond warm.
Oxygen in your pond both in concrete and earthen pond are increased when you do regular water change or flow through .
Having get all these right, there are some physical problems that deteriorate your pond water quality ,there are some water that looks milky and has lots of particles , these are due to underground pollution .This type of water need to be diverted from your source of water first ,into a filter tank .This tank can be plastic like the type robonski posted some month backwards during the hatchery set up . In this tank add a foam and gravel with charcoal in the tank for the water to pass through , Its called natural filtration before the filtered water can be channelled to your pond inlet by gravity through connecting pvc pipes .FOR THOESE COMING FOR TRAINING IT WILL BE DEMONSTRATED FOR YOU TO SEE HOW IT WORKS.
For stagnant concrete pond users , place a bag containing crushed oyster shell, charcoal and granite let the quantity be 3 to 5 kg crushed oyster shell and half the sack bag containing charcoal and granite .. to help condition your water maintains your ph and reduce the ions concentration in your stagnant pond .
For all earthen ponds users try to get what is called a water hyacinth.
This is a water plant that grows freely in lagoons and most earthen pond . When you have just 2 water hyacinth, in 7days it can multiply to 100 ,and this water plant makes your pond self clearifying because its a big nitrogen eater in your ponds ,so it clears your water of excess nitrogen in you ponds ,making it ver clear.FOR THOSE COMING FOR THE TRAINING; 2 FREE WATER HYACINTH WILL BE GIVEN TO YOU TO REPLANT IN YOUR POND:
Another great challenges earthen ponds users face are scums ,these can be formed by bad water from nearby streams , or over pollution from many un eaten feed . Or when u have too much algae bloom . Sometimes you see a brown thick layer like mud and silver shining particles on your earthen pond which is a sign of too much ion concentration in your pond soil .This is totally bad for your fish health because scums blocks the exchange of atmospheric oxygen with your water surface,so a quick and effective way to remove it .
Get a pvc pipe 1inch, tie a rope or twine to the two ends of the 1 inch pvc pipe.
Make sure the length of the pvc is same as the width of your pond .
This process have to be carried out with two people were by a person holds one end and another holds the other end , and gently lay the pipe on the pond .NOTE the pond outlet is to be open when carrying out this process so as to allow the scum flow out .
Both persons ,each on opposite sides of the pond will hold to the twine .......TO BE CONTINUED
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Boss, thank you again for ur effective and concise write up, God will always increase you in knowledge. The major problem I seems to be having in my farm is the seemingly waste of feed which makes my water to be black and thick although the smell is still normal, the funniest thing is I pumped the water out to 1/4 and pump a fresh water from the borehole into it and the water is still black, I did dis couple of days ago and have been pumping water from the borehole into it before this time for hours sometimes up to 6hours, although am not experiencing mortality and they are eating but am not sure if it's not affecting their growth and the issue of hyacinth, is it not going to be competing with oxygen with the fishes? Please how much is the complete test kit ( dt can test ammonia, dissolved oxygen, ph, turbidity etc) sold for?

Well, I will like to nominate Soft777 as the leader, long live AFFON.

robonski15:
Chilanfarms has said it all.. Hybrid weighs better than clarias in the long run, but they are not rugged like clarias which makes hybrid susceptible to diseases quickly than clarias.. Feeding rate of the hybrid is higher than clarias which means u might spend more on feeding..

Hybrid doesn't gurantee success also clarias it all boils down to proper management and technical know- how.

I beg to disagree with u sir, clarias are more susceptible to diseases than hybrid as chillanfarm farm said Buh clarias grow faster (I mean they are early starter while hybrid takes a while before getting bigger) than hybrid while hybrid prefer fleshy feeds has they are more carnivorous than clarias to make them grow faster, dis is from my own experience and it might be d nature of my land, however both are good if u know their
advantages and disadvantages.

noblefarm:
U are right abt d fish meal price. U said u not using the fish meals nd blood too so what do u use as replacement
Thanks

I mean I don't use 65% percent, I use either 72% for small fishes and clupid for grow out and of course mix with some percentage of blood as Oga soft 777 has thought.

soft777:
HOW TO COMPOUND AND PELLET INGREDIENTS : After successfully identifying which ingredients are cheaper in your location , then the next step is to know at what percentage in kg will u need to mix the ingredients up, to get the right amount of balance diet for your fish.
first you need to know , the crude protein needed by your fish to get to 1kg , in the shortest time possible ,with the lowest fcr.This will automatically determine your profit.let me elaborate for further understanding , i want us to look at it in another way, since feed takes almost 70 percent of our cost of production , we want to see how we can take these cheap waste ingredients put them together in kg to give us same amount in kg in our fish .
What we do in fish farming is just converting feed which are cheap ingredients not really needded by humans and sold in little amount to something more needed by humans that is fish, and more valuable and higher in price. So the lower the amount in money of quality feed ingredients the better or bigger your profits.
Now having this in mind, i will elaborate further , when compounding your feed select the cheapest ingredients in your location from each of the nutrients and compound them together : In money term , i will use kwara state ,someone i helped with formulation on my whats app, gave me some rough estimate of price ingredients in his locality ... CARBOHYDRATE : maize 80 naira per kg , cassava flour 70 naira per kg , indomie 90 naira per kg , PLANT PROTEIN : soya is 140 naira per kg , potatoe leaves meal is 40 naira per kg , groundnut meal 120 naira per kg , ANIMAL PROTEIN : blood meal 70 naira per kg , fish meal 150 naira per kg , chicken offal 100 naira per kg , FATS AND OIL : groundnut oil 50 naira , pkc 40 naira :
Now using this price list, you can now look carefully taking each cheapest ingredients in each nutrients and compound , having in mind that your catfish needs about 30 to 35 percent crude protein to get good growth and fingerlings and smaller fish needs 40 to 45 crude to grow .NOTE , if u are blessed to be close to a chicken processing plant were you can get chicken offal at wholesale and cheap amount , then you can feed your fish at higher crude protein even up to 60 percent , to increase there growth and get to 1kg size in even 3 month 2 weeks , lets go back to our calculation . from this particular list ...CARBOHYDRATE ,i will take cassava at 70 naira , for PLANT PROTEIN ,i take potatoes leave meal but for this calculation i will take soya meal , why because i know most people get soya easily, so soya 140 naira per kg , : ANIMAL PROTEIN we take blood meal which is 70 naira per kg, ANOTHER THING TO NOTE : if you are not using fish meal make sure u get fish oil to spray your feed after pelleting to make the feed more palatable for your fish to eat, because most fish tend not to like blood meal, but when you mix it with other ingredients and pellet ,spray with fish oil ,they will eat ruggedly.
Blood meal has the highest crude protein more than the costly fish meal , but u dont need to add too much blood meal , just because it makes fish grow big and fast in a shorter time .you have to mix at the required percentage.
Lets continue FATS AND OIL :pkc 40 naira per kg
With these prices we can now do our calculations , cassava 70 naira , soya 140 naira , blood meal 70 naira, pkc 40naira now if we get the average amount per kg , adding all the 4 prices = 70 plus 70 plus 40 plus 140 = 320 then divide by 4 we get 80 naira means we get the range of 80 naira per kg . that is if we are adding all the ingredients in equal percentages which i personally do when am compounding finisher feed , for my fish that are close to market . NOTE BY , yellow corn and pkc will help increase your fish weight.
But this is not finished , the 80 naira per kg is for the four major ingredients so adding vitamin premix ,fish oil , floxinor , salt dpc etc , is about 20 naira average . So 80 plus 20 will give us 100 naira per kg , so if u are making 100 kg feed you need 100 naira multiply by 100kg feed this will amount to 10 thousand naira for 100kg feed.
Lets say grounding, pellet and drying will give u about 3k so total u should be in the range of 13 thousand for complete 100kg finisher catfish feed . This is finisher feed , for growers feed you increase the plant and animal protein most especially your animal protein ,
Instead of that ratio 25 :25:25:25 for finisher , for growers feed its a little more expensive, because of the more expensive protein ingredient you need to increase .
So for growers i want us to know that we dont need pkc when making growers feed ,pkc is better when you are doing finisher feed , so as not to retard or slow your fish growth, because pkc will make your fish gain much weight , without flesh gain . This will lead to stunted growth, because pkc give high energy .
But you can increase protein as u want , you can even feed only protein if you know how to and have a very cheap source to buy , but i will give a general ratio, increase your protein either plant or animal protein to replace the pkc.
To know which of the protein to replace the pkc in growers better and more economical
From this our particular list the blood meal, animal protein is cheaper but because for every 100 kg feed i dont advice more than 30 kg blood meal , so its either we replace the pkc with other chaeper animal or plant protein , so if u have the cheaper local fish meal , you can use , its ok , or buy some cheaper plant protein .
So for reducing your total cost of production especially for medium scale farm from 5k monthly grow out to larger scale fish farms , you can buy your ingredients in bulk,i mean wholesale , they will sell at reduced price or if you fish in acomunity of many fish farmers you can form a group and buy fish feed ingredients in bulk . And you can have a mini feed mill, it will further cut that 12,000 naira for 100 kg feed to 9000 naira .
This is why larger farms maximize profit and even sell cheaper but no problems by GOds grace everybody will get there, with determination and focus , taking it step by step growth in fish farming is sure . A journey of a thousand mile start with a step.
Now lets compare prize differences between local and foreign feed .
Now local feed 100 kg with crude protein 35 to 40 percent gives 12k naira to compound , and a foreign feed with 5k average price for 15 kg will give approximately 33 naira for 100kg , looking at the difference in price we have about 20 thousand naira different .
For someone with high capacity farm that feed more than 100 kg feed weekly. Think when you have to save extra 20 k weekly as extra profit.
Now for further reduction; that can make your 100 kg feed amount reduce to 7 thousand naira from 12 thousand naira.
I will give more elaborations when we start our trainnings in my farm from febuary . Things like how to personally turn free cassava root to carbohydrate , how to process that unwanted free algea to plant protein and reduce your feed cost , how to process that free duck weed in your pond to replace plant protein, how to culture non smelling maggot to replace animal protein , i mean odourless maggot , and how to make semi floating feed and gelatine based feed ...In fact gelatin based feed can reduce ur cost more further to 6 to 5 k nira for 100 kg feed , because you need no pelleting no drying and it floats on your ponds , if you are interested in all these and live demonstration a 1 day workshop in my farm weekly , will be organised , from febuary 2016 and inetrested persons farmers or co-operations will gain more in feeding , hatching , super intensive system, fish processing , pond construction , nursery best managements etc . Its a 1 day fish total package . i will announce starting date very soon and you can always call to reserve weekly, from febuary thank you
Any questions on feed here , i will gladly answer thank you , later tonight i will post the last sub topic on ( FEEDING WHEN AND HOW ) STAY TUNED GOD BLESS!!!!!!

My boss, more grease to your elbow, now and always. Want to point out that fish meal cannot be sold at N150 anywhere, 72% is 600, 68% is like 500 although am not using it, clupid fish is 420 per kg and all dis Fishmeal have different Fishmeal concentration, is dt not a factor in considering ingredients? As in choosing an ingredient with respect to its concentration. Another point is d side effects of some of this ingredients for example bloodmeal, I heard it's not easily digestible for the fishes and can eventually cause death, however the general idea of the fish formulation is gotten, just feel to point out this ringing questions in my head.

robonski15:
Hello, we are sorry about your order it was made with the former manager, the first batch has been shipped out to people that booked in advance with cash.. The mistake he made was not informing you from the onset that an advance amount is needed for the sales dept to record your order and deliver on time, of which we have made it mandatory ... we are deeply sorry for this inconvenience.. How best can i reach you to follow up on your order??

Can we still make our orders through the phone number you gave initially or not and all former orders made with the old manager without advance payment are null and void

chilanfarms:
# Thank God they are eating well, pls give dem quality feed till like 3months b4 u move to cheap feeds or local feeds pls, 4000X4 fishes is not a small investment.... God will continue to bless ur custom offier n you dt is on ground... #Note for table size ur pond is not deep enough, @least 6ft deep n 5ft water level...

Really, so if it is not 5ft depth of water, it's not going to get to table size?

robonski15:
Newly successfully spawned heterobrancus to produce the hybrids..

Call now to place your orders 07043941307

Oga Robonski, I called ur manager yesterday to place order of 1500 from Ilorin, he said d quantity is small and can not be supplied even though am ready to share the transport fair as indicated on of ur post. I want if it's d instruction you gave him cos if it is, it's not fair to upcoming farmers who can't afford large quantity, please try correct dt please.

soft777:
Mr lamude23 thanks for the question, but am very much correct and on point. May be you did not understand my write up . Let me elaborate . A square meter is just the size of those white plastic table used in parties , you cant calculate a quare meter without multiplying depth ; for example a pond of 10 by 15 and depth 4ft , MULTIPLY the length breath and width divde by 3 and you get the total square meter in your pond . Using this standard pond as an example, 10 by 15 by 4 = 600 cubic meter, then divide by 3, you get 200 square meter . So it implies that in this pond size, you will get 200 square meter . So for standard flow through system, using 5 fish , this stocking rate or density amounts to 5 multiply by your total squqre meter 200. This gives 1000 fishes, and it implies that , in a pond of 10 by 15 by 4 ft you can stock 1000 fish to grow out and you can stock higher if your market target is mellange , using standard method . But note , we have different types of system you can operate in your farm ; STANDARD SYSTEM , INTENSIVE SYSTEM and SUPER INTENSIVE SYSTEM. Personally, i operate superintensive system to maximize the full usage of my ponds and i record almost five times profits on a particullar pond. If you want to know how you can get this system or any other system with effective yield . Mr lamude 23 sir, u can talk to me on my whats app for a private chart GODBLESS

What is ur what's app no please?

soft777:
STOCKING . Firstly, to get your fingerlings, make sure that you are awear of the date the fingerlings or juvenile were hatched, to avoid some bad hatcheries selling 3 months old runts to you as fingerlings or selling 4 month old runts as juvenile .A fish farmer first failure or progress is quality of fingerlings, because no matter how u feed runts , they will never grow , buy fro reputable hatcheries no mater the distance for example like the way Mr robonski is taking us through his hatchery processes from day one till now with almost daily update . Any secretive hatchery , please you should have a second taught before buying , also try to see the brood stock used , at lease brood stock should be not less than 1.8 kg for fast growing fingerlings and they should be at minimum a year old . because to me bigger brood stock hartche bigger fries thats law of GENETICS . A good fish at 1 year if not up to 1.8 kg minimum , what type of fingerlings you expect from such fish . Transporting your fingerlings require good technique because when u stock weak and stressed fingerlings u ,may loose 30 to 40 percent of your stock the first 3 days without knowing it , and if u are using earthen ponds , where u cant see the floor of your pounds , many fingerlings die due to stress and settle at the bottom of your pounds. Therefore thinking your fish have been stolen by your staff , but at sorting or sales u discover u have nothing in your ponds .you start to think it was stolen or they canibalise . If not properly managed your lost is two ways , you will lost your fish and lost also money for feed because for example, you think , you stocked 1000 fishes in your pond and feed budget will be 1000 not knowing you are feeding 400 or 500 so u lost more money by buying feed for 1000, while you are actually feeding 500 that is double lost. BASIC facts for transporting you fish . I will use our local way of transporting because there are lots of advanced way of transporting fish but most of these facilities are not readily available in nigeria.. Our loccal way of transporting using a 50 liters dark plastic , sow a sack round your rubber plastic to avoid external heat through the surface of the plastic, the sack helps insulate your plastic and keep water in your plastic cool and temperture constant meaning ,YOU will not have a fast rise or low in ur temperature change , use mostly black colour plastic , cause , dark colour helps retain heat and makes inside the holding tank dark which catfish like better , giving them an environment suitable for them , when transporting short distance like 1 to 2 hours add little anti stress in the water to calm them before adding little palm oil on the surface to retain oxygen .. but for long distance travel 3 HOURS ABOVE . Please do not use red oil, use the oily multivitamin this does 2 things . 1 , it works as an oil on the surface of the transport water to retain oxygen at the same time it slowly sip in to the water and add multivitamins in the water which in turn gives your fish nesessary vitamins needed to help against stress and imune over bacteria that will be building up in this tight enclosure ,it generally help your fish through out the long journey, note palm oil, multivitamin should be added in very little quantity so as not to pollute the water. PREPARATION OF WATER BEFORE TRANSPORT : The transport water must be the same as the water used in rearing the fingerlings to avoid sharp change in water chemistry. Skip feeding a day before to avoid the fingerlings vommiting there food, due to mechanical and environmental change stress . All plastic containing water should be well cleaned using formaline either new or used plastic .
Aerated or oxygenated before adding ur fish , before fish are added aerate the transport water 1 to 2 hours for good qxygen. Saturated water before adding fish and oil ... on arrival to your farm make sure u check the ph and temperature of transport water and your pond water , to make sure the temprature diffrence are not more than plus or minus 2 degree diffrence and ph should not be more than ph 1 plus or minus diffrence . Gently add water from the pound to your transport water for better acclamitization of your fish , for earthen pounds users, i advice u have an holding tank either wooden plastic or concrete put the fingerlings there for 3 days to acclamitise them better with your pound water . treat them with anti stress first day and next day with formaline bath to reduce any bacteria that must have build up during the transport , before sending them to the main pounds to be used . This will help you monitor your fish ,cause if first 3 days they dont die due to trasnport stress then you are good to go and you are sure of the number of fingerlings which effectively determine your amount of feed . Note always ask for 10 percent mortality, for your fingerlings from your hatchery . Please dont start to count or sort imediately they arrive that will subject them to more stress after undergoing transport stress , this process may give u disaster . Sort or count 2 weeks after they are comfortable in there new home , STOCKING DENSITY :: For flow throug u can stock 5 fish per square meter and for stagnant method range of 2 to 4 , it highly depends on how long u change your water and and type of feed , note floating feed pollute water less and locall pollute more ,,, GOD bless

Soft 777, are we not making a mistake in dis stocking density, I you say 5 per meter square, dt means a 3m x 3m will hold only 45 fishes cos ( 3*3*5=45). Then are we saying depth is not a factor in stocking since we are not calculating in volume?

josefaith:
How can they be recognized?

Boss Robonski, can you supply we people in Ilorin, I need like 2000 post fingerlings

soft777:
IT WAS BECAUSE OF YOU A HAVE TO COME OUT ONLINE TO QUICKLY GIVE U REMEDY :::IF THE WHITISH COLOUR IS ON THERE BACK FIN ALONE AND NOT THERE BODY THEN YOUR FISH IS SURFFERING FROM WHAT IS CALLED FINROT ; AND FROM WHAT YOU SAID THAT; YOUR WATER IS GETTING DRY THAT IS THE SOURCE OF YOUR PB : CHECK YOUR WATER PH CAUSE FIN ROT IS CAUSED MOSTLY WHEN YOUR PH IS TOO HIGH OR TOO LOW AND I GUESS YOUR LITTLE WATER IS VERY POLLUTED BY FEEDS AND THE FISH WASTE ::: YOU NEED FIND URGENT SOURCE OF WATER :IF WATER IS POLLUTED AND U NEED RUN A FLOWTHROW TO GET FRESH WATER IN AND OPEN YOUR OUTLET FOR THE BAD WATER TO GO OUT ORE ELSE THE FORMALIN U USED MAY NOT HAVE EFFECT : CAUSE U ARE TREATING THEM IN THE SAME POLLUTED WATER ::U NEED FAST CHANGE UR WATER OR TOP IT BEFORE IT GETS WORST AND AFFECT ALL YOUR FISH : NEVER TRY FISH FARMING IF U DONT HAVE ANOTHER OR GOOD SOURCE OF WATER LIKE BOREHOLE STREAM OR WELL ITS VERY DANGEROUS RISKING UR MONEY ::::IT CAN ALSO AFFECT THE FAST GROWTH OF YOUR FISHES:::2 IF YOU CHECK YOUR PH AND ITS OK BUY OTC AT THE VET STORE LOW YOUR WATER AND MIX THE OTC WITH THEM IT WORKS WITH FIN AND TAIL ROT THANK YOU : YOU HAVE USED A WRONG MEDICATION FORMALIN IS BEST WITH FUNGAI INFECTIONS BUT WHAT IS AFFECTING YOUR FISH IS BACTERIA AND OTC IS BEST FOR TREATING BACTERIA INFECTION OR U CAN USE SALT AND ASH MIXED TOGETEHR BUT REMEBER DONT FEED YOUR FISH DURING THIS TREATMEN :: GIVE US BACK FEED BACK HOW IT WORKS GOODLUCK

Please, my fishes are still dying, I applied 2 satchels of oxytetracycline and good quantity of ashes that was Sieved of charcoals on Tuesday morning and stopped feeding them as well, I noticed they have stopped dying that same afternoon and decided I would watch them till the following morning to see if dey will still die before giving them food again which dey didn't so I started giving them food on Wednesday morning, by evening dt I came to feed, I noticed a quantity of them have died, so I didn't give any food again but they are still dying, dis morning and dis evening, please what else can I use to stop this mortality, good quality and quantity of water is entering the pond so I don't think it has to do with water.

IBBG:
thank u so so much.God bless u.

Oga softie 777, which topic do you use to put ur post on agricnetwork.com?

soft777:
IT WAS BECAUSE OF YOU A HAVE TO COME OUT ONLINE TO QUICKLY GIVE U REMEDY :::IF THE WHITISH COLOUR IS ON THERE BACK FIN ALONE AND NOT THERE BODY THEN YOUR FISH IS SURFFERING FROM WHAT IS CALLED FINROT ; AND FROM WHAT YOU SAID THAT; YOUR WATER IS GETTING DRY THAT IS THE SOURCE OF YOUR PB : CHECK YOUR WATER PH CAUSE FIN ROT IS CAUSED MOSTLY WHEN YOUR PH IS TOO HIGH OR TOO LOW AND I GUESS YOUR LITTLE WATER IS VERY POLLUTED BY FEEDS AND THE FISH WASTE ::: YOU NEED FIND URGENT SOURCE OF WATER :IF WATER IS POLLUTED AND U NEED RUN A FLOWTHROW TO GET FRESH WATER IN AND OPEN YOUR OUTLET FOR THE BAD WATER TO GO OUT ORE ELSE THE FORMALIN U USED MAY NOT HAVE EFFECT : CAUSE U ARE TREATING THEM IN THE SAME POLLUTED WATER ::U NEED FAST CHANGE UR WATER OR TOP IT BEFORE IT GETS WORST AND AFFECT ALL YOUR FISH : NEVER TRY FISH FARMING IF U DONT HAVE ANOTHER OR GOOD SOURCE OF WATER LIKE BOREHOLE STREAM OR WELL ITS VERY DANGEROUS RISKING UR MONEY ::::IT CAN ALSO AFFECT THE FAST GROWTH OF YOUR FISHES:::2 IF YOU CHECK YOUR PH AND ITS OK BUY OTC AT THE VET STORE LOW YOUR WATER AND MIX THE OTC WITH THEM IT WORKS WITH FIN AND TAIL ROT THANK YOU : YOU HAVE USED A WRONG MEDICATION FORMALIN IS BEST WITH FUNGAI INFECTIONS BUT WHAT IS AFFECTING YOUR FISH IS BACTERIA AND OTC IS BEST FOR TREATING BACTERIA INFECTION OR U CAN USE SALT AND ASH MIXED TOGETEHR BUT REMEBER DONT FEED YOUR FISH DURING THIS TREATMEN :: GIVE US BACK FEED BACK HOW IT WORKS GOODLUCK

Thank my boss soft 777 for coming online for me and for ur other countless helps day and night, will update you as it's going, will even post my farm set up pictorially and how come am having water deficiency, just maybe I didn't get oxytetracycline (OTC) as you suggested, can I use Aquaceril, Aquamedic or any other antibiotic?

soft777:
ARE U USING CONCRETE OR EARTHEN POND::THE BEST WAY TO TREAT YOUR FISH WITHOUT REDUCING WATER IS TO MIX THE FEED WITH THERE FEED BEFORE FEEDING THEM WITH IT::::: LET US KNOW IF YOUR FISH ARE OK OR IF YOU NEED THE PARTICULAR TREATMENT ANALYSIS GOODLUCK

Boss, am using earthen pond and the fishes are 2months and a week tomorrow, they are eating sinking locally formulated feed already which contain salt and Maxiyield, I forgot to add aquamedic, so am left with d option of putting d drug in water. N.B, I pour some formalin (15 coke bottle cover into 8m x 10m x 1.3) into the water a few days ago, just precautionary, haven't started noticing any sign of disease, now I guess d formalin is either inadequate or didn't work for d disease .

soft777:
HAPPY SUNDAY EVERY BODY IN THE HOUSE : I WILL BE ANALYSING THE CHEAP LOCAL FEED IN A WAY THAT BOTH A NEW PERSON IN THE BUSINESS CAN UNDERSTAND IN A LAY MAN LANGUAGE. NOW AFRICAN CATFISH AS A CASE STUDY, AS I SAID EARLIER CATFISH ARE CARNIVOROUS / OMINIVOUS MEANS THEY NEED FLESH FOR GOOD GROWTH U CAN NOT GIVE LION GRASS TO EAT AND EXPECT IT TO GROW OR ACCEPT IT LIKEWISE OR GIVE A COW MEAT TO EAT AND EXPECT IT TO GROW. KNOWING THIS FACTS ITS GOOD WE KNOW THE NUTRITIONAL VALUE OF CATFISH TO ATTAIN PROPER GROWTH ALL THE NUTRIENT CONTAIN IN CATFISH FEED ARE EQUALLY IMPORTANT . BUT THERE IS WERE THE COST OF PRODUCTION INCREASES; THATS THE PROTIEN OR SAY CRUDE PROTEIN THIS IS VERY ESENTIAL FOR THE PROPER GROWTH AND FLESH OR TISSUE DEVELOPMENT OF YOUR FISH. BEFORE U CAN START TO INCREASE THE CARBOHYDRATE FOR WEIGHT GAIN TOWARDS THE END OF YOUR HARVEST :::NOW FOR CATFISH FARMING THE MOST EXPENSIVE PART IS FEEDING ABOUT 75% OF THE MONEY IS FEED AUTOMATICALLY 75 % OF THIS MONEY TO MAKE THE NUTRIENTS OF THE FEED ALSO IS SPENT ON CRUDE PROTEIN : SO KNOWING THIS ANALYSIS WE SHOULD FIND A WAY OF REDUCING THE AMOUNT SPEND ON CRUDE PROTIEN THE EQUATION IS LIKE THIS CATFISH FARMING = FEEDING = CRUDE PROTEIN : SO KNOWING THIS HOW DO WE REDUCE THE COSTLY FISHMEAL WHICH IS THE MAJOR INGREDIENT USED AS SOURCE OF CRUDE PROTEIN IN A FISH FEED AND AT THE SAME TIME GET THE ADEQUATE % CRUDE PROTEIN NEEDED FOR CATFISH FAST GROWTH::::: DO U KNOW
THAT SWEET POTATOE LEAVES ALONE HAVE A CRUDE PROTEIN OF 29 percent AND FISH MEAL HAS 64% FORGET THOSE STORY ABOUT 72% FISH MEAL THE REAL AMOUNT CRUDE PROTEIN IS 64% : THIS IS A FACT : WE ALL KNOW GETTING SWEET POTATO LEAVES IS JUST ZERO COST. YOU CAN GO TO ANY POTATOE FARM THE LEAVES ARE EITHER BURNT OR THROWN AWAY AFTER HARVESTING THER POTATOES YOU CAN EVEN CUT THE LEAVES FROM THE SWEET POTATOE PLANT WHILE THE PLANT IS STILL GROWING :THEY FARMERS WILL BE VERY GLAD YOU COME AND CARRY THE LEAVES FOR THEM CAUSE ITS WASTE TO THEM, BUT TO US FISH FARMERS ITS VERY GOOD AND CHEAP SOURCE OF CRUDE PROTEIN TO REPLACE SOME REASONABLE PERCENTAGE OF THE COSTLY FISH MEAL. U SPEND ALMOST ZERO NAIRA TO GET, WHEN YOU CALCULATE IT IN TONES OF FEED U PRODUCE DURING MONTHS OF FEEDING YOUR FISH YOU WILL DISCOVER A VERY GREAT DECREASE IN YOUR COST OF FEED AND AUTOMATICALLY INCREASE IN PROFIT :::: NOW LET ME ELABORATE HOW YOU CALCULATE THE WAY U REPLACE SOME PERCENTAGE OF YOUR FISH MEAL AND STILL GET THE SAME PERCENTAGE CRUDE PROTEIN YOU NEED FOR YOUR FISH FEED SO USING CATFISH FOR THIS CASE STUDY CATFISH REQUIRE AVERAGE OF 35% OF CRUDE PROTEIN TO GROW WELL ::: USING PEARSON SQUARE METHOD .... 64 fish meal minus 35 target protein we get difference of 29 , then for the potato leave meal 29 potato leave minus the 35 target protein we get a of 6 next stage we add both difference together it gives us 29 and 6 get total of 35 total inclusion by adding there percentage inclusions we get for fish meal 29 divided by 35 total inclusion multiply by 100 it gives 82.85 approximate 83 while for the potato leaf meal 6 divide by 35 total inclusion multiply by 100 will give 17.1 approximate 17 . when u sum them u get 83 plus 17 u get 100 what this implies IS THAT AS YOU REDUCE YOUR FISH MEAL U INCREASE YOUR POTATO LEAVES AUTOMATICALLY WHAT THIS CALCULATIONS IMPLIES IS THAT 83 percent POTATO LEAVE MEAL CAN BE USED WITH 17 PERCENT FISH MEAL AND U GET THE REQUIRED 35% CRUDE PROTEIN YOUR FISH REQUIRE FOR PROPER GROWTH : PLEASE IF U DONT UNDERSTAND THE CALCULATION YOU CAN TELL ME UR MATERIALS THAT YOU HAVE AND I WILL DO THE CALCULATION AND TELL YOU THE PERCENTAGE OF HOW U MIX CAUSE FEED FORMULA VARIES FROM ONE FEED MILL TO THE OTHER BUT MY MAIN REASON FOR THIS ANALYSIS, IS TO GIVE U LIST OF CHEAP INGREDIENTS THAT CAN REDUCE THE USE OF THE COSTLY FISH MEAL. SOME LIST OF CHEAP SOURCE POTATO LEAF MEAL 29% CRUDE PROTEIN GO TO ANY SWEET POTATO FARM COLLECT SOME POTATO LEAF IT COST NOTHING, BOIL IT REMOVE THE LEAVE AND DRY IT IN THE SUN AND TAKE IT TO THE FEED MILL TO GROUND IT TO POWDER U GET YOUR 29 PERCENT CRUDE PROTEIN :: BONE MEAL 38 percent crude protein GO TO ANY ABATTOIR, BUY BONES THERE VERY CHEAP U CAN EVEN GET THERE FOR ALMOST FREE BOIL IT LITTLE WATER TO KILL ANY BACTERIA IN IT THEN DRY IT FOR A WEEK OR 2 WEEKS ON THE SUN THEN TAKE IT TO THE FEED MILL THEY CRUSH AND GROUND IT; YOU GET YOUR BONE MEAL:: DO YOU KNOW THAT FEATHER MEAL CONTAINS 74.5 crude protein EVEN MORE THAN YOUR FISH MEAL LOL , I KNOW MANY WILL BE SURPRISE . YOU CAN GET FEATHER FROM THE MALAM OUTSIDE THAT SELL ROASTED CHICKEN OUTSIDE OR ANY WERE CHICKEN IS KILLED OR PROCESSED IN MASS , THIS IS JUST FREE THEY WILL BE GLAD U HAVE HELP THEM CARRY THERE DIRTY , BUT ITS THE HIGHEST CRUDE PROTEIN : GET IT BOIL IT LIGHTLY TO KILL ANY BACTERIA ALLOW IT TO SUNDRY VERY WELL FOR SOME DAYS TAKE IT TO FEED MILL AND GROUND U HAVE YOUR FEATHER MILL:::I HAVE LOTS AND LOTS OF VERY CHEAP SOURCE OF CRUDE PROTEIN THAT CAN REPLACE YOUR FISH MEAL UP TO 85% AM NOT AGAINST SOYA MEAL BUT THE PB IS SOYA IS NOW VERY COSTLY BECAUSE ALL ANIMAL FARMERS POULTRY FARMERS USE SOYA THERE BY MAKING THE SOYA EXPENSIVE SO TO ME SOYA IS NO MORE ECONOMICAL THE DEMAND IS MUCH I HOPE THIS IS AN EYE OPENER NOW FOR MY PART 2 3 and part 4 OR TO BE CONTINUED ACCORDING TO HOME VIDEO VISIT agricnetwork.com I WILL PUT MORE LIST OF CHEAP CRUDE PROTEIN EVEN HIGHER THAN YOUR FISH MEAL .MORE UPDATE ON agricnetwork.com I WILL ELABORATE 1 HOW YOUR FISH CAN EAT YOUR LOCAL FEED MORE THAN THE FOREIGHN FEED BIG SECRET 2, I WILL TEACH U HOW TO MAKE YOUR LOCALLY MADE FEED FLOAT WATCH OUT ON agricnetwork DAILY UPDATE::::::GOOD LUCK

What about clupid - that small dry fish, yellowish in colour, what is their protein percentage?

Please, my Ogas in the house, my fishes are getting whitish colour on their back fin and one died today while many are raising their heads, the water seems to b colloidal now as dry season has set in and water source has reduced, noticed also dt d turbidity has greatly reduced, please what can I use to treat them without reducing the water has filling up a 8m by 10m, 1.3m depth will be difficult. Thanks in advance

Have been patiently waiting for the feed formulation analysis since 3pm bros, hope you have not forgotten

soft777:
ITS VERY IMPORTANT WE TALK AND DISCUSS FEED; BECAUSE IT TAKES 75% OF THE COST OF PRODUCTION LATER TODAY I WILL GIVE DETAILED ANALYSIS ON FEED PRODUCTION :AND MY ADVICE TO BOTH OLD AND NEW FISH FARMERS WHO WASTE LOT OF RESOURCES; ENERGY AND TIME INTO HARTCHING AS A FORM OF REDUCING THE COST OF PRODUC:TION: BUT THIS IS WRONG WE SPEND MUCH MONEY TRYING TO HARTCH WITH POOR FACILITIES AND LOW TECHNICAL KNOW HOW AND MOSTLY MANY FARMERS FAIL BUT TRUTH IS BITTER ; AT THE END OF THE DAY WE END UP BEING FRAUSTRATED::: I HAVE SEEN LOTS OF PEOPLE STARTING THIS FISH BUSINESS AND RUNING OUT OF IT FAST :: I EVEN KNOW A LOT OF PEOPLE WHO DO NOT EVEN KNOW IF THEY PROFIT OR NOT LOL IN THIS BUSINESS ::: LETS MAXIMISE OUR RESOURCES AND FOCUS ON WERE WE SPEND MUCH IN THIS BUSINESS: 75% OF OUR COST IS FEED FOR BETTER PROFIT IF WE PUT OUR ENERGY ON FEED AND GET IT RIGHT CHEAP QUALITY FEED WITH LOW CONVERSION RATIO OF 1 to1.2 IS VERY PROFITABLE :::FOR NEW COMERS OR OLD PEOPLE IN THIS BUISNESS WHO DONT REALLY HAVE THE KNOW HOW OF HARTCHERY TO LEAVE IT FOR THE EXPERTS WHO ARE WELL TRAINED IN FISH HATCHERY OPERATIONS AND GET PROPER TRAINING BEFORE WASTING GOOD CAPITAL ON HATCHERY : HARTCHING IS A VERY SENSITIVE PART OF THE BUSINESS; AND DO NOT ALLOW PEOPLE DECIEVE U THAT ; U NEED TO HAVE AN HATCHERY TO PROFIT IN THIS BUSINESS: THIS IS CALLED DIVISION OF LABOUR OR AREA OF SPECIALIAZATION : YOU CAN GRADUALLY GO INTO HARTCHING YOURSELF WITH PROPER KNOWLEDGE OF IT; BY AQUIRING PROPER TRAINING FIRST OR JUST GET YOUR SEEDLINGS FROM REPUTABLE HATCHERIES ON THIS TREAD ; THANK GOD WE NOW HAVE A VERY TRUSTED PERSON LIKE ROBONSKI AND OTHERS IN THIS TREAD; WHO ARE SETTING UP COMERCIAL HATCHERY TO CURB THIS PROBLEM WITH FAKE RUNTS SELLERS OR QUACK HATCHERIES::: I KNOW THIS IS THE REASON YOU WILL LOOSE VALUABLE MONEY :: : THE DIFFRENCE BETWEEN YOU PRODUCING FINGERLINGS AND BUYING FROM REPUTABLE HATCHERIES IS NOT THAT MUCH ; ITS ABOUT 15 PERCENT SO PUTING MUCH ENERGY IN 15 percent AND NEGLETING WHERE WE HAVE 75% AS THE FEED ASPECT IS THE PROBLEM::: LATER TODAY I WILL ANALYSE FEED PRODUCTION IN A WAY U CAN PRODUCE FEED ALMOST BY YOURSELF AND GET GOOD RESULT FOR BETTER PROFIT::: WE DONT WANT PEOPLE GETTING INTO FISH FARMING AND RUNNING OUT CRYING ::: ONCE YOU GET GOOD QUALITY SEEDS FROM REPUTABLE HATCHERIES LIKE MR ROBONSKI AND OTHER TESTED HATCHERIES ON THIS TREAD ::::THEN U HAVE SOLVED a good percent OF THE BUSINESS BUT THE ONE THAT REALLY TAKES THE BULK OF MONEY IS FEEDING: THATS WHERE WE SHOULD PUT OUR ENERGY ::::EVERYBODY SHOULD PLEASE CONTRIBUTE ANYTHING THAT WILL HELP ON CHEAP AND QUALITY FEED PRODUCTION :::::MY ANALYSIS WILL BE UP FROM 3pm tomorrow nigerian time 18/10/2015 WATCH OUT*****

Please, my question is on the formation of eggs in the belly of clarias especially when dey are not fed well, will this development slow or stop the growth of clarias as I have heard in some quarters dt it does..