poop on sand

[brayden malone]

I have some small fish in my tank and they poop everywhere on the sand. would shrimp eat the poop? or little pygmy corys? but would the corys dig up my plants and mess with the roots I just planted them?

[JE47]

Well I don't know that there is a fish that would eat poop exactly I mean would you? Corys eat excess food and so would shrimp but neither eats poop that has to be cleaned by a gravel vac. I hope this was helpful. Out of Curiosity what small fish is it?

[Pepere]

Cories will stir up the stuff on the substrate as they forage for sand giving the filter 2nd, 3rd, and 4th chances to suck it up…

[Tony s]

On 3/19/2024 at 7:40 PM, brayden malone said:

have some small fish in my tank and they poop everywhere on the sand. would shrimp eat the poop? or little pygmy corys? but would the corys dig up my plants and mess with the roots I just planted them

Nobody eats poop. Its nutritional value is basically zero. But your corys and shrimp will basically eat any form of leftover organic matter. The kinds that still have nutritional value. 
 

as pepere says, the corys playing will stir the substrate. But possibly not Pygmy’s. They swim off the substrate more than on it. Now panda corys will play on the bottom. And everywhere else for that matter. I have 4 types of corys. I’ve never once had them dig at plant roots. They’re far too busy to mess with plant roots.

Edited March 20 by Tony s

[Tlindsey]

A gravel vac could be used during water changes to remove fish waste. 

[Tlindsey]

On 3/19/2024 at 10:23 PM, Tony s said:

Nobody eats poop.

Depends what species we are talking about Tilapia cichlids that live in the African rivers eat Hippo dung.

[Tony s]

On 3/19/2024 at 10:33 PM, Tlindsey said:

A gravel vac could be used during water changes to remove fish waste

Let’s correct that to say should be used. Let’s add every time.

[Tlindsey]

On 3/19/2024 at 10:41 PM, Tony s said:

Let’s correct that to say should be used. Let’s add every time.

Yes agree. 

[Tony s]

On 3/19/2024 at 10:40 PM, Tlindsey said:

Depends what species we are talking about Tilapia cichlids that live in the African rivers eat Hippo dung

Have you seen hippo dung. It’s only half eaten to start with. And most of the zoos that have hippos also use them for waste management. They get huge

[Tlindsey]

On 3/19/2024 at 10:43 PM, Tony s said:

Have you seen hippo dung. It’s only half eaten to start with. And most of the zoos that have hippos also use them for waste management. They get huge

Tbh I don't want to see it 😆 Yes I've heard about Zoo's use of the tilapia for waste management. 

[doktor zhivago]

Snails and shrimps will eat the biofilm that grows on poop as it breaks down. They usually won't consume it directly. Detritus worms and scuds seem to eat the poop directly. The more life in your tank the quicker things get broken down and recycled. 

[Bsquared]

Like some have mentioned above, something like a cory or loach that is moving around on the bottom will help kick it back up and let the filter catch it. I had the same problem until adding hillstream loach’s to my tank and now my sand is much cleaner looking

[FLFishChik]

If it’s a small tank, a Turkey baster might come in handy for removing poo from the surface of the sand without having to do a whole water change. I did this for my 5g tank. Just used the baster to suck up a poo here and there until it was time for the next water change and gravel vac

[Rube_Goldfish]

On 3/20/2024 at 10:25 AM, FLFishChik said:

If it’s a small tank, a Turkey baster might come in handy for removing poo from the surface of the sand without having to do a whole water change. I did this for my 5g tank. Just used the baster to suck up a poo here and there until it was time for the next water change and gravel vac

I've also had success either wafting my other hand or the gravel vac itself above the mulm, so it lifts off the sand, then the siphon takes it away and leaves the sand. That said, as often as not, I lazily say/rationalize to myself "it looks more natural!" and just leave it. If your ammonia/nitrite/nitrate numbers are still fine (0/0/depends on your planting and stocking), then I think it's mostly an aesthetic thing.