Cultivating Eel Without Mud at Home
Cultivation of rice field eel ( Monopterus albus ) is currently growing rapidly. This is inseparable from the nutritional content of eels which is quite high, besides that, the way of eel cultivation is not too complicated when compared to the cultivation of other types of fish.
To meet the ever-increasing market demand for eels, it is necessary to intensify and renew eel farming business patterns.
The cultivation method presented this time does not use a pond or drum like most, but the process is quite easy for beginners to do. One of the drawbacks of this method is the preparation of more food because the eels only get food from the feed we provide. However, this weakness can also be an advantage because eels are more controllable when exposed to disease and cannibalism decreases.
Also read: Guppy Fish Care and Spawning Guide
Because it is not complicated and does not require a place that is too large, eel cultivation can be done at home and is suitable for utilizing the remaining land. The steps for cultivating eel without mud are as follows:
1. Water Preparation and Cultivation Site
Prepare a pond that is concreted around it because these animals love to dig and net according to the area of the pond made.
Permanent pools built using cement or bricks, require a fairly high cost when compared to drums or tarpaulin pools. However, wall pools are resistant to leaks caused by pond destroying animals, and can make it easier to control water and nuisance animals.
The ideal size of the pond is adjusted to the number of eels, which is 50 to 100 eels per square meter. Do not forget to make a drainage system in the pool.
In addition, prepare clean water that is clear and does not contain chemicals with a temperature of 26-28 degrees Celsius. Avoid using PDAM water because of its high chlorine content, well water that lacks oxygen, and waste water. In essence, prepare oxygen-rich water, especially for small eel seeds.
2. Selection of Seeds and How to Spread Them
After the place is prepared, the next step that must be done is to prepare the seeds to be used.
After the eel pond is well fermented, the next step in eel cultivation is to choose eel seeds. But don't be careless in choosing eel seeds, there are several things that need to be considered in eel livestock, namely:
A. Wound-free Eel Seeds
The main thing in choosing good eel seeds is to choose eel seeds that are free from wounds. Both abrasions due to friction, or wounds due to disease. Because the wound on this eel can be transmitted to other eels.
B. Eels are not weak when held
After choosing an eel that is free of wounds, the next step is to choose an eel that does not limp when held. If the eel seeds limp when held, it can be ascertained that the eel seeds have a weak resistance. By choosing strong/not weak eel seeds, it is hoped that the eels will survive to maturity and are ready to be harvested.
C. Choose a lively eel
Choose agile eel seeds, because basically eels have an aggressive nature, even when we hold the eel, the eel will try to escape. A good eel has calm but agile characteristics.
D. Uniform Eel Seed Size
The size of this uniform eel seed is quite important. Due to the uniform size of the eel seeds, there will be no dominance in eating. If the size of the eel seed is not uniform, then the large eel will dominate the food. This will make the big eels get bigger, and the smaller ones will get smaller.
After you find seeds with the above criteria, then you have to sow the seeds. Because this cultivation is not done with mud, you can sow more seeds. The number of seeds needed for a 1×1 meter pond is 30 kg.
3. Feeding
One way of eel cultivation that can provide maximum results is proper feeding. Giving the right feed to eels, will be able to make eel cultivation more leverage.
The feed that must be given must be just right, not too much or too little. If there is too much, the water will get dirty quickly so the eels will get sick easily and then die. Otherwise, the cannibal nature of the eels will appear so that they will eat each other. For the record, as long as the eels are still eating the feed you provide, do not replace the feed with something else.
Here are the types of feed that eels prefer:
- red worm
- cerean fish
- goldfish
- chickstad
- polerice snail
- Hong Kong caterpillar
4. Treatment Process
Water quality is something that must be considered when cultivating eels. In addition, you also have to feed regularly and immediately deal with eels that look sick.
Make sure the pool water has a maintained oxygen level, and the pH level of the pool water is between 6-9. Also set the pool water circulation well, set it like a puddle in its natural habitat, namely a puddle of rice fields. Then set it into the pool water with a height of 20cm. Do not be too deep to give water to the pond, this will affect the posture of the eel.
Water that is too deep can make the eel move more to take a breath, so the growth of the eel will not be optimal.
The characteristics of diseased eels are as follows:
- keep moving during the day
- always rise to the surface
- attack each other
Meanwhile, eels are living things that secrete mucus on their bodies as a self-defense mechanism. It turns out that mucus can affect the pH of the water if it is produced too much. For that, always make sure to replace or circulate the water when the maximum acidity exceeds 7 (acidity limit).
5. Harvest
This is the time to harvest the eel. Eels actually do not have a size and harvest period, because it all depends on market demand. But in general, the right time to harvest eels is when the eels are 3-4 months old or their weight ranges from 200-300 grams/head. The weight of the eel at harvest can reach 400 grams / head in just 3 months.
The process of harvesting eels is relatively easy to do because all you have to do is lift the net that has been prepared in advance. If you don't use a net, just drain the pool. Before harvesting, make sure you have prepared a container to store the eels.
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