Skip Feedings

[ADAMHANK]

WHAT'S THE DEAL W/ SKIPPING A DAY OF FEEDING?
I SEE ALOT OF PEOPLE WILL SKIP A DAY IN FEEDING FISH...

[MrArapaima]

not much difference really!

[Sumpin'fishy]

I skip Sundays with my fish. It helps to get rid of any effects of minor overfeeding during week. I also think it's a bit more "natural". I believe most fish periodically have days that they can't find food in the wild, and I'm just trying to mimic that effect (only on a schedule).

If you are positive you don't overfeed, it's not necessary.

[Serrateeth_2002]

skip feeding is a good thing,your fish won't grow as fast as overfeeding and regular feeding,i don't know if the fishes prefer irregular feeding in the wild or regular feeding in the aquarium?

[stpower]

I feed my 60G tank every 2nd or 3rd day. All fairly big fish, so I have been thinking they eat more when I feed them, so they should last longer between feedings.

[val]

Well, a fish is much more likely to die in the aquarium from over-feeding than under-feeding, so I practise skipping a day or two a week.

Hey Mr Arapaima: If no one's told you this before, welcome to Aquaria Central, home to the hungriest (for more knowledge, anyway) fishkeepers on the internet. :)

Val

[beviking]

I skip a day every other day of the week. I don't like the looks of a fat fish and I don't want them to grow fast. Plus, the tank stays much cleaner and food doesn't cost as much!

[NJ Devils Fan]

Sumpin'fishy hit the nail on the head, in the wild, fish usually don't eat everyday. I feed everyday, but I really don't feed much because I only have a tiger barb, a spotted danio, and 2 neons, so a lot of food would be wasted if I fed a lot.

HTH

[goldfries]

sometimes i feed, sometimes i don't. but nevertheless they will not go hungry.

i think it's very normal to skip fish meals. fish don't starve to death as fast as humans do (i think).

[Sumpin'fishy]

Actually Goldfries, you'd probably be surprised how long humans can go without food. We do need water pretty quickly though. I'm talking about 2, possibly 3 months without food! Of coarse, this is assuming that we eat well before we diet. I personally roomated with a guy who fasted (church related) for 40 days. He lost weight, but otherwise was no worse for wear. I have not personally gone that long.

Anyways, I have heard that fish can go about 2 to 3 weeks without harmful effects. I'm not going to trust mine enough to not try eating each other for that long, though;)

[amy]

I just got back from 9 days at the in-laws for the holidays.
Both the community in the 10 gallon and the betta in a 5 gallon survived with no deaths. I admit I was a little nervous about leaving them for over a week, but now that I'm back and everything seems okay I feel the tanks would be fine for 2 entire weeks without feeding...

[NJ Devils Fan]

When I went on vacation, I was paranoid that my fish would die without food for a few days, so i got one of those vacation feeders, when I got home though, it was gone and everyone was fine.

[goldfries]

i've read somewhere that it takes like 1-month just to starve a Betta to death. even then, there's no guarantee it'll die. :p

[OrionGirl]

You're underestimating the ability of fishes to regulate their metabolisms.

As long as the temp is stable and not extremely high, most fish can go for well over 1-2 months without feeding and be fine. If the water is a bit colder, they can go for 3-4 months with no ill effects. Depending on the species, up to 1 year (in a lab, regulated temp at about 55, lake trout). Following the testing, the trout was returned to the raceway, where it resumed eating normally, and grew just fine. Not recommended for an aquarium, simply because we can't regulate the conditions as closely. Oxygen levels, temp, and light, etc.

I feed all but the fry every other day. The fry are fed twice daily.

[mhmh]

I skip a day a week, but when I went on vacation for a week, I got an Eheim automatic feeder. I don't think any fish would die from a week with no food, but I worried that my large, normally contented Pictus catfish would be tempted to snack on its smaller tankmates after several days with no food.

BTW, I did lose one fish during the vacation anyway.

[Twilight]

If you leave for a vacation and if your fish get hungry...they will find food.

One big fish to another big fish.....
"Hey...that little Barb looks tastey, doesn't it?"

[rohai]

Half of the the fish in my tank were originally kept at work so they always went Sat and Sun without food, and then over long work vacations like Thanksgiving they'd go four or more days without. I've never had a problem doing this, so now that my fish are at home I've just continued to not feed them on the weekend. I'm kind of bad about overfeeding so I figure it works out in the end.

[AikidoGuy]

i feed my fish once a day, usually never at the same time, and i skip one day a week totally at random. Fry get fed twice a day for a few months.

[gcvt]

I only feed my tanks (fresh & salt) five days a week. I think it's healthier for the fishes and healthier for the tank. No problems in many years. :)

[Skippy]

I often skip a day here ot there with most of my tanks.

I have went on 3 day campouts and come back to thriving happy fish. Although usually my severum start getting frantic when they see me after that long wnating food.

[aquatix02]

just want tp relate my experience on skipped feedings.

i usually only feed once every morning a minimal amount to my cherry barbs since its thought that it was best for them to be hungry all the time (like in the wild)

however, after i had quarantined my new corydoras julii i added them to the main tank... and the once-peaceful barbs started to pick at the eyes of my cories!

luckily, before any serious damage was done, i hastily fed the cherry barbs... nowadays, i feed twice daily to prevent further mishaps. and cherry barbs are considered the most peaceful of barbs!

i don't know if it's because the barbs were territorial combined with their hunger that sparked off the attacks but i don't want to find out by starving them again.

so... if you're adding new fish, don't make my beginner's mistake of not feeding your current tank inhabitants!

[punch]

I feed my fish every other day. No problems what so ever. Everybody's happy and they all seem to get fed. I feed less for less wast in the water and I worry about overfeeding and mucking up my water quality. I don't think they feed everyday in the wild and have had no problems. I go on 3 day weekends ocasionaly and feed before I leave and when I get back.