How long can fish go on without food?

[Peter99]

Spring break starts next week, from March 12-21. I won't be around so the fishes won't be fed for about a week. Question is, will these fish last 9 days without food? I've heard that that they can go on as long as 2 weeks, but I somehow doubt that.

I have 3 types of fishes, neon tetras, bronze corydoras, and betta (who will be kept in a separate tank during spring break).

 

[snakeskinner]

why not just pick up an automatic feeder just to be sure. I don't think I'd go that long without feeding. Kyle

 

[Leopardess]

They *probably* could, assuming you feed them a little heavily before you leave.

I've heard bad things about those automatic feeders.

Best bet is to ask someone to stop by once or twice to feed the fish (after you show them how much to feed, or premeasure it and leave it in a bottle cap or something for them to just throw in).

 

[OrionGirl]

Are these adults? Planted tank?

The short answer is that yes, they will be fine. Lower the tank temp about 5 degrees, and feed them before you leave. Fish metabolisms are very adept at handling periods with no food.

Planted tanks are better at supporting fish, since they provide additional food sources inthe tank, but this isn't crucial. Juvenile and fry should not be left for long without food, since they don't have the fat reserves of most fish and are more sensitive. Some predators--puffers especially--can be problematic as well, since they need daily foods for grinding thier teeth down as well. But, your list of fish should be just fine.

 

[cichlid77]

I have left my fish for as long as 2 weeks many times. I feed them a couple times the day before I leave. Never, ever, came home to dead fish, even after 2 weeks. They are usually pretty excited when you feed them for the first time, but it doesn't seem to bother them at all. In general it's probably safer than taking a chance of an automatic feeder malfunctioning and severely overfeeding or those disolving clay things that can alter your water conditions. I have used the disolving things in the past with no issues however.

If you can get someone to stop by occaisionally and feed the fish that's even better, but make sure that they know how much to feed and that they understand that it can be very bad to overfeed, since it seems that a lot of people without fish experience tend to severely overfeed thinking that they are being extra nice to your fish, or because it's fun to watch them eat.

 

[TPIRman]

I agree with cichlid77 -- people love to overfeed. The best thing to do is measure out the food into a little Ziploc bag or bottle cap as Leopardess suggested above, and hide the food container somewhere else in the house. Many people convince themselves that the fish "look hungry" -- I don't even know what that means, exactly.

I think one feeding in the middle of your break would be plenty if you want to play it safe, but I also think that your fish would survive a 9-day fast.

 

[dethjam316]

when i went home to nj for 2 weeks over winter break, i had a friend feed them. i bought one of those daily pill containers...and just filled one with a healthy mix of flake and freeze-dried foods for each day my friend was coming over (he came over every third day). no casualities, prevented the over-feeding problem.

 

[maigen]

can't help you out with the being away & not having your fish eat part but i can tell you from my own personal experience that i HATE block feeders.

used one ONCE......never again. totally threw my levels out of whack & i suffered a few casualties