Freshwater Feeding Tips..... Most freshwater fish will rush to eat anything that falls into an aquarium and appear to be hungry all the time. This causes hobbyists, even with the best intentions, to overfeed their fish and overfeeding can lead to tragedy. To help avoid the most common feeding mistakes, follow these tips. Watch Your Fish It can be tricky to make sure your fish get enough to eat without over feeding the aquarium. This can be accomplished by paying close attention to the fish while they eat. Add a small amount of food and watch; if the fish eat it, add more. If food is left uneaten feed less next time. Add just enough food such that excess food does not fall to the bottom of the aquarium collecting on the gravel. Make certain that each fish gets some tasty morsels and the food is large enough or small enough for your fish. Be Unwavering Feed your fish at least once each day only as much food as they can eat within 2 to 3 minutes. If you want to feed them twice a day, make one feeding a full meal and the other a treat or snack. It is best to feed fish around the same time each day with a variety of different types of food to ensure they get important nutrients. Overfeeding If there is extra food left in the aquarium after your fish have stopped eating, net it out or use a siphon to remove it. Overfeeding causes water quality problems which can be detrimental to fish. Overfeeding can make the water cloudy and this may indicate high levels of ammonia which is toxic to fish. Should the ammonia level rise, a significant water change should be performed each day until the ammonia and nitrite have returned to zero. Activated filter carbon may help by adsorbing dissolved organic wastes from the water as well as eliminating foul odors caused by decaying food. Feeding While You Are On Vacation There are several ways to keep your fish fed and your aquarium healthy when you go out of town. An automatic fish feeder is designed to hold dry fish food and drop small amounts in an aquarium several times each day. It works to dispense dry foods, flakes and pellets. An automatic fish feeder is the best way to feed your fish. Vacation food blocks are a low cost option. These blocks dissolve slowly in your aquarium water revealing small bits of food. Vacation blocks hold small amounts of food and several blocks may be required depending on the size of the aquarium. You may also consider a fish sitter. To ensure your fish do not get over fed by your fish sitter, create pre-measured food packets. Take and separate food into single serving plastic bags to ensure the right amount of food is administered and you dont wind up with either an overfed aquarium, or skinny fish.
Posted on: Thu, 11 Sep 2014 18:15:15 +0000
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