can you feed your fish too much?

[MarvinsReef]

is there such a thing? I mean what is normal? I had my routine set for 2x pellets (TDO & NLS) feeding on an auto feeder and 3 cubes of misc frozen fed in small amounts every hour when I get home from work. sometimes, I feel like I feed them too much as my clowns bellies are so full, they can hardly move. I'm currently battling some cyano since I stirred up my sand when I moved some of the rock work around to accommodate more BTA's. I've also added another cube or two into the frozen department since I added the Majestic angel almost 2 months ago. the past week, I've cut down my feeding to 1 cube frozen and the 2x auto feed with pellets. my fishes seem more active. the Majestic picks off sponges in the rock all day and the Yellow tang get supplemented with algae on the rocks. other fishes are a flasher, damsels, banggai's, and an anthias. of course, when I get close to the tank, they all gather up near the front glass as they got used to me feeding them when I get close by the tank. LoL. my skimmer does a great job on getting rid of the nasties. I also run carbon and GFO. I do 10%-15% water changes every 2 weeks. I feel like my equipment and routine takes care of the nutrient export but am really wondering if feeding fishes until they almost explode is healthy for them? is there such a thing as obese fishes?

 

[peterthegamer]

From what I heard fish will stop eating when they are full. Saltwater only

 

[MarvinsReef]

From what I heard fish will stop eating when they are full. Saltwater only

I don't think my clowns know that coz they just keep on eating even if their bellies are bulging. :hammer:

 

[ShannPeach]

My clowns also seem to never stop eating lol. Fish will stop eating when they are full (for the most part) and most are used to constantly eating and grazing in the wild, so your frequent feeding plan isn't bad. Are they eating everything that goes in? Or is there excess food?

What frozen cubes are you feeding? If you are feeding frozen brine, you more than likely are feeding them just filler food that doesn't pack a lot of punch unless it has been enriched. You also wouldn't want to feed too much squid as it can cause fatty liver disease.

 

[MarvinsReef]

My clowns also seem to never stop eating lol. Fish will stop eating when they are full (for the most part) and most are used to constantly eating and grazing in the wild, so your frequent feeding plan isn't bad. Are they eating everything that goes in? Or is there excess food?

What frozen cubes are you feeding? If you are feeding frozen brine, you more than likely are feeding them just filler food that doesn't pack a lot of punch unless it has been enriched. You also wouldn't want to feed too much squid as it can cause fatty liver disease.

here's what I use and alternate. I make sure there's some Spirulina at least every other day for the Yellow tang and Majestic angel.

 

[ritter6788]

the Majestic picks off sponges in the rock all day and the Yellow tang get supplemented with algae on the rocks.

You have exposed rock in that tank? :tongue:

 

[MarvinsReef]

You have exposed rock in that tank? :tongue:

:hammer:

yeah, the Majestic is an acrobat. amazing what he'll do to reach the underside of the rocks. :wink:

 

[Pkunk35]

Marvin, my buddy who had a 150gal mixed reef used to feed his fishes as you do, several cubes a day and a autofeeder on several times a day, he also dosed phytoplankton and fed live clams often. Initially I had thought he was feeding way too much but after some time I realized he had some of the healthiest fish I had seen (all with some seriously fat bellies). Truly made me rethink my own feeding habits for fish in particular, now I think fat fish are very happy fish and feeding several times a day or more is definitely the best way to go (for myself I do also have 1 or 2 days where i feed lighter than normal).

Even in my small tank I'm amazed at how much little gobies can consume. I have a barnacle blenny that I swear looks pregnant but I think its just a belly full of mysis/reef caviar...he barely fits in his hole.

 

[MarvinsReef]

Marvin, my buddy who had a 150gal mixed reef used to feed his fishes as you do, several cubes a day and a autofeeder on several times a day, he also dosed phytoplankton and fed live clams often. Initially I had thought he was feeding way too much but after some time I realized he had some of the healthiest fish I had seen (all with some seriously fat bellies). Truly made me rethink my own feeding habits for fish in particular, now I think fat fish are very happy fish and feeding several times a day or more is definitely the best way to go (for myself I do also have 1 or 2 days where i feed lighter than normal).

Even in my small tank I'm amazed at how much little gobies can consume. I have a barnacle blenny that I swear looks pregnant but I think its just a belly full of mysis/reef caviar...he barely fits in his hole.

agreed! fat fish = happy fish.. I was just worried that some didn't move much. I felt like they were eating more than they need. 1 cube and the 2x/day pellets seems to be the right amount. so far, they all still look like they have really nice and full stomachs, even after the lights out period, which they didn't get any food. maybe 2-3x/week, I'll do 2 cubes once the tank recovers from the cyano.

 

[Connie]

I feed mine three times a day in smaller amounts. They are very fat, happy and healthy. They get two cubes of Mysis for breakfast. I put half a nori sheet in for lunch (they all eat it like crazy except my mandarins) and then for dinner they get 1 cube of Formula One or Two, a few New Life pellets and I hand feed one chopped shrimp or clam to the carnivores. Three times a week I feed the corals Cyclopeez, Coral Frenzy or ZoPlan mixed with KZ Snow. There is never any left over. I think of it like this....If I was in a cage and someone brought me a whole bunch of food once a day, I would be excited but wouldn't be able to eat it all and a lot would go to waste and I would still be hungry a lot of the time; however, if the same amount of food was brought to me throughout the day a little at a time, I could consume all of it, wasting nothing and never be hungry. One more thought...feeding like this also keeps the "reef safe with caution" tenants "reef safe".

 

[MarvinsReef]

I feed mine three times a day in smaller amounts. They are very fat, happy and healthy. They get two cubes of Mysis for breakfast. I put half a nori sheet in for lunch (they all eat it like crazy except my mandarins) and then for dinner they get 1 cube of Formula One or Two, a few New Life pellets and I hand feed one chopped shrimp or clam to the carnivores. Three times a week I feed the corals Cyclopeez, Coral Frenzy or ZoPlan mixed with KZ Snow. There is never any left over. I think of it like this....If I was in a cage and someone brought me a whole bunch of food once a day, I would be excited but wouldn't be able to eat it all and a lot would go to waste and I would still be hungry a lot of the time; however, if the same amount of food was brought to me throughout the day a little at a time, I could consume all of it, wasting nothing and never be hungry. One more thought...feeding like this also keeps the "reef safe with caution" tenants "reef safe".

agreed also.. multiple small feedings throughout the photoperiod = happy fish... when I feed my fish, the food goes in but secs later, you cannot see any of the food. my clowns are voracious eaters. they will compete with the bigger fishes in the tank and normally they get the pieces they aim for.

 

[Connie]

agreed also.. multiple small feedings throughout the photoperiod = happy fish... when I feed my fish, the food goes in but secs later, you cannot see any of the food. my clowns are voracious eaters. they will compete with the bigger fishes in the tank and normally they get the pieces they aim for.

Gotta love those spunky little Clowns!

 

[MarvinsReef]

Gotta love those spunky little Clowns!

Sure do!


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[ShannPeach]

One more thought...feeding like this also keeps the "reef safe with caution" tenants "reef safe".

I agree with this. I think there are many "caution" fish that are just fine as long as you feed them enough of what they need to eat. Fish can be lazy too. If they are being handed their food, that is much easier than working all day to find something to eat in a tank.

 

[MarvinsReef]

I agree with this. I think there are many "caution" fish that are just fine as long as you feed them enough of what they need to eat. Fish can be lazy too. If they are being handed their food, that is much easier than working all day to find something to eat in a tank.

I like they are a little bit more active now. I can see the Yellow Tang eating more algae and the Majestic is following the Yellow Tang's lead of chowing down on the algae on return and overflow.


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[jedimasterben]

My opinion is to figure out what you think you should be feeding, and double it.

I feed my tank 1/8 teaspoon of NLS Small fish formula as many times per day as I remember to, maybe 3-5 times, sometimes I'll swap it for some of the NLS Finicky Fish formula, but those are larger pellets and mostly for the LPS in the tank. Also, the tank gets, daily (if I remember), 1/8 teaspoon of Reef Cleaners Filter Feeder food, 1/16 teaspoon of 5 micron Golden Pearls, 1/8 teaspoon of 300 micron Golden Pearls, 1/16 teaspoon of Coral Frenzy, .25mL of Selcon, 1mL of aquavitro Fuel, and 1 full cube of either Cyclop-eeze or mysis.

 

[kevinf]

Interesting post. I just turned my lights out yesterday because I've been having quite a bit of diatoms or it's cyano & hair algae. I feed my fish either pellets or mysis once a day. I use the flat pack PE mysis.. I'd say it's equivalent to 3/4ths cube. They all seem pretty darn full when I'm done. Even with the pellets they stop eating. I'm going to start rinsing the mysis now because of the algae. I'm hoping that lights out for a few days will make things better(I've never done lights out before).

 

[jedimasterben]

Rinsing food won't help keep phosphate down, contrary what is popularly spread around. It is food for filter feeders and copepods - the more juice the better.

 

[MarvinsReef]

Interesting post. I just turned my lights out yesterday because I've been having quite a bit of diatoms or it's cyano & hair algae. I feed my fish either pellets or mysis once a day. I use the flat pack PE mysis.. I'd say it's equivalent to 3/4ths cube. They all seem pretty darn full when I'm done. Even with the pellets they stop eating. I'm going to start rinsing the mysis now because of the algae. I'm hoping that lights out for a few days will make things better(I've never done lights out before).

rinsing the PE mysis might help but not much. also, if you don't black out the tank, I don't think it's very effective on getting rid of cyano. it will help but we really need to figure out the source of the Phosphate. it's a battle that can be won with patience and being diligent on a routine. personally, I'm still really pin pointing what caused it. if it's from stirring up my sand when I moved rocks around, then it's like a mini cycle and I just have to be patient until the tank bounce back. I'm just trying to remedy as much as I can to help speed up the process. good luck with your battle as well.

what fishes do you have? PE mysis are pretty big compared to regular mysis. if you have smaller fishes, I don't think it'll take much to get them full.

 

[kevinf]

rinsing the PE mysis might help but not much. also, if you don't black out the tank, I don't think it's very effective on getting rid of cyano. it will help but we really need to figure out the source of the Phosphate. it's a battle that can be won with patience and being diligent on a routine. personally, I'm still really pin pointing what caused it. if it's from stirring up my sand when I moved rocks around, then it's like a mini cycle and I just have to be patient until the tank bounce back. I'm just trying to remedy as much as I can to help speed up the process. good luck with your battle as well.

what fishes do you have? PE mysis are pretty big compared to regular mysis. if you have smaller fishes, I don't think it'll take much to get them full.

Well, a tiny back story to explain more.
I had a 50g w/ 15g sump running for over a year & when hurricane sandy hit I was in the process of upgrading to a 75g w/ 40g sump.
I run gfo & carbon w/ reef octopus nwb200 (Rated 250gallons brs rated 160gallons)/cheato in sump.. but only started to run it at the normal dose BRS recommends because I didn't want to shock anything.

ONE: I have phosphates is because of my harlequin shrimp. Depending on the size chocolate star I feed them either once or twice a month. I feed the WHOLE thing, so I know that is bad.

TWO: I had a barnacle blenny(which i've had for months) go missing. & recently a new purchased randel's goby has gone missing. 100% sure the blenny is dead. 98% sure the goby is dead.

Three: I purchased a mated pair of sleepy sand sifting gobies & longnose hawkfish last week(hawkfish because my wife has been eying it for few months now)

Four: I run radions. The light cycle is probably on wayyy too long. It's most intense white from 12pm to 5pm. It runs it's course from 9am-9pm(the inbetween is just blue's until ramps to 12pm

Fish list:
Melenarus wrasse
ora black and white clown
extreme snowflake clown
midas blenny
barnacle blenny
tankbred neon dottyback
(2) sleeper gobies
longnose hawkfish
ora spotted mandarin (eats pellets/mysis)
(2) harelquins
(1) scarlet shrimp
(1) emerald crab
tons of snails etc.
2 bta's/few rock nems/ + other corals.