Trust LFS with fish when gone for a week?

[Sooner Reefer]

Well this Thanksgiving I'll be gone for a week and I figure my fish can't fend for themselves since they're dependable for my fish food considering all they do is sit at the top and wait for food. So should I trust them to a lfs if there is a garuntee? What if there isn't? Is an auto feeder good? I've tried one and it didn't work but maybe there is a brand that does?

 

[gparr]

I don't know what fish you have, but I wouldn't hesitate to let my fish or tank go without food for three or four days. It'll probably do them and the tank some good. I'd be hesitant to move the fish to any tank. The stress alone is not worth it and it's a rare fish store that has trustworthy water. I've seen so many stores get shipments and dump the new arrivals in their water, along with whatever diseases/bugs come with them. Unless the store will isolate your fish in an independent aquarium, you'll subject them to whatever potential problems are in the main system.

Can you get someone to come to your home once or twice during your absence to check on your system and feed the fish? Measure out a portion for feeding to prevent overfeeding and give them a short checklist to help make sure the system is performing properly. Also have them do a fish head count.

I think it's a major mistake to move the fish.

Gary

 

[revhtree Verified Admin]

I agree with Gary 100%!

 

[Amphibious]

That is a dilemma and not a good one, IMHO. You would be better off finding an adult friend to come over ahead of time and go through your procedure. That's what I do PLUS, I have my person CALL ME when they are in my home. I walk them through the process and ask specific questions about how the system looks.

Good luck and Happy Thanksgiving.

Dick

 

[addocdreefer]

I also agree with gary 100%. I use a Nutramatic 2X auto feeder and it works ok with flakes and sinking pellets as long as the flakes are ground up to about the size of a pea. I use it above a feeding ring so all the food doesn't go directly into the overflow.

 

[oceanparadise1]

DO NOT MOVE THEM!!! i say worst case just let them go a week without food if you cant find anyone to help. it wont kill them they can always pick at the rocks! even if you can get some one to stop by twice and throw some food in there you will be fine!

 

[ficklefins]

The Eheim feeders have a good rep.
http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?c=3578+4430+4460&pcatid=4460

 

[oceanparadise1]

The Eheim feeders have a good rep.
http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?c=3578+4430+4460&pcatid=4460

thats not a bad price as well

 

[rroselavy]

We have a house sitter for vacations that also takes care of our senior dog and my fish. For $60 per day, we know whether our house, dog, and tank are doing fine. Peace of mind I suppose.

 

[Hypertek99]

I have gone without feeding my fish for a few days plenty of times. I would not take them to the LFS. They will find something to eat. Pods, algae, other critters. It'll take them awhile before they starve i'm pretty sure you'll be back before then. Unless your going for like a few weeks.

 

[SaraB]

The Eheim feeders have a good rep.
http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?c=3578+4430+4460&pcatid=4460

I agree, these are great feeders for trips away or for those fish that need more than one meal a day.

I have 4 of them myself!

 

[cparka23]

Unless you have finnicky eaters like the more exotic angelfish, going a week without a hand feeding is okay. I've been through that several times.

There are some things you can do in advance if you don't trust the auto feeder. If you're talking about tangs, you can put a couple of leaves of lettuce on a tank clip before you go. Otherwise, you could just add an extra feeding to help tie them over. You really don't want to overfeed before leaving, since your water quality will suffer without anyone around to do any maintenance. This is especially true for smaller aquariums.

Last thing I did was to turn off my temperamental skimmer. One less thing to worry about going nuts and less water evaporation from the pump's heat.

 

[Sooner Reefer]

Thanks for the response guys. I would normaly not be worried and let them scavenge for food but they are my two black and white ORA clowns and they seem really dependent on having me feeding them, I never see them scavenge, not even at night. I'll be gone Sat. afternoon till a week later. I'll probably be able to do a check up/feeding on Wensday late at night, so I guess it'll work out. I didn't know since like I said I don't catch my fish looking for food other than the stuff that comes from the top of the tank lol.