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How long can fish last in an aquarium without food?

DVad3r

DVad3r

Diamond Member
I have been left over watching my aunts fish while she is in Cuba. No idea what type of fish they are, but they look tropical. How often do you think they need to be fed? Everyday? Every second day? How long can they last without being fed?
 
no, they don't have to be fed everyday. cichlid females will go 4-5 weeks without food while holding their fry. Feeding them every few days will be fine.
 
Originally posted by: Verse914
no, they don't have to be fed everyday. cichlid females will go 4-5 weeks without food while holding their fry.
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You sure? 4-5 weeks lol, my aunt feeds them everyday, in small amounts, sounds a bit extreme.
 
yes, 4-5 weeks (i bred cichlids for years and still have females holding in my tank). Every day feedings are normal, but not necessary.
 
I'd still feed them every day. Don't overfeed though. Only give them the amount of food they'll totally consume in a few minutes. Overfeeding leads to nasty water and clogged filters. It's better to underfeed than overfeed. You can always feed them a little more after they've eaten the first little bit.
 
How often you feed them depends on the type of fish and size of the tank. I'd suggest calling a local pet store and asking about the fish.
 
id say the most you should feed them is once a day. once every other day is what i would suggest. and dont overfeed them. follow the directions and only feed what they eat in 5 minutes or less, or whatever the directions say.
 
Lots of answers here from people who have no clue...

the CORRECT answer is:

Originally posted by: Nik
How often you feed them depends on the type of fish and size of the tank. I'd suggest calling a local pet store and asking about the fish.
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Every species is different in their feeding requirements.

Some may be able to survive for weeks without supplemental feeding (other than what they can forage in the tank) while others will start to decline after a couple of days. MOST can survive for a week without feeding with no problem.

If you have big fish mixed with little fish, the big fish should do fine...(yes it's true...big fish eat little fish, depending on the species of both) but the little fish have faster metabolisms and if they don't get eaten, they usually start to waste away pretty quickly.

I realize the OP is totally clueless about what kind of fish are in the tank, so calling a pet store may not be of help. (unless he's willing to pay someone to come look at the tank)

"I dunno what kind they are...there's 2 red ones, a big blue one, a couple of silver ones........but they look tropical"



The safest choice is to feed the fish once per day. Feed only as much as the fish will eat in ONE minute...if they gobble it all up immediately, feed the same amount again...and again if necessary.

Over-feeding is worse than underfeeding because it will lead to tank pollution.

How long is she supposed to be gone? Most tanks NEED regular water changes and filter maintenance...by someone who has some idea what they're doing.
 
She's going to be gone for 2 weeks. Tank pollution won't kill the fish though right? I'm going to feed them once every 2-3 days, just to be on the safe side.
 
Nah, if she's only gone for 2 weeks or so, the water should be fine as long as YOU don't pollute it by overfeeding.
 
I haven't fed them in 4 days, today I went to feed them and it was crazy. They were jumping out of the tank trying to catch food. They are 8x the regular amount. The other cunning little fish were even eating the fat fishes different food which they aren't supposed to like. What a nice frenzy, I think if I had fish Id purposely not feed them for long peroids of time just to witness the mayhem.
 
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