How many pellets are to much?

[RD.]

It's a rather simple equation, that is not always so simplistic to put into practice. Ideally you do not want the energy input, to exceed the energy output. A simple equation that applies to most life forms, including humans, dogs, etc as any excess energy gets stored as fat. Fat builds up in the tissue, and more importantly in & around vital organs such as the liver, and over the long haul it can diminish the overall health of the fish, and in severe cases cause premature death.


To quote Dr. Ruth Francis-Floyd, a professor at the U of Florida whom is considerd by many to be an expert on fish nutrition;

"Fatty infiltration of the liver has also been designated "the most common metabolic disturbance and most frequent cause of death in aquarium fish"

Perform a necropsy on a fish that has been overfed on a high energy diet and what you will typically find is fatty infiltration of the liver, heavy vacuolation, and severe necrosis of the liver, pancreas, and spleen. These types of conditions have been demonstrated in contolled feed trials using cichlids (both omnivores & carnivores) that were only a few months old, with the damage taking place within a 12 week feed trial.

An interesting past discussion on this topic.

Interesting read for those who feed fish multiple times a day

http://www.monsterfishkeepers.com/f...-for-those-who-feed-fish-multiple-times-a-day



Just some food for thought .........

 

[MTBjake]

Wow, wish I had seen this earlier, you got some really piss poor advice from some members here.

feed for 5 minutes - 3 times a day - feed beefheart, chicken liver, etc.

Are you people freaking high?


First off the OP's flowerhorn is only 5". Secondly he is feeding it a mix of pellets that are VERY high octane fuel, and are VERY large in size for this fish. (6mm) Both the 6mm NLS TherA and ChingMix pellets are very nutrient dense with high protein & fat in both feeds. You do NOT want to overfeed these types of foods to any fish, and most certainly not a flowerhorn whose genetics are based on species classified as omnivores, not carnivores.

When feeding a juvenile fish, any juvenile fish, gauge the amount that you feed on the approx size of their stomach - don't just allow it to gorge itself for 5 minutes straight!

As an example, for a 5" FH 9 of the 6mm NLS pellets would more than fill its stomach, I would simply change it to feeding 4-5 pellets twice a day. Which is plenty for a fish this size!

The unfortunate reality is that the vast majority of people in this hobby, overfeed their fish. Add to that a diet that greatly exceeds a fishes immediate energy requirements, and the result is typically fatty deposition of the liver. The problem with fatty deposition of the liver is you can't see it with the naked eye, it can build up very quickly, and if not corrected can shave years off of the life of an otherwise healthy specimen.

And people wonder why their FH's don't live very long, well doh!

And just to show what kind of growth one can get by feeding NLS (exclusively), in a controlled manner (not 5 minute gorge-fests!), check out the growth on my KK over a 5 month period.

http://www.monsterfishkeepers.com/forums/showthread.php?370120-Update-on-my-KK


HTH

Lol! Op, please listen to RDs advice. I feed like this (much healthier for the fish) and the benefits are phenomenal. In addition to healthier fish, you save food costs and water quality is much better. There is no need to over feed. After so much time a fish will begin to process out even the nutrients because his body will be over saturated and all you're doing at that point is wasting. Hope this makes sense. Good luck.


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[Flowerhorn89]

Thanks, I vacuum the tank every day changing out about 10% water and getting rid of the poop on the bottom and I do 50% water changes once a week as well. He seems happy with his updated food.

Good, I vacuum my tank daily too. Its a very good practise
About feeding your fish, don't get confused reading all these comments
Just Google up a good feeding schedule. Everyone here has a different advise to give. So research well. Do post some pics too

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[Flowerhorn89]

This is a decent guide.
http://www.myflowerhorn.com/2011/08/how-to-make-flowerhorn-head-kok-bigger.html?m=1

http://www.myflowerhorn.com/2012/05/how-to-enhance-color-of-your-flowerhorn.html?m=1

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[F1 VET]

#1 cause of death-over feeding
#2 cause of death-under feeding

Find a good balance, especially as the fish ages and its metabolic rate slows, thus multiple times per day does more bad then good.

Most lfs just pump them full of food, a fat looking fish doesn't mean its healthy! Also, strong current helps the fish exercise and burn energy.

_________________________________________________________________________
http://www.monsterfishkeepers.com/forums/showthread.php?504763-Cheap-plants-less-nitrate!-POTHOS

*Go S. Vettel #1 rb8--2 MORE RACES LEFT! SEE YOU IN TEXAS BOYS! LET'S MAKE IT 3 BACK TO BACK WDC!* :beer:

 

[RD.]

Feeding flowerhorns is no different than feeding any other large Central American type cichlid.

There is no mystery, nothing magical, the exact same science & feed applications used to raise cichlids in captivity can and should be applied to flowerhorns.

BTW Vet, the #2 cause of death is NOT under feeding, in all my years I have never seen a flowerhorn die from starvation or malnourishment.

 

[Armand]

^^^^^Well OP, I've been reading this forum for a while and I can tell you thar just a handfull of people seem to be the most experienced regarding Keeping FH. RD is one of them I advise you to stick to what he says.

There's another forummite whose opinions seem very accurated but he hasn't been here lately, it is that dude that goes as @Water, another of my fave posters in this subforum.





Cheers.

 

[adixon816]

Feeding flowerhorns is no different than feeding any other large Central American type cichlid.

There is no mystery, nothing magical, the exact same science & feed applications used to raise cichlids in captivity can and should be applied to flowerhorns.

BTW Vet, the #2 cause of death is NOT under feeding, in all my years I have never seen a flowerhorn die from starvation or malnourishment.

Thank you all very much for your input, it is much appreciated. He is no longer eating the 6mm NLS pellets he decided he no longer wants sinking food. He is now eating on an alternating schedule of Hikari, Chingmix, Hikari, Chingmix and seems to be doing ok. After the storm when we lost power two days for about 12 hours each day he was very faded from his tank temperature dropping. He is doing quite well his colors are back and a deeper red then ever. I am worried lately his poop has been gray (it's definitely not white) I am afraid it is hexamita so I have dosed his tank with epsom salt @ 1 tablespoon per 10 gallons. His food is also being soaked in it prior to feeding. He chose not to eat it yesterday but today has since changed his mind. His appetite and energy are still good so I am hoping to catch it early. I am feeding him twice a day about 6-8 pellets per time. Any other advice/tips are appreciated.

 

[apotamkin]

Hello FHRU im newbie in flowerhorn specially in terminologies experts are using. Today i learned the term "pumping up" "pump up" i get the point but i had no idea how to do that. Guys please help. I have 2 FH both are Thai ZZ, 1 is 2.5" and the other 1 is 4" tip to tip Diet: humpy head and shimp. i know they are both males but has no KOK. please help.

 

[Brobstfish]

Feeding flowerhorns is no different than feeding any other large Central American type cichlid.

There is no mystery, nothing magical, the exact same science & feed applications used to raise cichlids in captivity can and should be applied to flowerhorns.

BTW Vet, the #2 cause of death is NOT under feeding, in all my years I have never seen a flowerhorn die from starvation or malnourishment.

+1


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