Can i ask if im feeding my dovii the right amount

[Rubywee]

im feeding my dovii all natural diet of meal worms , tuna , blue marlin ,cod and shrimps he is now 6" and i feed him 1 meal worm 1 piece of fish about the size of cichlid gold pellet medium and 1 pc shrimp same size as the fish at noon time and then about 9 hours later at night i feed him 1 worm 1 piece of fish and 2 pieces of shrimp am i overfeeding?if not how long do i have to wait before i can 1 more worm to each of his meal?and how long can i expect before he reaches 9" to 10"?his tank is only 125g now but will be moving him to a 250g soon maybe 3 months from now and i do 50% water changes every 3 days if anyone is wondering why we opted for this diet its because he rejected 7 kind of pellets we have tried fasting him first for 2 days then 5 days then 7 days even tried soaking pellet in garlic all to no avail appreciate your input thanks

 

[TheWolfman]

Start sneaking the pellets inside of the cut fish and shrimp.

 

[Rubywee]

Start sneaking the pellets inside of the cut fish and shrimp.

Hmm no offense sir but i prefer this diet i was just asking sir if im overfeeding or not?and when can i add 1 more meal worm to his diet 15days or 30days?and if i continue with this diet when do you think he will reach 9-10"?

 

[Audaxcity]

My fish actually don't like foods containing garlic, weirdly. If you want him to eat pellet, you have to fast him even longer. I'm talking near a month if he doesn't accept it. Don't do it at this size though, he's still growing.

For my fish, I just feed as much as they will eat, and fast them for a day or two on weekends. When your Dovii hits around the 10 inch mark, start feeding every 2nd day.

As for his diet, switch from mealworms to superworms. Less chitin, more protein, less fat, and are easier to keep. Switch to less oily fish as well (eg catfish, tilapia, cod, rockfish), or your water will suffer. Save the blue marlin and tuna for the pan.

 

[dan518]

Nobody can really answer that, there are to many verifiables such as flow rate, activity, difference between individual fish ect.
I try to aim for a slight bulge in the stomach after feeding, which turns flat a few hours after.
Wild dovii get a certain amount of vegetable matter from the gut content of the prey they eat, something missing from the diet your feeding at the moment, I personally would persevere on getting him on a quality pellet as a staple diet, with the occasional treat.

 

[TheWolfman]

Hmm no offense sir but i prefer this diet i was just asking sir if im overfeeding or not?and when can i add 1 more meal worm to his diet 15days or 30days?and if i continue with this diet when do you think he will reach 9-10"?

You tryed starved your Fish to get him on pellets right? Well if he’s not eating them then how do you think your going to fool him into eating them. I’ve used this method before and it works well the fish don’t even realize. Good luck.

 

[smitty03281964]

As far as him not readily taking pellets. Holding him without food for up to 7 days was nothing, since they can go even longer in the wild without eating. Trust he will not let himself starve to death. I had a similar problem with Dovi and believe me that issue can be fixed.

 

[Covetous]

I don’t think your overfeeding, but really only you and the fish can know that. Watch for its stomach to always be fat and the fish to be slightly lethargic and then you’ll know your overfeeding. As dan518 said, slight bulge then flattens later.

I would add some type of plant matter. Be it peas or algae or some sort of vegetable. Even if it’s just every other day. It helps the digestive system. As was said they usually get it via gut content