Any evidence that fasting actually benefits fish?

[Polypterus]

there are very little legitimate scientific study on fish keeping lol.

most of what we know are derived from what has been studied on humans and other animals. aside from "scientific studies", it's the experiences from expert keepers that help us answer most of our common questions to fish keeping.

Please tell me you are joking with this statement...

There is a whole scientific discipline that is specific to Keeping fish alive and reproducing them in captivity, it is called Aquaculture and it is a multi-billion dollar industry with huge amounts of scientific data collected and published..Where do you think "Expert keepers" (I prefer Hobbyists) go to develop their craft???

Sorry... It ain't a fish forum man....It is the Journals of the AFS, ASIH, Etc...

 

[M|L]

indeed, aquaculture. so what studies of aquaculture is available that really makes sense to the average aquarist? lol all I could remember reading are 50 page reports on maybe parasites on fish, the best and cheapest food for like salmon that can boost their growth, or how they mass breed tilapia and stuff them in enormous ponds/holding facilities. honestly, most of us don't go out and listen to a scientist telling us how to rear our fish. we get that information through books, internet, hobby magazines, etc.

of course, i could also be ignorant about this whole thing.

 

[davo]

I like to find any articles on all the fish i keep. There are some on some fish (especially the newer ones described in science), but some there is nought. It's not always necessarily useful to the hobbiest, but sometimes you get stuff like stomach contents, natural habitat and behaviour-stuff like that that you can learn from and incoorporate into fishkeeping.

 

[Polypterus]

indeed, aquaculture. so what studies of aquaculture is available that really makes sense to the average aquarist? lol all I could remember reading are 50 page reports on maybe parasites on fish, the best and cheapest food for like salmon that can boost their growth, or how they mass breed tilapia and stuff them in enormous ponds/holding facilities. honestly, most of us don't go out and listen to a scientist telling us how to rear our fish. we get that information through books, internet, hobby magazines, etc.

of course, i could also be ignorant about this whole thing.

Just as an example:
Read this: http://www.ext.vt.edu/pubs/fisheries/420-256/420-256.html

then this:

I feed all of my fish twice a week. They do fine, and the water quality is great.

Now tell me which one just gave you more info on feeding frequency, and feed utilization that could be applied to keeping large predatory fish in captivity...

 

[apistomaster]

Please tell me you are joking with this statement...

There is a whole scientific discipline that is specific to Keeping fish alive and reproducing them in captivity, it is called Aquaculture and it is a multi-billion dollar industry with huge amounts of scientific data collected and published..Where do you think "Expert keepers" (I prefer Hobbyists) go to develop their craft???

Sorry... It ain't a fish forum man....It is the Journals of the AFS, ASIH, Etc...

One of the best books is Martin Moe's Marine Aquarium Referrence.
Do not be deterred by the title. It is one of the best in depth source of hobbyist aquaculture, technology and water chemistry ever printed.
All very relevant to freshwater aquariums or systems.

 

[filiportela]

there are very little legitimate scientific study on fish keeping lol.

most of what we know are derived from what has been studied on humans and other animals. aside from "scientific studies", it's the experiences from expert keepers that help us answer most of our common questions to fish keeping.

it's known that if you overfeed an animal, the digestive system (namely, the small intestines) can not extract the nutrients properly because the food is being moved through the system too quickly.

fasting is also trying to imitate the feeding patterns of the fish in the wild. a lot of predators don't get to eat 2, 3 or more meals a day as they would in captive care. so fasting is part of a natural feeding cycle when food may be scarce during certain time of the season.

this is rigth

 

[tyl089]

i'm going to be fasting my fish for a day or two to see if they will help me get rid of some of my baby convict frys.

 

[santoury]

I wanted to put something else out there that seems to have been overlooked......

Fish (And other animals) get obese when fed too much! Fasting will help reduce the potential for obesity. As said earlier by somebody else, feeding too much also reduces the body's ability to effectively incorporate all the proteins, nutrients from the food - so, not only are you wasting food through pooping, you're also inviting obesity by feeding "too much" (daily.) In nature food is not immediately at hand everyday, so I would say it's only natural, and healthy, for a fish to keep its weight in check, as well as fasting now and then, due to weather conditions, lack of food, etc.

Be reminded, also, that in an aquarium, they get a large amount of food at one time, as opposed to just grabbing a small bite here and there, which is the case for most predatory fish in the wild. So, in essence, a fish in the wild is "fasting" in between each meal it comes across.

 

[davo]

That would depend on species. For example, i feed some of my plecos more often than once a day, just a little amount. A member here mentioned that he knew someone who fed a certain species almost hourly... dedication, but just a thought. Big predators may have a boom and bust feeding, but not everything does.

 

[toehead11183]

i think its got to be good for my C. loaches. those fatties need to fast