Can you feed to death?

[Pomatomus]

Yes, some fish will eat to death, depending on the species. I vaguely recall hearing that some puffers will do this. For many fish living in the wild, food is simply consumed as it comes to them. For fish in such situations the amount they eat is regulated by availability as opposed to feeling full, so over time they have lost a lot of the stretch receptors in their stomachs. Although these fishes fill up on food, they don't feel it and their greed can lead to their demise. And I have a feeling that there is quite a spectrum of gastrointestinal sensitivity among fishes....

Actually overfeeding is the 2nd biggest cause of death in ornamental fish, underfeeding being the 1st.....

Really?! I'm just curious where you heard this. Maybe it's true for the home aquarist, but from working in the trade for years I'm highly skeptical. Especially regarding underfeeding. But I definitely want to read about such statistics!

 

[popss]

Actually overfeeding is the 2nd biggest cause of death in ornamental fish, underfeeding being the 1st.....

A hungry fish is a healthy fish IMO and IME.

But for younger fish they metabolize food faster thus more feedings are necessary, when they get older they slow down so bigger less often feedings are good but it all depends on the fish! Variety is great just balance it out!

If Water quality/nutrition/tank space are ideal in most cases the fish will be a bombshell!




×Go S Vettel #1 Infiniti Redbull! 4x WDC!!! Congrats on another flawless title and 7 wins in a row going on 8, see you in Texas boys!×
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Cheap way to decrease nitrates and keep your fish healthy: [url]http://monsterfishkeepers.com/forums/showthread.php?t=504763 [/URL]

Hu? can you clarify a bit? may be just me, but your post seems to be a oxymoron, (no that's not an insult). feed less but bigger? I agree variety.

 

[petspoiler]

problems ensuing from eating dehydrated foods, would not technically be cases of "over eating" to death. it's just food swelling inside fish. foods which are in the normal state of hydration won't have this effect.

In context, I think F1 was referring to long term over-feeding, which causes obesity and fatty liver problems. not isolated gorging incidents which can cause fast-onset gut problems (such as my 2 suspicious examples).
Shortened lifespan from fatty liver deposits has been well documented in forum discussions. not only from over feeding, but poor quality food choices. this shows in post-mortem internal exams.

 

[dogofwar]

I'd rank underfeeding of fish - especially cichlids - about 569th in rank of cause of death. Poor water quality, aggression, improper stocking, overfeeding, jumping out and about a million other things occur more frequently than underfeeding!

Anyway, some pikes don't seem to have a gorge sensor and can pop their bellies. The expansion of freeze dried food could cause it, especially with small fish.

Feeding pikes (and other predatory fish) daily isn't necessarily a good thing. I feed my pikes a couple of red wigglers each 2 times per week...and pellets a couple of days per week. They're built for fasting, so it's better to feed them less vs. more.

I'm, of course, a big fan of red wigglers, which I culture myself. Pikes and others love them, I've had no issues with disease...and they're free!

Matt

Actually overfeeding is the 2nd biggest cause of death in ornamental fish, underfeeding being the 1st.....

A hungry fish is a healthy fish IMO and IME.

But for younger fish they metabolize food faster thus more feedings are necessary, when they get older they slow down so bigger less often feedings are good but it all depends on the fish! Variety is great just balance it out!

If Water quality/nutrition/tank space are ideal in most cases the fish will be a bombshell!




×Go S Vettel #1 Infiniti Redbull! 4x WDC!!! Congrats on another flawless title and 7 wins in a row going on 8, see you in Texas boys!×
__________________________________________________________________

Cheap way to decrease nitrates and keep your fish healthy: http://monsterfishkeepers.com/forums/showthread.php?t=504763

 

[RD.]

Underfeeding has never been the leading cause of death in any species of ornamental fish ..........


Some of the nations leading experts on fish nutrition (Juli-Anne B. Royesa, Ruth Francis-Floyd, et al) have stated:

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

But as previously stated neither scenario has anything to do with this particular issue. I personally do not feed freeze dried foods.

 

[tiger15]

Goldfish are stupid and known to eat, eat and eat until they blow up and die.