Channel cats and bullfrogs

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That's exactly what I wanted to know---the shop where we bought the little fish didn't really know anything about them except that they do well in ponds, they can handle our "winter", and they grow fast. Ours were teeny tiny, maybe a couple of inches for the little one and only slightly more for the bigger one. How much do you feed them? I give them sinking food because anything that floats will go over the waterfall into the little piggy pond and the koi and goldfish are all right there waiting!

This is Big Boy when we first moved in.

BigBoy 1.jpg

BigBoy 1.jpg
 
Well, that can be a bit tricky. The usual advises include: whatever they can eat up in ~5 min ~3 times a day (needs to float so that you see the action; for ponds; this is mostly for koi/goldfish type fishes) or until their bellies bulge significantly (for catfish; don't feed again until the belly goes flat; for aquaria).

So, you could guesstimate the size of their stomach: for a 4"-5" fish, it is like a small pinch of pellets. Once or twice a day, that's fine. Pellets are an easy food, quickly digested. If you want your guys to grow asap, give them meat - anything like fish or shrimp pieces, sea food, etc. Again, the cats eat rarely but a lot in one setting. This is their design and behavior in the wild. Unlike koi/carp, who eat little by little all day and all night (koi's stomach is the size of the koi's eye), cats eat mostly huge meals but rarely and have huge stretchable stomachs. So, one can give them a protein-rich meal that is 2-3 times bigger than their "normal empty" stomach and then give them 1-2-3 days to digest. That's where hand-feeding comes in handy - you usually know if they are way full or still hungry.

:) I know all too well about the little piggy ponds, being a koi enthusiast as well. They are shameless begging piglets with fins :)

Here are mine first two channels called Barb and Lenny (old thread) http://www.planetcatfish.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=13&t=29628&hilit=channel

Our beloved koi pond we left in Rochester NY a year ago... http://www.planetcatfish.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=30929&hilit=+yard
 
thebiggerthebetter, thank you! Those pics are awesome and that was a beautiful pond you left behind. My husband is from the Rochester area too, but he hasn't been back there in awhile.

wargreen, that's what I was worried about, but I have seen both of them now and I haven't seen the bullfrog since I scared him off. Maybe he went to the neighbor's pond!

kevinfleming21, you're right--I think they're too big now. I hadn't seen them in awhile so I wasn't sure how big they were, but now that I've seen both of them, I can tell that they're really starting to look like catfish!
 
We couldn't figure out how old he was, but we were guessing somewhere between 5-7 years. The previous owner got him from a neighbor down the street when Big Boy outgrew his pond (his is a tiny front yard pond) and he got even bigger here, but I don't know how long he was here before we bought the house.

However, this is my baby cat that we'd only had for about 4 or 5 months when he ended up in the piggy pond. It's not a good picture, but he's right next to one of the koi so you can see how little he was:

Baby Cat 1.jpg That was 7 months ago and he's at least twice that size now. I caught him and put him back in his own pond where they have more room. I saw the bigger one last night and he's starting to look like a mini version of Big Boy, so they do grow fast!

Baby Cat 1.jpg
 
JustJack said:
thebiggerthebetter, thank you! Those pics are awesome and that was a beautiful pond you left behind. My husband is from the Rochester area too, but he hasn't been back there in awhile.
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Thanks much. Small world. Please do come back with pics and updates every now and then... pics will be easier when you train them to hand-feed :)

Well, duh!!?? I forgot to look at your avatar pic...
 
Yep, that's Big Boy in my avatar pic. My goal this weekend is to clean up the pond area and cut back the elephant ears so I can actually see the pond again. Hope to have more pics soon if I can climb on my neighbor's shed roof while my hubby's not home to see me do it!
 
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