Largemouth or spotted bass feeding

Brekkem

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Apr 14, 2017
8
1
3
29
Good evening everyone, my name is Michael I'm new to the forums obviously, anyways I have a 4.5 maybe 5 inch bass in my tank. I asked on a very old thread trying to bump it for more information, but to no avail so if any admins have a problem with this thread please just send me a pm and I apologize in advance. Ok back to business I've had the bass a few days at first I had only fed him red worms and he loved them, I have a stream/creek by my house and made a little bottle trap to get some minnows it worked but the only issue is all the minnows I got were around 3 inches, I put 2 in the tank last night and he left them alone when I got home from work today around 2pm I turned his light on (i opened the curtain so he had some sun regardless) but when I turned on the aquarium light he went crazy chasing both of them and finally he caught one. It was cool to see, but seeing the bulge in his gut made me wonder if I should stick to stuff a little smaller and more pleantiful? Any suggestions? I assume creek minnows are healthier than the overstocked pet store feeders, worms seem to be good, should I throw in ghost shrimp for variety here and there or maybe crickets? I've seen some people say they will eat themselves to death and some say they stop when full does anyone have experience that can let me know? His water is kept at 68, I have double the filtration on the tank and an aerator. He seems like a happy dude, I don't plan on keeping too long as I don't have a 1,000 gallon tank which in my opinion is what a adult bass needs or more, anyways what would you guys suggest?

Ps I have no interest what so ever in pellet food.
 

dcorreia

Gambusia
MFK Member
Jun 24, 2010
139
4
18
Sacramento
Bass won't eat themselfs to death but they can and sometimes do try to eat something too big for it to get down and choke to death. If you feed him a couple bigger fish or plenty of smaller fish you will be good. Variety is always good and will make him grow faster, so if you can supplement his minnows with shrimp and worms, you will have a healthy fish. I keep a live well set up in my pond where I keep his food, usually minnows, bluegill, crayfish, whatever. That way I can feed him a few things a day. If I toss all his food in at once he will literally try to eat or kill everything in one night and all it's wasted. They are super easy fish to maintain so don't over think it. The biggest thing is filtration. They eat a lot and create a lot of waste so make sure your water clean and he will be happy.
 

dcorreia

Gambusia
MFK Member
Jun 24, 2010
139
4
18
Sacramento
Also, about the size of his food, if you stick to fish half his size he will have no problem. So if hes 6", then 3" minnows are fine. He can eat bigger but you run into the risk of it getting stuck in his throat. Also because of the slender shape of minnows they are easier to swallow then bluegill and other panfish.
 

Brekkem

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Apr 14, 2017
8
1
3
29
Also, about the size of his food, if you stick to fish half his size he will have no problem. So if hes 6", then 3" minnows are fine. He can eat bigger but you run into the risk of it getting stuck in his throat. Also because of the slender shape of minnows they are easier to swallow then bluegill and other panfish.
Thanks for the advice, his diet thus far has consisted of red worms, rosey reds from pet store I think fat head minnows are the same from my creek and he had his first couple ghost shrimp today, he's very smart I haven't had him long and he will already take a worm from my hand. He's ready every time I walk near the tank today my gf bought the 2 ghost shrimp, a goldfish, and five roseys for him he devoured all except 1 ghost and 1 minnow in the first 5 mins and they were also gone within the hour. Which made me wonder should I feed him till he stops eating or what? When should I draw the line? I don't want to keep constant food in there because like you said he will take everything out and it'll be a waste also I feel the chances of disease and ammonia spikes are less if he eats them quickly and they aren't swimming around with him for any length of time. Any advice on this is greatly appreciated. Also when it comes to pet store feeders easily available the options are goldfish, minnows, ghost shrimp, and crickets. I'm often working 60 hours plus so I find it easier at times to run by there and grab his food than to trap my own all the time. I'm planning on introducing crickets soon. And last, should he eat daily or every other day, etc...? Thank you
 

dcorreia

Gambusia
MFK Member
Jun 24, 2010
139
4
18
Sacramento
I've found if you feed them a little each day they will grow faster than if you feed them large amounts a couple times a week.
I'd recommend getting another tank for your bait. I will net or buy a lot of fish at once and keep them in my bait tank. Then I feed my bass a few fish each day. It's a lot easier then running to the store a few times a week.
Either way works though, in the wild they go through periods of not eating and eating well.
 

dcorreia

Gambusia
MFK Member
Jun 24, 2010
139
4
18
Sacramento

Here is a short video of my bass eating, he's in an outdoor pond, about 1,000 gallons. Also have a bluegill in there.
 

Brekkem

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Apr 14, 2017
8
1
3
29
Cool video dcorreia, thanks for sharing. So far he is doing well, he eats minnows, red worms, and ghost shrimp. Going to introduce a few crickets soon. I can post a video if any of you are interested. He's in a 29 gallon which I know in all realism he's too big already even at 5.5 maybe 6 inches now, I don't plan on restricting him just keeping until 7-8 inches while I find the pond I want to stick him in (have a few options but would love to find one where I can possibly see him again and see him progress) he was a quick learner and begs for a meal any time I come near. Thanks for the help everyone.

Ps if you have kids and want to get them into fishing. Having this fish and them getting to watch him eat has done better than anything I've tried to get them wanting to fish and with artificial too. Give em a bobber and a gulp minnow and they're having fun pulling bluegill and the occasional crappie and bass.
 

Strikerfishmaster69

Feeder Fish
Oct 4, 2019
2
0
1
41
Hey guys new to the site. Caught a 3 inch largemouth bass a few days ago. Southern Ontario. Chemong lake to be exact. Kept it to put in my tank. Was doing very well for about 3 days but wouldn’t eat the normal fish flake food so I went to the pet store and bought 10 rosy red feeder fish to feed it before I went to bed. I put them in one at a time and the little guy attacked them instantly. They were about an Inch in length each maximum maybe at bit smaller. Anyways he ate about 4-5 at first. There might of been 1-2 more rosy reds that I put in the tank that were swimming around after The last one he ate he was having a hard time swallowing so I put the last 3-4 in my piraña tank. I’ve heard about fish eating until they die so I was a bit concerned. But he seemed fine. So I went to bed. I checked up on him in the morning around 8am and he was still doing ok. Around 2-3 pm checked up on him and he had died. Was very upset. Thought he would be around for a while. I’ve read a couple posts and everyone seems to be saying that they can’t over eat. But I’m pretty sure that’s why he died. Can anyone confirm if the same has happened to them. Thanks.
 

TheWolfman

Goliath Tigerfish
MFK Member
Sep 5, 2010
1,423
2,348
179
37
Long island, NY
Hey guys new to the site. Caught a 3 inch largemouth bass a few days ago. Southern Ontario. Chemong lake to be exact. Kept it to put in my tank. Was doing very well for about 3 days but wouldn’t eat the normal fish flake food so I went to the pet store and bought 10 rosy red feeder fish to feed it before I went to bed. I put them in one at a time and the little guy attacked them instantly. They were about an Inch in length each maximum maybe at bit smaller. Anyways he ate about 4-5 at first. There might of been 1-2 more rosy reds that I put in the tank that were swimming around after The last one he ate he was having a hard time swallowing so I put the last 3-4 in my piraña tank. I’ve heard about fish eating until they die so I was a bit concerned. But he seemed fine. So I went to bed. I checked up on him in the morning around 8am and he was still doing ok. Around 2-3 pm checked up on him and he had died. Was very upset. Thought he would be around for a while. I’ve read a couple posts and everyone seems to be saying that they can’t over eat. But I’m pretty sure that’s why he died. Can anyone confirm if the same has happened to them. Thanks.
Was this fish in a newly setup aquarium?
 
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