My take on a proper diet for giant gourami's

[Capten_Munch]

From my endless research on a GG's diet (from reading on the internet), i've come to the conclusion that they are indeed Herbivores that will occasionally feed on animal matter when possible, especially when the opportunity arises.

They are oppurtunistic eaters that will eat anything, but i get the feeling that having 75% of their diet should consist of vegetation, fruits and algae where as the rest are supplementary animal matter to fill in their bellies if plant matter is scarce. Or, as an additional supplement for their small need on protein matter to help a little bit with growth and development

I get the feeling that feeding GG's on an overload of high in protein (animal/ insect matter) content could lead to various trouble with their digestive systems.

Overall, what do you guys think of my conclusion. Im quite new to fishes in general but i tend to base my opinions from endless reading from countless threads, forums, blogs, and articles.

I've been quite frustrated on the lack of info with GG's. It's tough on me to properly take care of
my baby GG when there isn't a proper conclusion on their diet.

Feel free to give your own personal input on a GG's diet, i'm dying to know, and you are more than welcomed to disagree with my statement on a GG's diet

 

[jjohnwm]

So...they're omnivores, which is what pretty much everyone has always said about them. Saying that they are "herbivores that will occasionally feed on animal matter" is akin to my buddy's wife's claim that she is a vegetarian, but one who really enjoys an occasional nice rare steak.

I suspect that GG's are similar to Green Iguanas and many other "herbivorous" reptiles; as young hatchlings, they eat a great deal of insect and other animal protein by choice; as they grow they tend more and more towards an herbivorous food intake, but will never completely outgrow a predilection to scarfing down a worm or insect if the chance arises. The need for protein decreases as they get larger and their rate of growth slows down; another factor is their decreased agility and speed, making them more and more ill-suited for the pursuit of prey.

I've said it before, and I stick to my opinion: there are virtually no fish or other animals that are truly 100% carnivorous or 100% herbivorous. "Pure" carnivores still ingest vegetable matter in the form of recently eaten material in the guts of their prey, and may frequently consume fruit as well. "Pure" herbivores not only eat numerous insects and other invertebrates that are ingested incidentally with foliage, but can occasionally be seen purposely eating small animals.

Never say never.

My take on the diet for GG's in captivity is that you would really need to try hard, for an extended period of time, to create any problems for them.

 

[esoxlucius]

Im quite new to fishes in general but i tend to base my opinions from endless reading from countless threads, forums, blogs, and articles.

You'll just give yourself an headache doing that. Don't overthink it. The most important thing by far is to feed a varied diet. And you can be as varied as you like with GG, they must be one of the unfussiest fish in the hobby regarding diet. Mine's 7 years old and has gone from 2" to 20" and is the picture of health.

He loves prawns, crickets and especially earthworms for a bit of protein, and you can really take your pick with fruit and veg. Mine especially loves strawberries, raspberries, blueberries and grapes fruitwise. Veg, he loves brussel sprouts, green beans, cucumber, lettuce, peas and cooked leafy cabbage.

And of course there is always your staple pellet/wafer foods from your fish food stock. Just mix and match and keep it varied and you'll be absolutely fine.

A good tip for you as well.
GG can be messy eaters at the best of times. A lot of food will come out of their gills as they "chew" it. I've found that this mess can be minimised if the mouthfuls are smaller. For example, if I hand-feed him a full strawberry half of it will be in the water column. If I chop the strawberry up into quarters and feed it that way, there isn't half as much mess. Keep the mouthfuls small. Let them swallow what's in their mouths before feeding the next piece.

Here's my gentle giant.....

 

[jjohnwm]

One more suggestion: back when I had mine, I'd wager that 30% of its diet consisted of duckweed from my other tanks. Another significant fraction was taken up by Caulerpa macroalgae from my marine tanks. And in the summer, dandelions...the whole plant...were a huge favourite.