I posted this question on another forum and am just looking to get as many responses and ideas as possible on this.
I'm new to rays and have been reading all I can find for the last several months before I make my first purchase (motoro's). Been keeping/breeding fish for 20 years, so have plenty of aquatic experience.
Most of what I've been reading is that everyone feeds their rays every day, often multiple times a day.
What I'm wondering is what you all do when/if you go on vacation for a week, or longer. Would it be feasible to leave a large number of feeders in the tank, or would the ray(s) eat them all quickly only to be left with no food for a couple of days, not to mention the influx of waste? (I'd of course have the feeders quarantined and treated ahead of time) Do you attempt to 'bulk up' your rays by feeding them a bit extra before you leave, and then fast them while you're gone? If your rays were to take pellets, would you use an automatic feeder?
Does anyone ever 'fast' their rays on a regular basis? ie. Don't feed for a day or two every week.
I've been keeping fish a long time. When I first started, fed the fish every day. Went away for a weekend, got someone to come in and feed them. Became a little more knowledgeable, and left them for 2-3 days with no food, but would still have someone come in and feed them 2-3 times if I was gone for a week. Now, I don't worry about leaving my fish for a week or more. I keep mostly cichlids, and have a couple tanks of fry (some as small as 1/4") and some community tanks (tetras, guppies etc), and I don't really worry too much about the fish unless I'm going to be gone for over a week (and then it's really only the fry and community fish that I worry a bit about). Lately, I've been away more than I've been home (averaging 4 days away and 3 days home a week), and the fish have been doing great. Seem to be breeding much more than before, and don't have any negative issues of any kind. With a schedule like this right now, I'm wondering if I'd be ok to get some rays now and feed them heavily while I'm home (when I'm home almost all day and can watch them quite a bit), or wait until my schedule changes and I'm able to be home almost all the time and feed them almost every day.
Just looking for some input from those who've kept rays for a long time and 'tried everything'.
I'm looking at getting two juvenile motoro rays soon, and will be quarantining them in a 55 (48x12x22) before moving them into a 72x26x24 tank when it's done (will get some tankmates in the future, but have yet to decide exactly what).
Thanks in Advance!
I'm new to rays and have been reading all I can find for the last several months before I make my first purchase (motoro's). Been keeping/breeding fish for 20 years, so have plenty of aquatic experience.
Most of what I've been reading is that everyone feeds their rays every day, often multiple times a day.
What I'm wondering is what you all do when/if you go on vacation for a week, or longer. Would it be feasible to leave a large number of feeders in the tank, or would the ray(s) eat them all quickly only to be left with no food for a couple of days, not to mention the influx of waste? (I'd of course have the feeders quarantined and treated ahead of time) Do you attempt to 'bulk up' your rays by feeding them a bit extra before you leave, and then fast them while you're gone? If your rays were to take pellets, would you use an automatic feeder?
Does anyone ever 'fast' their rays on a regular basis? ie. Don't feed for a day or two every week.
I've been keeping fish a long time. When I first started, fed the fish every day. Went away for a weekend, got someone to come in and feed them. Became a little more knowledgeable, and left them for 2-3 days with no food, but would still have someone come in and feed them 2-3 times if I was gone for a week. Now, I don't worry about leaving my fish for a week or more. I keep mostly cichlids, and have a couple tanks of fry (some as small as 1/4") and some community tanks (tetras, guppies etc), and I don't really worry too much about the fish unless I'm going to be gone for over a week (and then it's really only the fry and community fish that I worry a bit about). Lately, I've been away more than I've been home (averaging 4 days away and 3 days home a week), and the fish have been doing great. Seem to be breeding much more than before, and don't have any negative issues of any kind. With a schedule like this right now, I'm wondering if I'd be ok to get some rays now and feed them heavily while I'm home (when I'm home almost all day and can watch them quite a bit), or wait until my schedule changes and I'm able to be home almost all the time and feed them almost every day.
Just looking for some input from those who've kept rays for a long time and 'tried everything'.
I'm looking at getting two juvenile motoro rays soon, and will be quarantining them in a 55 (48x12x22) before moving them into a 72x26x24 tank when it's done (will get some tankmates in the future, but have yet to decide exactly what).
Thanks in Advance!
