Feeding Competition

[dendro982]

Excellent article, thanks!

Need advice:
I have 3 new fishes (2 months or so, 2 tassle files and antennata lion) and they are eating like a pigs. Each of them considers all food its own, and the limit for feeding is not even 30 sec, but a belly size - bulging.

Tried to offer pieces of food at the distance at the same time, so everyone will have own, but all 3 bump into each other, targeting the same piece.
Place 3 people at 3 parts of tank and lure each fish by own piece? But this is possible only once a day (only 2 people available for other feedings).

I did Kanaplex and Furazone treatment (from fin rot) at the beginning, and much later - deworming, just in case, by Parazite Clear (includes metronidazole too). Can't analyze tassles' stool, it's half-liquid - just like it was for old adult tassle.

The food is quite complex, several kinds of frozen food from LFS.

What else can be done to ensure their well being?
Thanks.

[leebca]

Thank you for your opinion on the post: Does Your Fish Eat Like a Pig? - Not so Good?

I moved your post into its own thread, since it has a slightly different subject that should be addressed.

Feeding community fishes is and can be a bit of a challenge. The fish behavior you've described sound like they are starving or somehow being undernourished. This can be from the less-than-good foods and/or feedings that are not enough and/or no frequent enough throughout the day.

If after a month of feeding your fishes 3 times a day all they want to eat at each meal AND being sure it is the correct food for those fishes, they still behave like this, I would be surprised.

Most marine fishes have a conditioned feeding response when the hobbyist approaches the tank with food. That is often 'enthusiastic' eating and sometimes hogging, when the food hits the water. But that soon stops during the feeding, or significantly disappears IF the food is enough and nourishing. After weeks then months of a proper routine, the fishes sense they will neither starve nor be fed improper foods.

If however the fish need to eat different foods, then getting the right food to the right fish can be its own challenge. This means the distraction technique and other 'tricks' need to be used. But this is not the case when feeding the fish the same foods, only when special foods need to go to certain fish(es).

[dendro982]

Not all they want to eat, just when the belly starts to bulge (for filefish) and quite a bulge for a lion, because it was starved. As I had read, this is the upper limit for a feeding. And with lionfish it was just scary to add more.

Should I let them eat all they want?

[leebca]

If it is the right kind of food, yes. At the beginning of a feeding there will be 'excitement' in the water. At some point in time (anywhere from a couple of minutes to 15 minutes), the fish will look disinterested in the food or spend more time swimming past the food than eating it. That is the time to stop, remove uneaten foods, and remember that amount so you don't have to go that far in the future.

The Lionfish and other predatory fishes should only be fed about once or twice a week. You would benefit by reading and trying to learn from this post: Feeding Marine Fish and Fish Nutrition

[dendro982]

Thank you very much! Will do that.