On 29 Jun 2004 21:27:14 -0700,
(Christy84065) wrote:

I am so curious what everybody considers to be over feeding. My
thought has always been that if the fish eat it they are hungry or
need the food. I feel bad if I selfishly give them less so that they
don't poop too much so I have less work to do. Clearly if they can eat
it they need it and/or are still hungry. So, I guess I need some more
clarification on this issue. Thanks to all your input in advance.

I know how you feel about wanting to see all my fish get enough to
eat. However, I am also aware of experiments that indicate animals
that are underfed live longer. I am also aware that what goes into my
fish comes out and the system is healthier if there is a balance, too
much waste is a way to imbalance.

I feed twice a day, flake food only. I watch as I add pinches of
food, to see if the fish are really actively catching it. When flakes
start hitting the gravel, I stop adding food. This takes less than
two minutes.

I know the fish can go for days without food and not have anything bad
happen. I also have seen perfectly healthy fish not eat, in fact my
large black angelfish went for about a month without eating the flakes
so far as I could tell, then one morning returned to her old eating
habits. She waits at a place with no food for me to put some there
just for her. She is one of my special pets, so you can imagine my
anguish while she was "fasting!"

dick