# Feeders in tank all the time?



## jasert39 (May 1, 2003)

I used to feed my piranha twice a day and get some feeder for them every once in a while just to keep them sharp. Lately I have been buying enough feeder to last them a while (couple days) and then go back to the twice a day feeding thing (morning pellets, evening shrimp). Basically my question is...does anyone try to keep feeder in the tank most or all of the time? and is it alright for the fish?


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## accr (Nov 27, 2002)

IMHO this is bad. Keeping feeders in there 24/7 will train them to "eat when they'r hungry". But rather you should train them to "eat when food drops in". From my experience....Ps get lazy when they see feeders around them all the time.

And feeders are dirty dirty litter buggers, the least amount of time they spend in ya tank before getting eaten is the best.


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## SnowCichlid (Jan 10, 2003)

On top of that.. It does not always impact with the wallet the way you may want it too, plus your not attempting to give the P's the true mixture of foods if they are only exposed to the one food.
I would try to avoid them unless your going away for a little bit or something along those lines


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## bobme (Feb 17, 2003)

id only do it if like you where leaving for a week.


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## Judazzz (Jan 13, 2003)

I just buy a handful of feeders when I decide to treat my reds, and they are vanished within one hour. No signs of them getting lazy, even though they share their tank with about 40-50 community fish since more than a year. Goldfish and minnows are chased down as soon as they enter water, but the other fish (pleco's, cories, raphael cats, tetra's) are never bothered...

If you want permanent company for your reds (and I use the term "permanent" loosely here), try small community fish, instead of goldfish: goldfish crap a lot more than tetra's etc, so they put a bigger strain on the tank's bioload... Also, compared to community fish, with goldfish, there's a much bigger chance of introducing parasites or diseases in your tank (although every single fish, no matter how small, has the potential to introduce unwanted stuff in your tank!)


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## tinyteeth (Mar 12, 2003)

i keep feeders in there all the time just for the time being. im gonna let them eat all the feeders, then wait a couple days to drop in food


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## my piranha is nemo (Jul 22, 2003)

hey i have two ps right now because my other ones got eaten by each other. but yea i have them in a 60 galln tank with a bunch of feeders. there was like 13 on saturday and now theres only 8. i guess it is bad to have them in there all the time so imma let them finish off this batch of feeders then leave them in there by themselves. what other type of fish do you gusy suggest puttign in there with the ps. i was planning to get some dome bluedragon flowerhorns. what do you guys say about that?


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## tinyteeth (Mar 12, 2003)

its gonna be a bluedragon feeder

put fast fish like tetras, theyre cheap anyways


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## STIFFY (Jul 9, 2003)

I put a bunch of feeders in the tank a few days ago and I guess they got lazy bc they wouldnt eat anything today. I tried a baby rat, raw beef and frozen shrimp cubes.


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## airtorey15 (Jun 15, 2003)

I used to keep feeders in 24/7 and about 5-7 got eaten at night....only at night







I switched it so I gave him feeders once every two days with prepared fixings in between feeder times, it worked great, now i have a small 1.5 inch spilo and give him beefheart,shrimp, flakes and toss in a few rossies every day and he tears em up right in front of me!!


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