Goldfish is a perfect pet, especially for beginners. Most of the fish owners remember having a goldish as their first pet. These beautiful, vivid species are friendly and easy to take care of. And with enough care, they can live with you up to 10 to 15 years.
As a crucial part of taking care of your goldfish, you need to feed them right. But how often should you feed your goldfish? How much? Well, in this article, we will discuss the food habit of goldfish.
What do goldfish eat?
We consider goldfish as an aquarium fish that stays inside your house. So we tend to mix their food habit with other tank fish.
But goldfish live in the wild too. This type of goldfish can grow quite large because of the variety of food they consume.
Goldfish in the wild
Goldfish are omnivores that mean they have both plants and animals as food. Wild goldfish eat plants, insects, and even tiny fish when they are comparatively large.
As plants, goldfish like to have algae. They also eat leaves and plant roots. Whereas in the animal criteria, goldfish eat snails, insects, and larvae. Such an exceptionally balanced diet, isn’t it?
Goldfish in tank
Domestic goldfish can have almost everything you tend to give it. But it is recommended to provide them with a bit of their wild food preference, just to make them satisfied.
The main foods for goldfish in the tank are flakes, pellets, bloodworms, brine shrimp, etc. They can even have little vegetables. There are packed food for goldfish in the market that fulfills the nutrition demand for them. Also, they have great flavor and taste that make the goldfish happy.
How often should you feed your goldfish?
Many consider goldfish as an eating machine. They tend to eat a lot. That’s because goldfish do not have a real stomach like us. So when you have no place to stock food, you don’t know when to stop eating. Fun fact, isn’t it?
Now for your goldfish food timing, you need to consider a few factors.
Growth
It really depends on the owner. If you want to see your goldfish grow more, you would like to feed it more frequently.
Age
Goldfish tend to grow more in the early stage of their life span. So young goldfish need to have more food for growing as a large one.
Spawning
If you are looking to get your goldfish spawn, you need to keep them into “Breeding condition.” Inbreeding condition, you should feed them several times per day. The more you provide them, the tremendous growth you are promoting.
Temperature
Temperature can be a tricky factor while considering the feeding frequency for goldfish. In winter, when the temperature drops below 50-degree fare height, it is regarded as the hibernating period for goldfish.
In this time, the metabolism of goldfish gets slow, and the food can get rotten, which might cause health issues of your goldfish. So feeding them once in a month in this period is sufficient.
Rule of thumb
It is recommended to feed your goldfish 2 to 3 times per day. Feed them frequently but in a small amount.
Also, remember the schedule. For example, if you have feed your goldfish in the morning, afternoon, and night, try to feed them tomorrow in the same manner. This will create good eating habits. And your goldfish will also look forward to having food.
Many fish owners have a tendency to use the feeding block for feeding their fish. In a feeding block, foods are stacked for your fish. They can swim around and come to grab a bite.
Also, there is another way to feed your goldfish, mostly if you stay busy or go out for someday. That is an automated feeding machine. It releases food after a specific interval and saves your goldfish from starving.
If you are planning to use either one of these, there is something you should know. There is a chance of overfeeding your goldfish if you use these. It might cause sickness and also make the water dirty very quickly.
How much should you feed your goldfish?
Most of the fish pet owners want to make sure that their goldfish do not stay underfed. But only a few care about the overfeeding of goldfish. Overfeeding can make your goldfish sick and shorten their lifespan. Also, the extra food makes the water quality very low.
Feeding a goldfish in the tank is different from feeding a goldfish in the pond. As we already know, goldfish do not have a real stomach as we do. So they really do not know how much to eat. So the more you give, your goldfish will eat more. Thus it becomes the responsibility of the owner to make sure the goldfish is getting enough nutrients without overfeeding their goldfish.
Excessive food can cause health issues to goldfish, like blocking the intestines and swim bladder. So you have to make sure your goldfish is getting the right amount of food, not more, not less.
Goldfish eat a variety of food. They like insects as well as plants. So their food amount varies from item to item. But the rule of thumb is you should feed your goldfish only that much which can finish in two minutes.
So that basically means, within the two minutes of dropping food in the tank, it should be consumed by the goldfish. If you see any food particle floating around, you should stop putting more food until the goldfish eats that. When there is no more food in the tank, you can start feeding them again.
Now let’s come to the food items. If you’re planning to feed pallets to your goldfish, there can be a question of how many pallets to feed goldfish? Well, two or three pallets are enough. Feeding this amount of food twice a day will do fine.
Here the two-minute rule can be a little tricky. Some sinking pallets can sink in the bottom, and your fish can take a bit longer to find them. Then you should wait till it finds the food.
If you choose fish flakes to feed your goldfish, you can follow the two minutes rule. Flakes are dry food, and it will float on the water, making it easy for the fish to find it. Flakes and other dry foods are good for goldfish, but they do not contain all the nutrients for your goldfish. So they should not be considered the main item of the diet.
Flakes can look tiny as the amount, and many people do not believe it is enough. Your goldfish only need some flakes sized like their eyes, that’s it.
Apart from pallets and flakes, another food that you can provide is peas. Goldfish love vegetables and peas without skins can be an excellent alternative to flakes and pallets.
Peas are right for your goldfish because they tend to sink in the bottom of the tank. So your goldfish can be saved from swallowing some air while eating. Also, peas are tiny, and the fish can comfortably take them inside their mouth.
When it comes to food value, peas have lots of fivers, and it is a crucial element to keep your goldfish away from digestion problems like constipation.
An average goldfish can eat two to three peas, whereas baby fish can eat one or two. But make sure you are not overfeeding your goldfish.
Now let’s talk about some real protein. Live foods like bloodworms, hookworms, earthworms can fulfill the demand of protein for goldfish and also give them some taste of the wild foods.
These live food can transmit disease if these are not prepared well. So before feeding them, make sure the foods are well prepared.
How much you should fee your goldfish also depends on their activity. If you have a comparatively large tank and the fish is swimming actively, you should feed it more often.
Best time for feeding
You can have flexibility in terms of feeding your goldfish. They only need a tiny amount of food to keep them active throughout the day, so any time you choose to feed them is fine.
It is recommended that you follow a pattern. Maintaining a schedule will create a good eating habit for the fish and will help with digestion. And make sure you are not mistakenly keeping them unfed or feeding them more than they need.
Last words
Many people say, “Feed your goldfish when they seem hungry.” But in reality, things are not that easy. Goldfish can be a tiny fish, but they need good care, especially with food and nutrients.
Invest in good quality food, stick to a routine, do not overfed or underfed your goldfish. See its response. Are you noticing any health issues, contact a doctor
How long do goldfish live? With proper care and diet, a goldfish can grow big and be for a long time. Throughout the article, we tried to provide details on how often you should feed your goldfish and how much. We hope it helped you. Now it is your responsibility to ensure a well-balanced diet for your goldfish.