Fish Feeding Blunder: Fish Feed After FIVE Days FASTING

African cichlids feeding after 5days.
I went away for the Easter break and set up the automatic feeder on a timer. What I forgot to do was check that the feeder was open. It turns out that the feeder was closed.
When I got back I went straight for the fish and thought they looked alright. I decided to give them a feed and when I pressed the button on the feeder to manually feed them I realised that nothing was coming out, only to find out that the feeder was still full and the outlet was closed😲.
This is the longest my fish have gone without a feed. I haven’t noticed any apparent concerns with any of the fish but I’ll keep observing them to see if there are any adverse effects due to the lack of food.
Jump the video to 2:58 to see the Red Chilli Oscar coming up very close.
How much should I feed them after such a long fast? Should they get more or same servings as usual? Please let me know in the comments.
#aquarium #fishtank #africancichlids #cichlids #malawicichlids #aquariumfish #fish

[@DesiDhumal]

Don’t keep oscars with cichlids

[@prisoner5629]

I disagree. You can keep oscars with other cichlids if the tank is crowded enough and have little to no issues even in the long-run.

[@CichlidLove]

@DesiDhumal Why is this?🤔

[@CichlidLove]

I haven’t had any issues as yet with the Oscars or any of the other cichlids.

[@DesiDhumal]

@@prisoner5629 The movement of oscars are slow, and cichlids have fast movement and they are aggressive too, i kept my oscar with cichlids , cichlids starting bulling oscars.

[@CichlidLove]

@@DesiDhumal I see. I had some bullying issues especially with the two new Oscars I added. I had to separate them for some days for the other fish to get used to them. Now I don’t seem to have much of that happening. The Oscars seem pretty comfortable and defend themselves.
Look at my other videos/shorts (links below) where I show the fish separated and also the scars they got when I introduced them.
th-cam.com/video/JPGwk2QR7h8/w-d-xo.htmlsi=tVk68C5nDk6adORL
th-cam.com/users/shortsLvAsR9QqqWk?si=AaXY_cxR-zp4fet0

[@juanriverajr5183]

Cool tank and fish . My only critique which isn’t really anything important would be to remove some rock and give your fish a little more room . That’s just me though , don’t ruin the vibe in the setup over my comment .

[@CichlidLove]

Thank you 😊. The rocks do seem a lot but really they’re towards the back of the tank. The front is pretty free space for the fish to swim around. I also have too many fingerlings hiding in the rocks and crevices so I dare not move them right away. Appreciate your comment.

[@yashbhoir2087]

whats the filtration u use? btw it looks like a very healthy tank

[@CichlidLove]

Two canister filters 2700l/h and 2400l/h on either side. Thank you😊.

[@yashbhoir2087]

@@CichlidLove woah. Thats why it looks so clear. Please make a video on filtration for such a well maintained overstocked tank

[@CichlidLove]

@@yashbhoir2087 Thank you. I will.

[@Someoneonthisplanet1979]

@@yashbhoir2087 not feeding for 5 days keeps your water clear as well

[@CichlidLove]

@@Someoneonthisplanet1979 That’s true. The water was clear. My only worry is the bigger fish might have got a little hungry and start going for the smaller fish. I wonder what a good balance might be with regards to how long the feeding intervals are and also keeping the fish happy and not going for each other. 🤔

[@JasonAHowell]

What is the name of the fish that looks like a Giraffe Hap but it’s blue and black?

[@JasonAHowell]

At the 2:00 marker of the video the camera is centered on it.

[@CichlidLove]

Nimbochromis Livingstoni

[@NotSure876]

Start with a light feeding and work your way back up over the next few days

[@CichlidLove]

Thank you. This is very helpful. 👍
I have given them one feed since.

[@NotSure876]

@@CichlidLoveoff topic but i think you would be better off removing some of the rocks. You have haps and mbuna. Mbuna literally means rockfish but haps are open water swimmers and prefer open spaces, same with the Oscar. If it were mine, I’d do a low pile of rocks with small caves along the bottom and leave the top 2/3 open space. Just my opinion

[@CichlidLove]

@@NotSure876 Thank you for the suggestion. The rocks are more to the back half of the tank. The whole front is clear of rocks to allow for free space.

[@NotSure876]

@@CichlidLove oh gotcha

[@shannonmcdonald1431]

Tank size?

[@CichlidLove]

183cmx45cmx45cm

[@canuck728]

WTF !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!11

[@CichlidLove]

Fish were Ok, just the longest they’ve spent without a feed.

[@NotSure876]

Fish can go much longer than 5 days w/o food

[@CichlidLove]

@@NotSure876 Yes. Only worried that they may go for each other if too hungry. I wonder how long I can keep them hungry without them getting ideas of devouring each other🤔