5 minute rule?

[leslie]

I have read in many places that I am supposed to only feed my discus what they can eat in 5 minutes. I have had my discus for 8 days now and it seems to take them much longer than 5 minutes to eat since they are still very spooked and spend a lot of time swimming back to their "safe spot" in the tank before venturing out again to eat. I have 8 discus all around 3.5" in size. For example, this morning I fed frozen mysis shrimp and I would say it took 30-40 minutes to eat everything. Mysis shrimp seem a little big for them so I think it took them longer than if I had fed brine shrimp. Should I be feeding them less?

[pcsb23]

I only recommend removing uneaten food when there is a problem with the fish and we are needing to maintain the highest water quality. In all other cases just feed a reasonable amount, if it takes them 40 minutes to eat then so be it. fwiw I never remove uneaten food from my tanks, I just let them graze on it al day, which they do.

[daveo]

I only recommend removing uneaten food when there is a problem with the fish and we are needing to maintain the highest water quality. In all other cases just feed a reasonable amount, if it takes them 40 minutes to eat then so be it. fwiw I never remove uneaten food from my tanks, I just let them graze on it al day, which they do.

X 1
Daveo

[William Palumbo]

I'm with Paul and Dave. If my Discus ate all their food in 5 min. I did not feed them correctly...Bill

[LizStreithorst]

I think that's a rule of thumb for people who don't take care of their water quality. With our frequent WCs it is not a problem for us Discus folks.

[jawfish]

I agree with the above, and in my mind this is a reason why I do regular large water change.
They are slow eaters, and when growing a group of fish you want the little guys at the bottom of the pecking order to get their fair share.

Cheers,

Fred

[2wheelsx2]

I don't see a problem with using a 5 minutes rule if you feed 5 - 6 times a day. Whether you do 2 feedings of 40 minutes or 12 feedings of 5 minutes, the fish don't care.

Edit: As the post above states, for juvies it might be different.

[Offpath]

I only recommend removing uneaten food when there is a problem with the fish and we are needing to maintain the highest water quality. In all other cases just feed a reasonable amount, if it takes them 40 minutes to eat then so be it. fwiw I never remove uneaten food from my tanks, I just let them graze on it al day, which they do.

It's good to hear this from someone with a lot of experience. I do this sometimes and was worried I was being a horrible discus owner. =)

[discuspaul]

I don't see a problem with using a 5 minutes rule if you feed 5 - 6 times a day. Whether you do 2 feedings of 40 minutes or 12 feedings of 5 minutes, the fish don't care.

Edit: As the post above states, for juvies it might be different.

Agree. And you don't need to worry about regularly cleaning up excess food, or have a concern over untouched food being left over to pollute/produce more unwanted ammonia.

[mikel]

Mmmmmmmm, I dont know about the 5 minutes rule, but when I first started with discus, I used all sorts of food for them, and some were more favored than others. When I fed some types of fodd, a huge amount would be eatened by the fish within a few minutes, but when I feed sparingly some other types of food, it would jus sit for 40 min before it is slowly eaten. So I guess if you feed food they dont like, you will need to leave it for 45 minutes. Hence, why not find or make the food they like, and feed them what they will definitely DEVOUR in 5 minutes.

My fish, at the time all juvies, ate frozen bloodworms, pellets and even flakes within 30 minutes. But they devour my seafood/bh mix (that also includes flakes and ground up pellets) within minutes. And I fed huge amounts of food, and often (for growing fish). So, your 5 minutes rule need to be for food that you know they are crazy for. I only feed my seafood/bh mix now because I know they absolutely go crazy over, even as big and hunky adults now.

My fish have never ever been crazy for mysis shrimp. In fact, all the discus that I have kept for the past 2.5 years hated mysis shrimp. Dont even go near it mike

[Jhhnn]

With growing fish, I try to size the portions so that there may be a little bit left after 30 minutes or so. I built a variable timer from a kit to turn off the power filter during that time. Push a button, the filter goes off for 30 mins, then starts back up.The more aggressive feeders get satiated, back off, and there's enough at each feeding so that everybody gets full bellies. Small portion size encourages uneven growth, imho...

[discuspaul]

Wouldn't know about small portions encouraging uneven growth, John, but smaller portions, more often, are better for the human metabolism, as is the case for most mammals, and fish too, I expect - so say the medical gurus. (Several small meals a day being better for the body's maintenance of good health, than one or two large meals a day).
As for fish in the wild, are they not generally grazing pretty much all day long, finding what they can when they can, and unaccustomed to huge quantities of food being available to them at any one time ? Just my thoughts.

[-3de-]

I think that's a rule of thumb for people who don't take care of their water quality. With our frequent WCs it is not a problem for us Discus folks.

I agree...

[LizStreithorst]

Wouldn't know about small portions encouraging uneven growth, John, but smaller portions, more often, are better for the human metabolism, as is the case for most mammals, and fish too, I expect - so say the medical gurus. (Several small meals a day being better for the body's maintenance of good health, than one or two large meals a day).
As for fish in the wild, are they not generally grazing pretty much all day long, finding what they can when they can, and unaccustomed to huge quantities of food being available to them at any one time ? Just my thoughts.

That's very true but we can't be home 24/7 to give the fish a tiny bit of food every 10 minutes as would happen in the wild. The best we can do is feed them often when we're home and toss them something to graze on during the day while we are at
work.

BTW, I generally only eat one meal a day and I'm as healthy as a beef cow. But then, I'm not a Discus.

[2wheelsx2]

That's very true but we can't be home 24/7 to give the fish a tiny bit of food every 10 minutes as would happen in the wild. The best we can do is feed them often when we're home and toss them something to graze on during the day while we are at
work.


That's why they have autofeeders, no?

[Eddie]

I think that's a rule of thumb for people who don't take care of their water quality. With our frequent WCs it is not a problem for us Discus folks.

Ditto


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[LizStreithorst]

That's why they have autofeeders, no?

If you are talking about the way they eat in the wild, NO! Discus eating what they scavinge in the wild is a whole different ball game from feeding them in an aquarium.

Auto feeders are OK but I don't think that they're any better than throwing in what your fish like and leting them graze. Discus are natural grazers, you know.

[2wheelsx2]

I didn't imply better. I just implied that we have the technology to automate anything we want. So it is possible to do as many water changes, feed as often, turn the lights on/off, pumps on/off during feeding, etc. So if one doesn't/can't feed multiple times a day, they can still raise juvie discus. Otherwise, none of us could have jobs, which in turn would not allow us to keep discus.

[LizStreithorst]

I didn't imply better. I just implied that we have the technology to automate anything we want. So it is possible to do as many water changes, feed as often, turn the lights on/off, pumps on/off during feeding, etc. So if one doesn't/can't feed multiple times a day, they can still raise juvie discus. Otherwise, none of us could have jobs, which in turn would not allow us to keep discus.

Oh my, here I go...Yes, we can automate what we want, but where then goes the enjoyment of the fish? I actually have nothing against auto feeders. I used to use them all the time with fine results. These days I only use them to feed the Angels in my shop over the weekends. I do my Discus differently. I feel that it's better for them to be able to graze. It's just a matter on opinion, I guess.

[2wheelsx2]

I totally agree with you. If you have the time, then by all means, but there was some discussion of time availability. I travel for work and have 2 young children, so if I don't employ some help, I would have to avoid keeping discus. In my view, whatever helps to achieve my objectives more enjoyably is a good thing. 20 years ago, I did all the work on my vehicles, mowed the lawn with a push mower (still do this part of the time), steam clean my own carpets, paint my own house, etc. etc., but as I started a family and got older, I found my time dear and resorted to having people do things for me that I can no longer do.

So if you enjoy manually doing everything, by all means, but for those who don't, they can still enjoy discus. I'm sure the people with fish rooms don't do everything manually. I only have 225 gallons of water and I already don't.

[LizStreithorst]

We have no arguement whatsoever.

BTW I adore push mowing. Doesn't it just give you a great sense of wellbeing and satisfaction. I'd so much rather push mow my little yard than get on the tractor and bushhog the pastures.

[2wheelsx2]

I do like the push mowing. I have a Gardenia reel mower. It's awesome. My favourite part is the lack of noise and the stink of gas. I abhore the spring and summer Saturday mornings when my neighbours all get out with their gas mowers and cut and whack their lawns. I enjoy coming home from work and running around with the mower in the quiet evening and then sitting down for supper.

[Jhhnn]

Wouldn't know about small portions encouraging uneven growth, John, but smaller portions, more often, are better for the human metabolism, as is the case for most mammals, and fish too, I expect - so say the medical gurus. (Several small meals a day being better for the body's maintenance of good health, than one or two large meals a day).
As for fish in the wild, are they not generally grazing pretty much all day long, finding what they can when they can, and unaccustomed to huge quantities of food being available to them at any one time ? Just my thoughts.

I was talking about competition for food among individuals in the aquarium environment. If I feed small amounts, the more aggressive feeders get most of it, no matter how often I feed. Fish lower on the pecking order don't get much. If I feed bigger portions, the aggressive feeders fill up first, become less interested, and the others get more to eat when that happens. In my tank of 8 blue scorps, for example, there are 3 more dominant fish. If I put in a small amount of food every hour, those 3 would get the vast majority of it, every time. They rush in, push the others aside, chow down until they're satiated. With small amounts, that doesn't happen. Spreading the food around in the tank helps some, but turns into a bother with frozen foods, which is what my discus eat...

[discuspaul]

Gotcha. Fair enough.
I don't have that problem, though. I feed small amounts every second hour or so, 8-10 X a day, and all my juvie discus get their share, even the smaller ones. (I too have 3 more dominant ones.) Heck, the cardinals even compete well with the discus at feeding times. And there is never any clean-up to be done. Of course, I'm retired and have the time to do so. I have to separately place food at the bottom of the tank to ensure my Cories get some sustenance.

[greg31]

I would think feeding them as much as you can without a lot of it being wasted is what is best. I guess for people who dont do tons of WC the only problem would be excessive waste.

[Skip]

i let them graze.. UNLESS its BH Mix or Frozen Mysis.. i think that tends to sour.. so i siphon it out.. after 3 hrs.. (juvies).. my bigger fish eat up ALL the mysis :))

[Jhhnn]

BTW, I generally only eat one meal a day and I'm as healthy as a beef cow. But then, I'm not a Discus.

And your not *growing*, either. Well, other than older, which is a different topic entirely.

My human teenagers would be gnawing on the furniture and dreaming of pan-fried discus and house cat fricassee on one meal a day... growing discus are little different, other than being stuck in a glass box. Sub adults of either species are always hungry, or will be in 5 minutes.