Overfeeding discus?

[anne]

Assuming I'm able to maintain good water quality, and don't solely feed dry food, is it still possibe to overfeed discus?
It's such a thing with other tropical fish, but I rarely hear it being a problem with still-growing discus (except when it comes to water quality).

[RyanH]

Hi Anne,

While it is tough to do, it is possible to overfeed.

The bellies of younger Discus can only hold so much food. They can over eat and get blockage.

I've also seen a Discus that ate so many CBW that its side literally burst open. This is rare but can happen.

I would just be mindful of how much your fish can consume until their tummies are full but not dangerously so.

hth
-Ryan

[AADiscus]

Yes you can over feed and just like Ryan said, CBW are easy to over feed.

I would just give your fish a nice qty at a time, let them eat it all then look at them.....are their bellies very fat. If not, give them a little bit more. Once you see their bellies with a hump in it "lol" then I would stop feeding.

[Tony_S]

I agree with Ryan.

Its a judgement call you have to make from personal observation. Most juvenile discus can gorge themselves all day long, day in and day out without any complications.....But there are exceptions where this type of feeding can be fatal, or at the very least problematic(constant bloating). To the best of my knowledge, no one has ever pinned down a cause for the problem, or been able to predict it.

Its a call you can't really make untill you run into it. Trial and error.

Tony

[MississaugaJohn]

I remember one year dumping into the tank a hole bunch of mosquito larva and the two angel fish literally gorged themselves to death....

[anne]

Thanks for the advice everyone, much appreciated!