How Long Can Fish Go Without Food? A Detailed Answer is Revealed

How long can fish go without food is perhaps one of the most highly asked questions for us fishers. Sometimes we cannot help but take a vacation with our family and spend some time away from home. Some fishers are very fortunate to have someone who can look after their fishes.

But for the others, some are not so lucky. When we are away from home, naturally, our fishes will not be able to eat for the duration of the time we will spend away from home. With that being said, in this article, I have given a detailed answer to how long can fish go without food. Read on!

One of the factors you have to take into consideration is the age of the aquarium. Some of the questions you have to ask are is it new or is it somehow already old. This is because the older the aquarium is, the longer the time is for your fish to already grow accustom to it.

If your fish is already used to the aquarium, then the more chances it has to survive longer even without food.

When the aquarium has been established for so long, all the more that the community inside will interact well with each other. Another factor that also goes hand in hand with this is the duration of the time you are going to spend away.

Generally, if you are only going away for about three days and most especially if your fish has already grow accustomed to the aquarium, then you do not need that much of a preparation. Some of the preparations include cleaning the filtration or doing a partial change in the water. 

How Long Can Fish Go Without Food?

The answer to that question is really dependent on a lot of factors. First is the type. For example, tropical fish has the ability to not eat or fast for a long time as compared to most fish types.

Second factor to consider is the size. Generally, fishes that are bigger and larger when it comes to size can last longer than their smaller counterparts. This is because larger fishes simply have more reserves of fat and body mass. These two things are sources that they can draw from when there is no food available.

The same also goes for those that are relatively older. That being said, another factor to take into consideration is the age. To be more specific, fishes such as a chocolate cichlid that is of older age can last longer than a younger pencilfish. 

Next factor to consider is the type of eater they are. There are generally two categories in which we can classify our fishes into depending on what they eat. First group is the herbivore group.

The second is the carnivore group. Naturally, meaning by nature, herbivores eat more than the other group. Obviously, herbivores eat plants. Consuming plants can be difficult to do because breaking down can be a struggle.

As a result, one has to eat and take in a lot of plant in order for it to get the necessary nutrients. Moreover, carnivores really do not eat as much as herbivores. In fact, in the wild, carnivore fishes can actually survive through a period of scarcity in which ni food is available.

Overall, a carnivore such as a cichlid has more ability to fast than a herbivorous fish. As stated, there are a lot of factors to take into consideration when answering this question.

That being said, you need to at least conduct some sort of trial period before leaving to be able to observe and specifically determine how long your fish can go or survive without any food. To do this, simply observe the aquarium in which your fishes are inhabiting. However, do not feed them and pretend as if you are going away.

Generally, tropical fish can last really long without being fed. Fishes such as cichlid of large sizes can last over ten up to seven days without any food. Meanwhile, baby fishes need to be fed immediately after a day or two since they are still in the growing process. 

In this section, I will give you additional tips that can help you prolong the time in which your fish can survive without food. The first thing you can do is to turn the temperature down by a couple of degrees. Moreover, you can also turn the aquarium lights down.

I recommend that you put a timer so that the duration in which the aquarium lights stay on will be shorter than the usual daytime period. The reason for this is because a lower temperature has the tendency to also slow down the metabolism of the fish.

As a result, the fish’s requirement for food is also reduced to a small amount. Moreover, when the duration of the daylight is shortened, the activity of the fish will also be limited. As a result, your fish’s requirement for food will also be lessened. Aside from this, you may also opt to have a fish sitter.

When hiring one, make sure the fish sitter is properly oriented. First, your fish has to be fed only once every other days. This is to ensure that your fish will not be at risk when it comes to overfeeding. 

I hope you’ve found what you need after reading through. In fact, the Braided line has the best line among others, being the oldest is also the strongest line anglers should have. Though Braided is very visible to the bass, there are also other lines that are also strong, but better to be sure, use the strongest.

On taking care of your fishing lines, apparently, your fishing lines can be harmed by many factors like heat, moisture, and even wrong storage. I hope you will keep in mind to store your line in the right location.

It is also necessary to check your lines for defects, wrinkles, and imperfections then before using and storing it.