My son got a hold of the food...

The friendliest place on the web for anyone with an interest in aquariums or fish keeping!
If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.

h2oskierc

Aquarium Advice Activist
Joined
May 18, 2011
Messages
152
I have a feeling you know where this is headed! I apologize if this is the wrong forum to post is in...

So my son got a hold of the food, and dumped about half of a .49 oz. Container of food in the tank. We habe a 20g tall with 7 neons, 3 male guppies, a swordtail, 4 albino cories and 10 ghost shrimp.

I wasnt home at the time, so I told my wife to net out as much as she could. When I got home I vacuumed the gravel and the tops of some of the decor, and cleaned up as best I could.

Can a fish get bloated from overeating? A couple of the tetras almost look pregnant (since they aren't livebearers I know they won't look pregnant). I am guessing it is from overeating, but could it be dropsy/bloat? The scales don't appear to be sticking out at all, so I don't think it is, but I want to know your opinion.

Thanks!
 
Neh the should be just fine. Just very very full fishies lol. I'd say don't worry about feeding them the next two days lol
 
I wouldn't worry to much to Bloat after one overfeeding, but I would skip 2-3 days to let everyone digest. Then just keep a close eye on the water parameters or better yet a couple of days of 50% water changes.
 
theyll be fine,just skip a few days. thats what i did with my betta(i seriously didnt think she'd eat the mantis)
 
Hahaha your betta ate a mantis?????? Lol that's hilarious
 
Thanks everyone for the feedback. Nice to know that I was thinking correctly!
 
I have a feeling you know where this is headed! I apologize if this is the wrong forum to post is in...

So my son got a hold of the food, and dumped about half of a .49 oz. Container of food in the tank. We habe a 20g tall with 7 neons, 3 male guppies, a swordtail, 4 albino cories and 10 ghost shrimp.

I wasnt home at the time, so I told my wife to net out as much as she could. When I got home I vacuumed the gravel and the tops of some of the decor, and cleaned up as best I could.

Can a fish get bloated from overeating? A couple of the tetras almost look pregnant (since they aren't livebearers I know they won't look pregnant). I am guessing it is from overeating, but could it be dropsy/bloat? The scales don't appear to be sticking out at all, so I don't think it is, but I want to know your opinion.

Thanks!

Sounds like one of my biggest tank nightmares ... children + fishfood = :nono: As others have said keep an eye on the ammo and skip 2-3 days of food ... but I'd imagine there's still a few small flakes here and there they'll be munching on a bit. Dump that many flakes .. one can't possibly get them all:eek: 50% PWC's to be on the safe side.

Good luck ... keep us posted.
 
As others have said keep an eye on the ammo and skip 2-3 days of food ... 50% PWC's to be on the safe side.

Good luck ... keep us posted.

Yeah, ammo hit .5ppm last night so I did what was probably more like a 60% PWC. I wasn't paying enough attention to the water level, and was making sure I didn't vacuum up any of those ghost shrimp! :facepalm:

Overslept this morning, so I couldn't check the chemistry this morning, but as soon as I get home I will. Hoping that the dechlorinator that I use will do a good enough job with any ammonia that remains until then. Even when I was cycling I could usually get by with one 50% PWC a day (most days anyway), so I think it will be okay...
 
Hoping that the dechlorinator that I use will do a good enough job with any ammonia that remains until then. Even when I was cycling I could usually get by with one 50% PWC a day (most days anyway), so I think it will be okay...

If your using Seachem Prime it should lock ammonia in a less toxic form for 24 to 48 hrs ... depending ... so that should by you some time until your next PWC.
 
I am using an API Product that "cleans" the ammonia for lack of better terms, but I don't remember the name right now. I am guessing that it is the same or similar to Prime.

Last night ammonia was .25ppm, so I did another 50%PWC. What frustrates me, though, is that my nitrates are gone, so it makes me feel like I totally reset my cycle somehow. I am hoping it will come back faster this time around...
 
No this will be just a mini-cycle which last around three days or so, keep up the water changes and it will be over quickly.
 
How old is your son? My grandson was 4 when we started keeping fish and I just included him in the learning process. He helps pick out fish he knows all the different breeds we have.
Now that he's 10 he's a huge help with tank maintenance. 4 tanks twice a week, the help is soooo nice. Plus it's both quality and learning time for us both.
If your sons not to young, include him. That way he will understand why all that food is bad. I can trust Casey to feed if I'm not there, for some reason. Although cleaning the tank alone would be a bit much for him yet, but he'll get there.
Making this a family hobby is great for the whole family. Plus, it may help stop the food dumps.
 
WendiDell, my youngest son is 3, and I do have him help with feeding, but he doesn't realize it is a once a day kind of thing. To him, he eats all the time, why not the fish! :)

I now just keep the food where he cannot get it, which is a shame, because the aquarium sits on a corner desk, and there is a great storage area right below the tank. Oh well!
 
WendiDell, my youngest son is 3, and I do have him help with feeding, but he doesn't realize it is a once a day kind of thing. To him, he eats all the time, why not the fish! :)

I now just keep the food where he cannot get it, which is a shame, because the aquarium sits on a corner desk, and there is a great storage area right below the tank. Oh well!

It won't be long now before he starts to get a better idea of what it all means. He'll start with asking the never ending whys about the tank & the fish.
If you still want your son to be part of the feedings, you could make little daily packets & have just one out per day. That way he's still a part of it all & the fish will get only what they need. Your son will feel like you trust him with a big responsibility. It will help things go smoother later on when he really does have a better understanding of what it means to keep fish
 
Back
Top Bottom