Does anyone skip feeding their fishes a day or two?

[Sharkbate]

I have two nano tanks one full of anemones and a pair of clowns the other a mixed reef with a skunk clown anemones a Valentini puffer and a firefish . I only feed every other day and alternate pellets and flake . Occasional treats of live food ...
Never feed corals occasionally feed nems but not all of them as too many ....

never had problems or aggression ... goes without saying but will say it ...I don’t keep snails or shrimp in the mixed reef although my puffer is a baby ....no sumps no skimmer ....

 

[Treenk]

I have 2 tiny clowns which I cant seem to pick up a small enough amount they will actually eat. I'm afraid if I dont skip here and there I'll over feed the tank

 

[mort]

Skipping feeding of tangs or fish that graze is no problem whatsoever but as mentioned earlier it's not great for fish like anthias. They constantly feed in the wild because they don't really have a gut to store big meals, so little and often is best to keep them healthy.

As much as I understand people who skimp on feeding to keep their nutrients down, you shouldn't need to, it means you either feed to much normally or have to many fish for the system to cope. In a well functioning properly stocked tank you should be fine feeding several times a day without it impinging on water quality.

 

[Jesterrace]

Although I admit I might occasionally forget to feed more than once a day, I definitely don't go a day without feeding with Lyretail Anthias and Wrasses in my tank. I also believe it helps with my Foxface and Coral Beauty Dwarf Angel as well.

 

[Frey]

I travel for work a week at a time. I do not have anthias or anything imo that needs fed multiple times a day so i feed monday morning before i leave and usually hang a sheet of nori for the tangs and angels and come back friday afternoon with out any issues for years, then i am home a week or two and back gone.
I feel if you have ample live rock and pods etc they just naturally forage. All my fish are thick, not fat and seem well.
I have found this a better solution than to ask someone to take care of and feed the tank while i am gone. I dont have to worry about overfeeding or accidents happening. I guess if you are really concerned an auto feeder with some pellets once or twice a day while your gone would suffice but its not necessary imo.

 

[Quietman]

Feed mostly everyday, but I don't sweat it if I forget. Also feed pretty light. All seem active, healthy, colorful and solid. Only have small non-aggressive fish though. Think quality of food helps with skipping a day or more. Been wanting to go every other day but need the nitrates.

 

[Mickeyt1reef]

On occasion if out of town a day or two.

 

[mort]

Most fish can happily go a few days without food. If you dont have delicate fish and go away for a week you can easily skip feeding them and it's normally safer than relying on a tank sitter.
The only time skipping meals is detrimental is with the very delicate species that have high metabolisms, no real way to store food and don't graze. If you dont have those then one day of not feeding posts no problems.

 

[OrionN]

Fish are cold blood and they don't need to eat daily and stay perfectly healthy. I skip feeding occasionally when I manually feed my fish. Not I the tank automatically with pellets, manual addition of Nori, flakes, frozen daily. I skip the manual part randomly, maybe once a week or two. Also when we are gone for vacation or out of town. The tank doing just fine without additional feeding.

 

[Santa Claus]

Mine get skipped a few times right around Christmas Eve. Just things get so busy around here...

 

[Dragon52]

A few times a yr I let them slide, Never had any issues.

 

[Barnabie Mejia]

I have a clown and a mandarin goby in my 29g and (since we're being honest) I have skipped or forgotten to feed 2-3 days, but they're good. and I don't see any bad effect to them or the coral by it. coral get fed once a week.

 

[Bpain05]

I usually skip a day or two during the week.

 

[Halal Hotdog]

Lack of feeding should not mean lack of eating. I have 4 tangs and 2 rabbitfish in my display. They need daily meals, without which would lead to heightened aggression. I have finally trained my fish to eat macroalgae that grows in my refugium. Literally I take a ball of chaeto and throw it into my display and all the herbivores go bananas. Same for the turf algae that grows on my ATS screen. Because of this I have completely ELIMINATED nori. This also led to the herbivores not allowing any algae to grow in my display tank, they graze on it all day and stay happy. I feed VERY heavily, and as long as I am using frozen seafood and live algae, then I have no nutrient issues whatsoever. I only run into nutrient issues with pellets/flakes/nori.

With all that said my fish do not need to be fed everyday, and don't require the volume I feed. I could absolutely get away with feeding 1/2 what I currently offer and eliminating one day of the week. The reason I don't is I love fat fish and love keeping the peace. I have a weird mix of aggressive fish that really don't bother each other. I have same genius tangs that leave each other alone. If any of you have seen a great white shark feeding on a whale carcass, it will eat so much that eventually it will be the most peaceful fish in the ocean for days.

 

[BigRed78]

I've skipped a day before if i'm out for a night and I do not get back until after lights out. Sometimes when I feel lazy I will just feed pellets instead of frozen.