Force feeding fish
Force feeding fish
Written by Thursday, 28 May 2009 00:00
When things go well force feeding is unnecessary. Yet things do not always go well; knowing how to force feed fish may save a life or two in the aquarium. Over the years we have used this strategy in two cases. Firstly, when we needed to feed a stressed, bullied or ill fish who has given up eating and started wasting away secondly when we needed to administer medication orally to a sick fish.
The first case is the most usual one. A strategy commonly employed by fish to eradicate unwanted tankmates is food exclusion. The aggressor will position itself close to the food and will attack its opponent every time the later approaches. Another variation, commonly employed by catfish and in particular Loricariidae, is standing guard outside the hiding place of the undesirable tankmate. The fish is not allowed to exit it's hiding place and therefore it cannot eat. After a while the attacked fish starts weakening at which point the aggressor may decide to attack and kill it or simply continue not allowing it to eat and let it waste to death.
There are various ways to deal with such behaviour in the tank. If the fish that is being attacked is 'confined to its quarters' by the aggressor the easiest thing to do is to provide food for it inside its cave. We use either an anemone feeding syringe which has a long end attached to it, or long tongues, both of which allow us to put food exactly where we want it. We place the food directly inside the cave of the besieged fish for as long as it takes for the aggressor to give up the siege. We have seen sieges of the sort lasting between one to three weeks, depending on the temperament of the aggressor and the gravity of the offence which led to the aggressive behaviour.
If, however, the aggressor simply attacks its victim every time it sees it in the open and in particular when it comes near food, things are way more difficult. You may try putting food at different places in the tank, offer the aggressor its favourite food or try to distract its attention in another way. Offering food which takes time to eat (large pieces of mussel or prawn) may also do the trick. However, there is no guarantee that the attacked fish will come out to eat while its aggressor is otherwise engaged. If the fish is terrorised it will continue to hide despite your efforts.
The outcome is obvious. The terrorised fish will weaken, lose weight and become an easy target for all the other fish in the tank. After a certain point, though still capable of recovering, it will give up efforts to live. Even if placed in a tank of its own it will just not eat. If left alone, it will simply lie there until it passes away. In some cases, fish which live long enough without eating, get into autopepsia (or self-digestion) mode: the gastric fluid ulcerates the gastric mucous membrane and the fish eventually dies from the ulcers. Once self-digestion starts, it is too late to save a fish.
The most notable case in which we used force feeding was Victor Romylus, our wild caught Ptychochromis insolitus. Victor has lived for a considerable amount of time in a dedicated tank on his own. When he joined our community 1200 lit tank he got totally stressed. Though not bullied or attacked by the other fish he got into panic mode and refused to eat. Over a period of two weeks he lost so much weight that we thought we were going to lose him. We put him in a dedicated tank and force fed him for three weeks; once he recovered we started gradually introducing a tank mate at a time, until he got used to being with other fish and he could return in the tank. Once back, the fish behaved normally and for a long period of time he was the top fish of the particular community.
Prior to force feeding, make sure that the fish in question is indeed not eating. It is important to note that some fish do eat despite the fact we do not see them doing so. Force feeding is stressful for the fish and an extra effort for the aquarist, so it should only be employed as a last resort for saving a fish. The only sure indication that a fish is not eating is loss of body mass (weight). Note that some fish go temporarily into a no-eating mood but they soon return to their regular eating habits; force feeding is not necessary in these cases. Again, prior to trying force feeding make sure you have not changed the feeding routine of the fish; if this has happened return to the previous routine to see if the fish will start eating again.
If none of the above works and force feeding is the only option, prepare a separate tank (preferably a small one) to put the fish which must be force fed. The size of the tank very much depends on the size of the fish in question. As a general rule we prefer 100 lit tanks; they are relatively small (which allows us to catch the fish at feeding times relatively easy) but also suitable for a good range of sizes of aquarium fish (fish up to 30-35 cm are quite comfortable in such a tank on their own). We always decorate the tank, though sparingly. Decoration allows the fish to feel as much as possible 'at home' in its new environment, particularly if it can hide under a piece of wood. Too much decoration should be avoided as it gets in the way when trying to catch the fish to force feed it. This stresses both the aquarist and the fish.
Next prepare the food and your force feeding tools. For badly stressed fish we prepare a mixture consisting of crushed pellets (the usual pellets we feed them) mixed with a few drops of a vitamin liquid, suitable for aquaria (Esha Optima is our favourite) and a couple of grains of aquarium salt. We stir the mixture well until it becomes a slightly runny pulp. The constitution of the pulp is important; if it is too creamy (like a paste) you will be unable to discharge it with the syringe. We then take a clean 20 cc syringe (without the needle) and place its front opening in the pulp.The plunger of the syringe at this stage is pushed down fully.
To fill the syringe, hold the barrel firmly and pull the plunger upwards (towards you). Do not put too much food in; we find that 1cc is more than sufficient for one feeding of a fish 10-20 cm TL. After placing the pulp in the syringe always press the plunger back in to expel any air which got in the syringe accidentally. When a little bit of pulp is expelled from the front end of the syringe it is ready to use. At this stage attach, to the front opening of the syringe, a small piece of soft (silicone) airline, about 4 cm long.
Gently net the fish from the tank and place it on a wet, soft, non fluffy towel. It is important to ensure the towel is wet so as the skin of the fish is not damaged. If the fish is already in its own tank and weak enough to move around you may just hold it in your hand and keep it firm against the aquarium glass. With your other hand gently insert the airline attached to the front of the syringe with the food in the fish's mouth and press it as far back as it will go. It is always easier if the mouth of the fish is turned upwards (to face you) or is out of the water, though this is not always necessary.
In the photos below we are force feeding a young Paratilapia sp. Andapa, which was bullied almost to death by a tank mate. The fish, when we retrieved it from the main tank, was in a very bad state. It was unable to swim or stand upright and was lying on its side. It was way too thin, the tail and the fins were badly frayed and it had wounds all over its body. We placed it in a 100 lit tank and kept it in an upright position by wedging it between a large stone and the aquarium glass.
If you are doing this for the first time it may be difficult to get to the fish's oesophagus and you may need another person to help you. Gently moving the airline around will indicate where the oesophagus is (the airline will go deeper into the fish's mouth while the fish will open its mouth wider). Be very gentle with your movements or you may hurt the fish. Once you are confident the tip of the airline is correctly placed press on the plunger quickly to discharge some of the food. Repeat until the syringe is empty. You may then release the fish back in the tank.
Things to look for: if all or most of the food comes out of the fish's gills it means either that the quantity of food discharged is too big or that the airline is not inserted properly.Try administering less food at a single push or relocating the airline. Again, if the food is simply placed in the fish's mouth it may just spit it out.
Depending on the condition of the fish it is up to the aquarist to determine how many feeds a day they will offer. If the fish is in really poor condition (stressed) it may be preferable to offer less feeds and more peace and quiet. If the aquarist is concerned more about the loss of weight and less about stress then more feeds would be recommended. No matter what do not try more than 3 feeds daily.
In some cases it may be necessary to mix some medication or salts in the food offered to improve the general condition of the fish. Aquarium salt (2-3 grains) or Epsom salts can be easily mixed with the food. (1)
You can also force feed fish using a pill discharger, such as the ones used by the vets to give pills to cats and dogs. There are different types of these implements, some of which have a particularly long curved end. These are used by vets to give pills to fish. We have occasionally used a regular pill discharger and we found it quite handy for large size pellets. (2)
When the condition of the fish improves try offering it some pellets to see if it will eat it by itself. By this stage the fish will probably be quite stressed by your presence so it will not eat in front of you. Leave the room and return a couple of hours later to check if the food has been eaten. If the fish is still not eating continue to force feed until the fish looks considerably better. The fish needs to recuperate fully (including from the stressful experience of being handled by the aquarist daily) prior to returning to the tank. Once in the tank it is advisable to watch it closely to ensure that it will not be subjected to bullying or harassment again.
The method described above can also be used to administer medication orally to fish. Medication is much more effective when it enters the blood stream; fish which are not eating are more likely to succumb to disease. However it is not advisable to administer medication orally unless under the instruction of a qualified person (a vet). Medication administered orally is way more effective than the equivalent type which is dissolved in aquarium water; the animal must be weighed and an appropriate dose for it must be determined. Using the wrong dose will result either in a fish not treated properly or in a fish dead from toxic overdose.
Notes
1. The method described above is appropriate for fish with a large final TL (goldfish, cichlids, catfish etc). We have not tried it with small fish (such as Neons etc) or fry. Clearly the size of the mouth is important in determining whether the fish can or cannot be force fed using this method.
2. Larger fish can be force fed by placing a morsel of food (prawn, cockle, mussel, dillyfish etc) deep inside their mouth and keeping it there until the fish start eating it.
Photos by the authors.
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