In the ocean, the fish eat all the time, that's why they are so big. The fish in our tanks are already puny because we regulate how often we feed them, usually once a day...(For those who might misunderstand...overfeeding them does no good for the fish, and just pollutes the tank) However feeding them 4Xs a day when they are little will ensure the largest specimen when they reach adulthood.
People fast for religious reasons, and we eat a bunch of not so good for you stuff, and we think it will help to detoxify once in a while and fast, but fish don't need that, nor does any other creature in God's creation. Humans eat for pleasure, animals and fish eat to survive. They have no benefits from fasting.Thanks, but, again, I'm not going anywhere!
I was just curious about the possible benefits of not feeding the fish a day here or there, like a fast.
Most any critter CAN go a day without eating, it just isn't beneficial to fast for any critter except maybe humans. Unless they are sick, for example, when my dog got sick, the vet said to not feed him for 24 hours, then to add rice to his food to help him digest his food easier.Well i never had issues missing a day in a week feeding. I used to own many tanks in my house but then had to stop for work/health reasons, now i'm back since 5 months and polishing my memory
Actually, a 60% reduction in caloric intake is known to extend lifespan in a variety of species by up to 45%, so from that standpoint we probably overfeed our animals. This is a different issue from growth, which is stopped by such diets.
I can't really say, since it hasn't been tried. But in rodents, insects, worms, primates (some debate about that, but at least one successful experiment in rhesus monkeys), etc., caloric restriction has worked, but nobody has tried it in fish. Similarly, just limiting the intake of the amino acid glycine also extends life span in a variety of species.
