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  • Results 1 to 9 of 9

    Thread: Feeding in the fall, a tricky endeavor

    1. #1
      rrgitars is offline Junior Member
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      Feeding in the fall, a tricky endeavor

      My pond is large and healthy with lots of mouths to feed.
      As we all know feeding has to be eased up or even stopped when the water temps dip below a certain point.

      Here on Long Island NY over the past month one week it's in the 60's the next in the 40's and even the 30's.

      My question is if I have not fed the Koi for let's say a 3-4 days due to the cold but then it warms up for a few days should I begin feeding again????
      This is making me crazy and the fish might be getting confused.

      Thanks for any advise.

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    2. #2
      kimini is offline Senior Member
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      Feed them until they're uninterested.

    3. #3
      stevek is offline Supporting Member
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      Here in RI, we have had the same situation - days in the 60's and nights down to 30-35. I've been going strictly by the way the koi are swimming. If active, and coming over to the spot where they get fed, I throw in a little food. They seem to pick at it, so I give them very little. Other days, they are lethargic, so I don't feed at all. I'd say the feeding season is over for my pond.

    4. #4
      dragonfly1976 is offline Senior Member
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      You can extend your feeding season by putting a greenhouse type covering over the pond for the winter. Mine never freezes since I started covering. I can feed them into December this way. There are a lot of threads on here that might give you ideas on what you could build.

    5. #5
      joe09 is offline Senior Member
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      i live on li also, holbrook.if i see the weather is going to be warm for a few days,with the night time temp around 50, i feed them ,i shut my pond down yesterday,so i wont be feeding them.they will tell you when they are not hungry

    6. #6
      audioenvy is offline Supporting Member
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      In general, water temperature and fish interest/activity are a much better indicator than outside air temperature. If your fish normally come rushing to the edge when you approach but don't do so at some point during winter then don't feed that day. It also won't hurt the fish to fast them completely once the water temperature drops below 50 degrees. Their metabolism slows considerably so they don't really need the food. If they are still interested then light feeding probably won't hurt.

      The rumor you've heard of food rotting in the fish's belly is--as far as I can tell--entirely false. From my reading on the topic, if the fish are active one day and then it turns cold, the food you gave them on the warm day won't kill them.

    7. #7
      rrgitars is offline Junior Member
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      Quote Originally Posted by joe09 View Post
      i live on li also, holbrook.if i see the weather is going to be warm for a few days,with the night time temp around 50, i feed them ,i shut my pond down yesterday,so i wont be feeding them.they will tell you when they are not hungry
      Yes, at night it gets cool but today it was near 60. thanks for the feedback. i think the cold weather will be here next week.

    8. #8
      tsippel is offline Senior Member
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      Feed kenzen and feed all winter

    9. #9
      Weathergirl is offline Member
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      Hi...I live in NEPA, and during this time of year I watch the water temp closely. I usually keep an eye on the 10 day weather forecast to watch the temps, ants once I see a stretch of below freezing temps overnight, I know it's time to stop feeding them. Last week I fed them 4 of 7 days. It's a delicate balance, because not only do you need to be mindful of the water temp, you also have to remember that freezing temps knock the bacteria out of your filter anyway. This time of year always makes me sad because I'll miss feeding them as I drink my coffee in the morning. ��. It's amazing to know they'll hang out until the spring! Good luck with yours!

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