In Celia Haddon's pet column in the Daily Telegraph last Saturday 13/01/07,
somebody asked a similar question: "...should we continue to feed [our
goldfish] this winter? I am currently giving them goldfish food flakes. I
don't want the poor things to starve".
She replied:
In big ponds with lots of plants and not too many fish, goldfish probably
don't need feeding. "In winter, if they are active, feed a small amount,"
says Rupert Bridges of Tetra, the fish food and equipment supplier. "If
they don't eat it, remove the food and reduce the amount you are feeding
them." If they are at the bottom of the pond and inactive, don't feed them.
Tetra, and others, now sell winter diets for fish.
"In hard weather there is a danger of poisonous gases building up below the
ice. Smashing the ice can stress the fish with shock waves. If it's just
thin ice, fill a saucepan with boiling water, and lay the pan on the top of
the ice to melt a hole," says Bridges. If the ice is going to last more
than 24 hours, you need a foam dome or an electrical pond heater. Send an
A5 SAE for the leaflet "Keeping Your Pond Healthy" to Tetra, Clock House,
Gaters Mill, Mansbridge Road, Southampton SO18 3HW.
I recall reading somewhere that you shouldn't feed pond fish if the water
temperature is below 50F, since they are so inactive that the food can stay
in their gut and rot.
HTH, someone
Post by ZoabI stopped feeding my fish some time ago, as I normally do in the winter, but
with the mild weather they are still at the top of the pond although not very
active. I have put food in on a couple of evenings, but they are not very
interested, however some of the food has gone the following morning. Should I
keep feeding, or should I leave it until the spring. Any thoughts would be
appreciated.
Bryan ( Winchester UK )