Naturally, fish provide for themselves. Like humans, fish are omnivorous. They eat both plant and meat substance. They live off with insects, algae and other disparate food available in their environment. But in order for the koi to be surely healthy, it is a must to provide natural and artificial food for them.
Koi fish are vigorous eaters. They eat anything that would fit their mouths. A usual daily koi feeding is at considerable meal schedules. Normally, they are to be fed once or twice in a day with a large meal equivalent. It can be enough though, but these fishes have different activities that they can be Koi fish in ponds have a larger artificial environment, thus they move in a much larger perimeter, making them tire faster than those fish in small enclosures busy with in a day..
Since it is imbalanced to just eat two larger meals to suit their hunger caused by diverse activities, it is advised to feed koi fish in small meals a day. It can either be with natural food or artificial diets.
A natural treat for a koi are vegetables. Lettuce, zucchini, cabbage, and spinach can be really healthy for them. What you need to do with these vegetables is cut them into really small pieces for the fish to swallow. Also, corn, peas and other round pellet-like vegetables, even fruits like grapes and watermelons can be healthy for them.
Another natural yet indirect way of feeding koi fish, is buffing up its tank or pond with live and growing algae. Koi feed on algae as well. Another is adding up flowering plants that can attract small insects, which sometimes can be a fresh delicacy for koi. Contrariwise, artificial foods can really be healthy over the natural ones. These are chemically processed food supplements packed with dietary nutrients and are available in pellet form.
As it is true to koi, what transpires every time they feed is that the food goes straightly to the disposing end at much faster intervals during hot seasons. With such, there is no worry to feed your koi with outweighed volume. The problem that it only presents is polluting the water if koi are overfed, because it releases waste much faster. On the other hand, during colder seasons, koi’s digestion slows down hence it doesn’t require its normal diet. When the temperature drops down below 50 degrees, it is recommended to stop feeding them, because the food in their stomach may become putrid that it can lead to poisoning.
There isn’t a standard way offeeding your koi. They could be fed like normal aquarium fishes. But if you enjoy feeding by hand while observing them, it is a must to feed them in the same place everytime. This makes the fish gather in a more open space for you to observe. Dropping a handful of pellets for all of the fish to share makes their movement even more attractive. Just always be sure that you stay to a point where they can see you while they are eating. It can somehow make them more loyal to you.
Feeding them with healthy foods makes them develop a strong body shape as well as makes their color more effervescent. You have the option to either feed them naturally or artificially. But it is always better to balance it with a little of the natural and a little of the artificial for you to enjoy them, living longer and healthier.
