What special food do you give catfish to make them grow faster? And where can the food be gotten?

Question

I am a farmer, and it takes my catfish about 6 months to grow. I would really like them to grow in about 3 months instead. What tips can you give me about raring fish?
Thanks!

Answer 1

Look for a feed that contains Fish meal rated at 60% Minimum protein and has at least 12% fish meal. Most contain 10% fish meal and the extra 2% has been shown to increase growth rates.

Temperature is the most critical factor in growth rate. Almost no growth occurs in channel catfish at temperatures of 38F or below however, metobolic rates double for every 18F the temperature increases up to about 85F. Past that point rates still increase but maintainence energy requirements cause a decrease in growth so 85F is the optimal growth rate temperature for channel catfish. Even at 85F a 3 month grow out from large fingerling to 1 lb fish is a bit above expected maximums. You should plan on a minimum of 4 months to get that average size in a typical pond. Remember to, average time in a managed pond environment for channel catfish to go from eggs to 1 1/4 lbs is 18 months.

The amount you feed the pond is also critical and varies depending on your fish per pound rate (weekly sampling is recomended) and water temperature. If the temperature is below 55F you should feed 2% of the total estimated body weight of all the fish in the pond daily assuming you have newly purchased fingerlings rated at .04 lb each.

The US Fish and Wildlife Service publishes a book titled "Fish Hatchery Management" that covers feed rates and many, many other subjects in great detail and I would HIGHLY recommend it as the "Bible" of any fish farmer. I currently instruct Fish Health 1 & 2 as a part of a Aquaculture and Hatchery Management B.A. program at a local University and this is the text book for both the Hatchery Management and Pond Management courses.

If I can be of futher assistance please don't hesitate to contact me at [e-mail]. Fish farmer assistance is part of my job!

MM

Answer 2

Go for a fighting fish (Betta) or some guppies. A betta is very low maintenance, but doesn't go well with other fish (especially of it's own kind). You can get food specifically for them that usually costs about the same as regular fish food. Just be sure to feed it small amounts at a time (to prevent cloudy water) and don't put it's bowl or tank where the water is going to get cold. Guppies need warm water, at least 1 gallon per fish, and are very active. Be sure to ask for only males (they have longer, more colorful fins and have a pointy fin on their underside) if you don't want to have bunches of them. They're fine with regular tropical fish food.

Answer 3

Plenty of space (not overcrowding), warm temperature, and clean water all will make your fish grow faster.

I found a brand of food (at a farm-tractor supply store, in fact) called "Lunker Maker". It's a floating pellet made for pond fish, such as catfish and sunfish. I bought it to feed my channel cats and bullheads and they're doing well on it.

Answer 4

How To Make Catfish

Answer 5

last three month has gone but still size of catfish is small and the daily feed is upto 100 kg but still there are small the feed which i put to catfish is Usus ayam but water get smelly
then what to feed it ..? plz tell me as soon as possible or otherwise send me [e-mail]

Answer 6

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Goldfish are not easy to care for. They produce far more waste than any other fish, and require a lot of maintenance to keep their tanks clean. Goldfish in bowls require complete water changes several times a day and never seem to thrive. Male betta fish, on the other hand, are perfect for bowls. They've adapted to survive in puddles in the dry season, so they can gulp air off of the surface with their lungs. In a tank, however, they can get picked on by faster fish with higher metabolisms. (Danios can nip on their fins, leaving them ragged.) Male bettas also need to be alone. Kept with each other, male bettas often fight to the death. They are even aggressive with females. The "Nemos," or clownfish, are great saltwater fish to start with, but saltwater fish care is far more complicated than dealing with freshwater. Aquarium salt has to be pre-mixed for water changes with exacting specifications, and many aspects of water quality (salinity, calcium levels, etc.) have to be monitored constantly to keep these fragile fish alive. Another concern with saltwater fish is that many of them are wild caught through extreme methods that often devastate the wild. While clowfish are generally aquacultured (farm raised), many of their companions will not be. Cory catfish are great freshwater bottom feeders that do well, feeding on the extra food that sinks to the bottom. Usually, only one or two of them are needed. Freshwater sharks (labeled "Bala," "Red-tailed black," etc.) are larger catfish and a trap for novice fish keepers, growing over 2.5 feet long! Guppies are, by far, my pick. They have nice color on their bodies and tails. They're also hardy livebearers that wil stock your tank for you, which is great fun, seeing the fry (babies) grow up. As long as you have a high ratio of females to males (3-to-1 minimum), they should do well. Mollies and platies are also livebearers, and do well with guppies. They, too, have been bred to have great color, and are hardly pets. Otocinclus are also great, small fish to have for algae control. They are generally docile and will eat algae without harming live plants. (Plecostamus and other algae eaters grow fairly large and can get aggressive.) Just watch out for flying fox fish, which look much like the otocinclus, but are a bit more aggressive. Whatever you decide, just remember the rules for stocking fish (3 gallons for every inch of goldfish, 2 gallons for every inch of saltwater fish, and 1 gallon for every inch of tropical freshwater fish) and know the maximum size of each fish. Also be sure to ask your pet retailer if your new fish will do well with your old ones. (Cichlids and barbs are often aggressive and have special considerations in stocking) Trial and error with types of fish (and freshwater plants) are natural; just remember that any fish or plant that you decide you don't want cannot get released in the wild. Introduced species have huge competitive advantages over the native ones and can easily devastate an ecosystem. Make sure that your pet store has a return policy and look for one with buy-back policies. (Usually the independent ones will accept fish for a partial credit.)

Answer 7

There isn't any special food to give them to grow faster. you just gotta be patient

Answer 8

Copperhead has a good answer. Lunker maker is a great food. I am not sure they will guarantee the growth of twice as fast, but it does a heck of a job on pond blue gill and bass.

Also remember once temperatures reach the 85 degree mark, cats are warm water creatures and this is when spawning begins. So be careful with attempting to raise your ponds.

You can also look up catfish farming. Ohio State has an excellent program. Most of the ponds and comercial runs I have seen were in the south. there are pleanty of web pages with great info. You can also call them they will be happy to talk to you on the subject.

I had to call a few back in my school days for a project in a Marine biology class.

I took this from one of the sites:
The Catfish Farmers of America has more than 2,000 members, and more than half of the country's catfish production is in Mississippi. However, one of the most successful catfish operations may well be Butterfield's Alabama farm because of his grasp of ecological principles. A key principle for long-term success in catfish farming, and all other professions that harvest plants or animals, is sustainability. The processes involved in producing the commodity must not cost more in terms of energy and nutrients than the commodity itself is worth.

In respect to catfish, Butterfield maintains that an "intensive catfish monoculture is a very wasteful and inefficient method of producing fish protein." Some catfish farms raise catfish solely, with no or few other fish species in the ponds. According to Butterfield, such operations must import fish meal from outside sources for catfish food. In addition, a catfish monoculture depletes underground water sources because the water must be replaced constantly for cleansing purposes. These and other environmental problems can be avoided by using a polyculture approach.

A critical problem faced by most catfish farmers is the buildup of phytoplankton, the algae that cause algal blooms, which in turn result in decreased levels of oxygen in the water. If toxic chemicals must be used to control an algal bloom, the discarded wastewater pollutes local streams and rivers. Plus, mechanized systems of aeration are necessary to replenish oxygen for the fish.

Butterfield considers that one key to success in catfish farming is to use the phytoplankton (algae) rather than constantly battle it. Butterfield's catfish farming operation is truly a polyculture that addresses the algae problem. For example, along with the catfish, he has stocked his ponds with a variety of other fish species such as tilapia and different kinds of carp. As these fish eat phytoplankton, algal blooms are kept to a minimum. The blooms are a constant hazard to catfish monocultures because they reduce oxygen levels in the water. He has also added bluegill, crappie, and bass, which feed at other levels in the food web of the ponds. Thus the aquatic habitats that harbor catfish operate in a manner closer to that of a natural ecological system. And because natural ecosystems are by definition self-sustaining ones, a catfish pond based on a polyculture is more likely to be successful. Also, the other fish can be harvested later along with the catfish.

The standard method of harvesting fish in a catfish farm is to lower water levels in a pond and then use nets to collect the catfish. As a means of conserving groundwater reserves, Butterfield does not drain ponds but instead pumps water from one pond into another. He then sorts the various types of fish by hand, which he notes is more labor intensive than would be true for a catfish monoculture where only one type of fish is involved.

One aspect of Dan Butterfield's polycultural catfish farming system that I appreciate is that he does not kill birds that come in for a meal of fish from time to time. For example, some catfish farms are a major attractant of cormorants as predators. As Butterfield says, "In the interest of living in harmony with nature, I do not begrudge sharing a portion of my crop." That seems like as good a reason as any to use the polyculture approach.

If you have an environmental question or comment, e-mail [e-mail].

Answer 9

Dog food seems to work!