Pond Boss Forums MANAGING AN EXISTING POND Feeding Fish won't eat from feeder?

I set up a fish feeder 2 months ago, put in floating fish food, High Protein, from Tractor Supply, set the timer to go off 3 times a day, morning, noon, and night for 2 seconds each time. I have yet to see fish come up to eat the food? I know my pond is full of LMB, Bream, and Crappie, with some catfish, just don't know why they won't come eat? These fish were stocked naturally, only a few from a hatchery, don't know if that matters? Thank you!

I would have thought the bg would have come to the feeder if the food was added at the same time every day. So I would try a different feed. I have used 3 different brands over time and settled in on the MVP. Mostly because of Bob Lusk recommendations and mvp is easier to get. The bg fed on all three brands.

Its suprising the catfish are not feeding either. Mine will make wakes from across the pond. Are you sure you did t have a fish kill? Do you see them swimming around at all? I never see my lmb or crappy feeding either. But I can catch them on a worm or minnow in no time.

I have not had luck with tractor supply feed. Usually it’s 4-5 months old when purchased, fish don’t look conditioned at all. My catfish have never visibly come to the surface to feed probably cause of the BG go crazy. How early in morning are you feeding? I have found mid morning for my pond seems to work better . What water depth are you feeding at?

Pat hit a couple of my thoughts/questions. Feeders that are adjacent to or are in deeper water have always worked better for me. The deeper water gives the fish a place to retreat in both hot and cold water, but stay close to the feeder. TSC fish food, although made by Cargill, is not the same quality as their Triton hatchery line. Several quality fish foods are out there that can provide the same or better nutrition with less food fed. Expect to pay 80 cents to $1.10 a pound for quality fish food. I also always have some kind of cover close to my feeders for 2 reasons. One, it provides protection for smaller fish that stay near the feeder, and two, some ponds can be like roulette wheels. Fish can keep moving until they find a location that makes them want to stop. A brush pile is like that slot on the roulette wheel that the marble falls into.

We don't see much if any feeding response to food if the water temps are in the mid to upper 50's and dropping....... Feed trained fish or not.

Great info, thanks everyone! I didn't think about TS food being old, I would have thought it was moved quickly, I will try a bag from my local feed store, different brand hopefully better quality. I feed in 5.5' that is close to 10', so I have that covered, probablem is that I killed all of the aquatic vegetation under and around the feeder because the hydrilla was to the surface, so I don't have any cover nearby the feeder. I purchased some structure from fishiding.com and will put it out next weekend to provide cover near feeder. I don't think I've had a fish kill, although the fishing has been very tough, I have seen large numbers of fish in several cleared out spots in the hydrilla. I am ordering a Pinfish/baitfish trap to try to estimate how many BG are in the pond. Again, thank you for the insights! Happy New Year!

Forgot, I feed at 5am, noon, and 5pm.

What's the water temperature??

If you can check with your local seed and feed store, ask if they carry Purina products. Some do some don't. 2 out of 3 did when I was checking around. If they do, ask them if they could keep x number of sks in the store for you. Aquamax MVP has worked good for me. Check to see if they will order some or keep some in stock for you.

Or just order the Optimal food directly from their website and it will be shipped to you. No need to run to the store and beg for them to carry what you want.

Water Temp is 56° F today with my Garmin fish finder.

I wouldn't worry about them not eating. They will resume when the water warms back up.

My fish quit eating much feed when the temp drops below 60. I wouldn't be concerned.