I will be stocking fish next weekend and am hoping I can get the BG and RES fry to eat right away.

I've read some other threads and information here and saw that some people will keep their RES confined while they get them trained.

If I start out with the same feed that the hatchery is feeding them, do you think there is a chance that the RES will eat the feed without having to cage them up in the pond first? If I do have to cage them, I was thinking of putting a hutch I used to raise small chicks in about 2 to 2/12' of water next to my dock. The cage is about 3 1/2' x 2 1/2' and about 2 1/2' tall. Would that be too small for 200 RES fingerlings that are 3-4" long?

I could possibly put some in the cage while allowing others to go free in the pond and just work with a smaller population.

With the bluegill, are they more likely to eat the feed without training and would it be a bad idea to mix some of them in the cage with the RES?