Pond Boss Forums MANAGING AN EXISTING POND Feeding Feeding BG

My BG are not eating as well as they used to in my 2 acre pond. The only difference from before is a handful of big CC (5-6lbs)that I didn't know were there have started eating. Will the CC run the bg off?

A CC of that size will definitely eat BG, so my guess is that they could very well be intimidating the BG from the feeding area. If you don't want the CC feeding there, you could try catching a CC with baiting a hook with the feed. The other CC will probably learn to stay away. Don't release the CC if you do catch it, you'll have a hard time catching it again.

A trick I use to make so BG can feed unimpeded by larger fish is to make a "feed cylinder" that is like a creep feeder used for calves. A 4' diameter cylinder with a bottom is made using 2" x 4" welded wire. At the top, a feed ring made of a plastic strip about 6" wide is used to slow the feed floating out of the feed cylinder allowing the BG to eat more before bigger fish on outside can get at it. Once the BG get too big to swim through 2" x 4" openings, you can use wire cutters to make some of the openings 2" x 8". The BG will find those openings fairly quickly.

My BG are so eager to feed that schools of them have bumped the few big CC that try to feed out of the way. The CC are so intimidated now, that only one about 6 pound albino CC tries to feed. The others just swim around a couple of feet below. I have found it impossible to feed my BG to satiation without using what would be considered excess feed for the area of water. Most of the BG I see feeding are in the 4-8 inch range.

To get satiation feeding, or at least an approximation of it, I suspend a 12-hour belt feeder above the feed cylinder. Fish stack up under feeder, even the small ones, and eat until full before moving off to loiter until gut fill goes down and urge to eat returns. Partial shade near where feed hits water may improve feed intake. It also pays to make so herons can not fish BG or other stock as they stack up under feeder.

I don't have a feeder. Hand feed only. A few of my CNBG that I stocked in Sept 2015 have now reached 8.5 inches and are thick and fat. Sampled some today. Is that decent growth for NW Arkansas?