Pond Boss Forums MANAGING AN EXISTING POND Feeding Pond Feed Help

Hey Guys,

I have a 1 acre pond that i stocked last spring with LMB, blue gill, red ear, fat head minnows and channel cat. I was wondering what feed you would recommend? I have a Texas hunter feeder set up and want to start feeding this year. Any advice on how to get them started on feed would be helpful as well. Thanks

Optimal and Purina Aquamax are all good feeds. There are others too. Cargill, etc.

If you feed at the same location each time, that's beneficial.

If you want the best chances of any fish taking to feed, it's best to soak the feed in water for about 10 minutes. Of course, that isn't really possible with a feeder, so you may have to hand feed for a period while the fish learn to 'love' the feed, then transition to the automatic feeder.

I've used both Purina and Optimal, I prefer Optimal.

When feeding pond fish for goals of producing good fish growth and a higher quality fishery you should look for fish food that has a minimum to 40% protein. Some fish foods have a higher digestible food content. However most all fish foods with 40%+ protein will be very good for most sport fisheries. One food brand Purina Aquamax Sport Fish food has several size pellets so most all sizes of fish can find some pellets to easily eat. ALSO Optimal BG fish food has multi-sized worm shape pellets. One benefit to Optimal is after you order the food online, they will ship it FedEx to your door. Convenient.