Are feeder fish cheaper or the same price as “pet fish”?
Here in Texas, “feeder” fish are sold for around 6 to 10 fish for a dollar. That would be about 62p in UK money for 6 to 10 feeders. Feeder fish are much cheaper than the same species of pet fish, and for good reason. Feeders are the culls from fish breeders. The stock that is sick, deformed, runty, or just ugly goes into the feeder tank. Once they are designated “feeders,” they are not fed again, in many cases. They are also crowded in with a great many other feeder fish, many of which are sick, so you can almost count on feeders being infested with ich, assorted bacteria, viruses, and parasites. Therefore, as a diet for carnivorous fish, feeders tend to be malnourished and carrying pathogens, which is why some of us are very reluctant to feed them to aquarium fish (unless we raise our own feeders). Goldfish (all goldfish) also contain a high level of thiaminase, which destroys thiamin (Vitamin B1), and can lead to a deficiency in fish that eat a lot of goldfish. Most fish in the carp
