Did I starve my fish to death?

[Angry_Platy]

I have had my mbuna tank setup now for close to 15 months and haven't had a fish die in there.....EVER... (read on though). This week I am going away for 4 days and for the last month or so I have been conditioning my fish to being fed less regularly (so the 4 days without food won't be a shock)...

Last week I noticed the africans were looking rather thin and a bit listless....so I fed them (when I normally wouldn't have), and they seemed to pick up a bit. Just before their next feeding I discovered a dead Aulonocara. The next day I found a dead electric yellow and the day after that a dead Cyrtocara. I did the appropriate water changes and checks and everything seemed OK. It just seemed odd that they died all of a sudden. I also have Ps. Acei, clown loaches and a RTBS in the tank. All other fish seem perfectly fine (this all happened a week ago now)....

Could it be possible that I starved my fish to death? I didn't realise that was possible with fish (as long as they got some food)....all fish, when found, were at the bottom of the tank and white and REALLY thin. I would have thought if there was something bad in my water that the loaches would have been the first to get sick. They are still parolling the tank like nothing is wrong. The same goes foe the Ps. acei which are juvies....

Any ideas

 

[vantgE]

If they aren't beat (maybe your shark are rtbs agresive?)up or no signs of stress, were eating fine, with no growths fungus and such starvation could be a possibility but you should say exactly waht your feeding arangements are they would have to be quite severe for tehm to starve,

 

[freddyk]

Under normal conditions I would find it a little hard to beleive, but I don't know quite how little you were feeding them. For many people summer has made their tanks very warm now and anyone with higher then desirable temps must remember the fish metabolism rises with the heat.

FYI you don't need to worry about conditioning the fish, it's best to leave them when they are strong and healthy then having been 'starved up' to condition them.

Sorry to hear about your losses, I hope the others hang in.

 

[Angry_Platy]

Thanks peeps for the advice. I was kind of under the impression that the shock of being left for 4 days without food would be worse than if they were gradually used to it. Looks like I will be feeding them up between now and when I leave. Your argument makes a lot of sense!!

All the other fish are fine!!!

MY RTBS is not aggressive at all. He is probably the most placid fish in the tank, I think the loaches may be more aggro than he is (and thats nothing either).....