Fish care while you are gone requires some serious advanced planning. After all the caring you've done for your pet, the last thing you want to come home to after a vacation is a tank in serious disaster, right?

If you will be gone for just about two to three days, then fish care while you are gone is not a problem. You fish can survive your short absence. But if you're going away for longer periods of time, then you will have to seriously consider your options in fish care while you are gone.

Consider yourself lucky if you have a friend or neighbor who is knowledgeable and willing in doing fish care while you are gone. But even with that, spending some time with your fish caretaker is a good idea to explain feeding or emergency measures in fish care while you are gone. During these orientation sessions, you have to explain daily food allotments and why it is important not to overfeed the fish. Show the person how things should be done, then have the person go through everything to make sure everything is understood correctly.

If there's no one to watch over your fish during your absence, then automatic feeders could be your solution to fish care while you are gone. It works by feeding your fish with the allotted amount of food at certain intervals. If you should choose this solution, make sure that you've secured the automatic feeder well, making sure that it is properly operating. If you feeder runs on batteries, make sure you place new batteries in it to make sure they don't run out. However, automatic feeders are not without setbacks. Automatic feeders are still machines that can are prone malfunction even in the most ideal conditions. Moreover, in case of a power outage that will last for several days, your tank could slowly be depleted of oxygen. Also, your feeder may run out of food if you go away for an extended period of time.

Feeding blocks are also a good solution to feeding your fish while you're away. They are especially made to slowly dissolve and release food into the water. However, one of the down sides of feeding blocks is that the dissolving rate of food largely depends on water chemistry - which make feeding intervals rather difficult to determine. Wrongly measured feeding blocks put into the aquarium while you're away can do more damage than good: it can lead to polluted water and fish disease.

After you've decided on a solution to fish care while you are gone, make sure you do your regular aquarium maintenance before leaving. Clean your tank, change filter media as needed, as well as filter pads. Never install any new equipment before you leave, as it runs the risk of breaking down when you're away. If you're lucky enough to find a caretaker, make sure you leave your number in case of emergencies. By planning well ahead, fish care while you are gone will ensure that your fish will still be in great condition upon your return.