Gary, the 4.0-kg, 40-cm fish, had been fed a steady diet of Kit Kat bars by its previous owners and would eat nothing else but the chocolate-covered wafer bars.
Staff at the aquarium, who inherited the fish, were initially puzzled as to why the fish refused to eat, until they learned of its sweet tooth.
Aquarium staff then stuffed crushed Kit Kat pieces inside grapes and slices of banana, feeding these to Gary to wean the fish off its unhealthy diet.
Giant gouramis are omnivorous in the wild, and eat a wide variety of plant and animal foods. Gary, estimated to be about 7–10 years old, did not appear to have suffered from its sugar-rich diet. According to Gary’s handler, Rebecca Carter: "I have never heard of a fish being fed chocolate, let alone being brought up entirely on the stuff.
"However, we would not recommend feeding fish confectionery of any kind."
Gary is not the only fish in the aquarium to have picked up unusual habits from its previous owner. Its neighbour, a catfish named Ed, will only eat if fed by hand and enjoys being stroked on the head while it eats. Ed has also taken to head-butting a pufferfish in the same tank that competes for food.
Behind the antics of these fish lies a more serious issue of aquarists being unable to adequately care for fish that have grown too big.
"Many people don't do the right research when they buy fish and end up unable to care for them," added Ms Carter. "Catfish are a good example and we have a number here that outgrew their homes.
"We're delighted we could find a home for Gary, but the fact is we simply do not have the space to accommodate the vast number of re-homing requests we receive."
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Source: Practical Fishkeeping
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