Why can't you feed your pet fish fish bait?

Question

I was fishing and I was reading the back of a power bait tube and then I was like I wonder if my goldfish could eat it. It said not for human or pet consumptind. Why can trout eat it but not goldfish?

Answer 1

My best guess would be that it's not sterilized for pet use. Fish in their natural habitat get exposed to bacteria and parasites on a daily basis, while aquarium fish are always kept in a near sterile environment. So maybe it would make your fish sick because they don't have enough immunities... That's my best guess.

Answer 2

The same reason you can't eat cat food.

You're both mammals, they're both fish.  

Answer 3

Power bait is loaded with oils and chemicals that disperse the scent of the bait throughout the water.  In a lake or river where you're dealing with hundreds of thousands of gallons of water, contamination isn't much of an issue; in something like an aquarium however, the oils would quickly foul the water, coat your pets gills, and likely kill everything in the tank.