Vampires' Feeding Requirements

[white avenger]

Hwo much blood does a vampire need to survive?

We've seen on both shows that a vampire's victim is always drained to the point of dying from blood loss, and that's with just a single vampire feeding. That's several quarts of blood at a setting. Angel and Spike, however, seem to get by on just a few cups full a day, at most, and sometimes not even that much.

This is purely a question for speculation and guesswork, since we were never told how much blood per day is "enough," so what is your guess, and why the apparent difference between Angel and Spike and the general population of vampires?

 

[VisionGirl]

Well, given that Angel spent several months in the ocean with nothing to feed on (save for maybe the occasional fish- and how much blood does a fish have anyway?), I'd say that they don't really need very much.

 

[Blaze]

Well, given that Angel spent several months in the ocean with nothing to feed on (save for maybe the occasional fish- and how much blood does a fish have anyway?), I'd say that they don't really need very much.

That's what I was going to say. Actually, I don't even know if a vamp could die from not feeding (as we've never seen it happen). They might just become so weak that they are catatonic, a bit like with Angel. I'd be curious to see if a vampire dies a starvation, what happens to the body, they are already scientifically dead, and they won't dust, so how exactly would you tell that they are dead.

 

[Ethan Reigns]

From "Pangs" 4ABB08:

SPIKE
Hey, when do I get fed?


BUFFY
Later.
(to Giles)
I hope the others are okay...


SPIKE
Do you know what happens to a
vampire that doesn't get to feed?


GILES
Actually, I've always wondered.


BUFFY
Giles, plates.

He grabs them from the counter and helps.


SPIKE
Living skeletons, mate. Like
famine pictures from those dusty
countries, only not half as funny.

Now maybe he was exaggerating just so someone would take pity on him and feed him, but this is the only stated consequence of a vampire not eating that I can recall. But since Angel didn't seem to fare much worse after being submerged, he was probably just faking.

 

[ILLYRIAN]

I'd go with a cup of blood a day, to keep their energy levels up. And it must be okay as I don't recall a vampire ever having to go to a doctor because of low energy.
When Angel was at the bottom of the sea for those months, being tied-up so that he couldn't move he didn't use up any energy. So he didn't need to drink to get more energy.

Ethan Reigns
Spike didn't really want more blood in Pangs, it was just that he liked the whole idea of being fed blood by a pretty girl, in a pretty cup with a straw. It would have been too embarrassing to admit that to Giles.