Anybody for Dragon Chow?

[Gurthang]

I was just thinking.

Smaug stayed under the mountain for a long time. He didn't come out very often, and he didn't attack the lake-town, or they would have moved away. He just lived under the mountain for a long time.

So how did Smaug stay alive without eating for such a long time? If he did eat, then what? How could he have let himself leave to go find food?

This same question could be asked about many creatures. Such as, how did the Ents get their energy to move? Did the Nazgul need sustainance, and if so, then what? How did Balrogs stay alive?

As far as Smaug goes, I would guess that he basically hybernated. He slept soundly(but with one eye open) for long periods of time and did not use his energy.

[Lindolirian]

The Nazgul were more dead than alive and didn't need to rely on biological processes to stay alive, and I don't doubt the same is true for Balrogs and other spirits (which may or may not include Dragons). Smaug certainly ate the people of Dale until it was thoroughly ruined and knew the taste of dwarf well enough to smell it their ponies. I'm sure he did some hunting in his time and his prey probably included larger mammals like wild horses, possibly deer, even some bears, or maybe wanderers from Lake Town who had lost their way. Of course, he also seemed to hibernate a good deal on his bed of gold and such a sedentary lifestyle does not require much energy.
As for the Ents...photosynthesis.

[Elven-Maiden]

The ents also had the Ent-draughts that made Merry and Pippin grow so tall.

[burrahobbit]

They are magical creatures, it doesn't matter. But anyway.

Dragons: big snakes eat once every couple months.

Ents: do trees eat?

Nazgul: are dead.

Balrogs: do angels eat?

[obloquy]

Balrogs: do angels eat?

They might once they're incarnate.

[burrahobbit]

After a quick aim conversation with obloquy this is what I have.

There are different degrees of incarnation, and we don't know how far down the path any particular balrog has/had gone. The Moria balrog spent quite a while locked up in a cave without food, so they clearly don't need to eat all the time. That being said, he could have simply been hibernating. Bears do it all the time, and it does say that the Dwarves woke him. Aside from that period, though, there are typically always orcs around. Take that however you want. Long story short. Either they don't need to eat or they can go a long time without food for whatever reason or eat/be fed by orcs.

[Nimrodel_9]

Sorry, I didn`t have time to read all of the posts, so if I repeat something that has already been said, please forgive me.
I have often wondered about Smaug. Perhaps he went out and picked off a couple of sheep once in a while. I do not think the Balrogs ate, and am pretty sure the Nazgul did not. They were neither living nor dead, so I do not think they would need food. As for Ents: Sunlight and rain water, like a tree.

[Gurthang]

If you're going down the path that Maiar don't need to eat, then I have to ask why did Gandalf eat?

He could have just been trying to appear more as a man. You know, it would be pretty weird knowing someone who never took some food. But it also comes to mind that he really didn't have to. As burrahobbit mentioned, it may depend on their level of incarnation. It would make more sense to me that since Gandalf was in a man's body he would have to take food to keep it running.

Also, I was kinda thinking photosynthesis for the Ents, because what would they eat? Meat doesn't make sense, and they wouldn't want to eat plants because they are almost a plant themselves. So they make their own energy with light and water.

[Nilpaurion Felagund]

Well, their water is foodlike (at least one of its variants), and satisfied hobbits (and what hobbits they were!), so I think the water the Ents manufacture/harvest/distill must be full of sustenance.