Betta fish are picky eaters and prefer to eat from the surface of the water rather than on the substrate of a tank. Betta fish need a protein-riched balanced diet because they are mainly carnivorous.
It is a myth that Betta can survive simply by feeding on the roots of plants. In the wild, they feed on daphnia, copepods, shrimps, mosquito larvae, and any other life forms they can feed on.
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Feeding Betta fish with watermelon
Watermelon should not be used as a staple food for Betta fish, but more as a treat and always in very small pieces. Feeding of watermelon to Betta fish can be done once in a while.
The important thing to remember is that the bulk part of Betta’s diet has to be their regular food which is rich in protein such as worms, actual betta pellets, or some other food specifically made for bettas.
Betta fish Foods
Being a carnivore, the main diet of Betta fish should contain live foods, but for most betta fish keepers, it may be difficult to provide live fish foods.
Therefore, this calls for the provision of
1. High-quality pellets
Pellet feeds are the most common Betta fish feed on the market and the quality of the pellets varies widely.
The best pellets for Betta fish contain fewer fillers (fillers are often found in many pellet and flake foods and can cause fish bloat and digestive problems) and high-quality ingredients that help the fish thrive.
Some Betta fish pellets expand significantly after being exposed to water.
This can cause gas and digestive problems if you are not careful as they expand into your Betta’s stomach.
For pellets that expand when wet, dip them in the aquarium water for hydration before feeding them to keep the fish.
This is important especially if your Betta fish eat the food immediately your feed.
2. Freeze-dried foods
Freeze-dried foods are an excellent option to include in your Betta fish diet.
A great advantage of freeze-dried foods is that they are free of bacteria and other parasites.
However, one of the disadvantages of freeze-dried food is that freeze-dried foods were stripped of their moisture content and fillers were added to keep them stable.
It is therefore recommended to put them in the tank water before feeding them to the fish in order to return the moisture content by rehydrating the feed.
Feeding only freeze-dried foods can cause fish bloating and digestive problems.
Freeze-dried foods are easy to find in local shops and online fish stores.
They are relatively inexpensive and are easy to store and are often delivered in typical fish food containers.
3. Flakes
There are some fish flakes specially made for Betta fish.
Do not feed your Betta with other tropical fish flakes as they lack the protein requirements that bettas need.
Excess flakes should be removed immediately after feeding to prevent any spike in the water cycle.
4. Frozen and Live Betta feed
Frozen betta foods are an excellent alternative to live food.
Frozen Betta foods can be stored in the freezer until you are ready to thaw them and feed them to Betta.
Take only the feed you need and put the rest in the freezer to prevent exposure to bacteria.
Betta’s favorite Live/Frozen Foods include
1. Mosquito Larvae
2. Brine Shrimp
3. Bloodworms
4. Mys is Shrimp
5. Wingless Fruit Flies
Betta fish-eating human food
Betta fish can eat shelled (no shell) cooked peas because they can be easily digested by betta fish.
Cucumber and lettuce are also excellent sources of food. They contain many vitamins and Betta fish can easily digest them. Don’t give them too much of these human foods and cut them into small pieces when feeding.
Betta fish can be fed with small quantities of cooked meat such as beef, chicken, and pork with no spices.
Most people are against it nowadays, as it is uncommon for animals living in water to consume land animals. However, it is that harmful but you have to be courteous.
Foods that Betta fish like
1. Live Blackworms
When it comes to Betta fish feed, live foods are considered to be among the best, as they are closest to their real natural diet.
We recommend black worms as they can live in your aquarium for a while like real freshwater species without polluting the water.
They like to dig in the substrate, which gives your Betta fish the adventure of the wild chasing them one after the other.
2. Frozen Bloodworms (the bright larva of red mosquitoes)
Since betta fish eat small insects, crustaceans and other meaty foods in nature, frozen bloodworms are also are one of the best foods you can offer them.
They are sold in most local pet stores and are usually supplied in a pack of individual cubes sealed with foil in a frozen slab you can break pieces off.
3. Insect-based Pellets
This is another type of feed for Betta, mainly produced from black soldier fly larvae to best simulate the insectivorous diet of a Betta fish.
Contains high levels of high-quality protein and other essential vitamins and minerals to improve Betta’s health. This is a slow sinking feed that some Bettas may not struggle with. However, if you have other tankmates like Tetras and Corydoras, they can feed on those remains that your betta leaves behind.
Betta fish feeding frequency
- Adult bettas can be fed once a day and the fry or fingerlings can be fed twice a day. It may not seem like enough, but many pellets expand more than double their size when wet. To put it in a wider perspective, the stomach of a Betta fish is roughly the size of its eye!
- Depending on your Betta’s activity level, additional nutrition may be needed.
- Always clean the excess food that falls on the bottom of the tank with an aquarium siphoning tube. This prevents the formation of ammonia and nitrites and the potential for harmful diseases from food spoilage.
- It’s also a good idea not to feed your Betta one day a week for example on Sundays. This gives their digestive tract time to completely process ingested foods. If you’re going away for a day or two or on vacation, don’t feed your fish in advance.
- Feeding in advance will disrupt the tank ecosystem and affect the fish.
Note: Betta fish can live up to 14days without food.
Betta fish water requirements
Betta fish water temperature requirement is between 76 and 82 degrees Fahrenheit.
To keep the water temperature within this range, it may be necessary to purchase a heater for Betta fish when the surrounding space is colder.
1. Bottled Spring Water
Bottled spring water is a good alternative to distilled water but is more expensive. Unlike distilled water, the minerals and elements in bottled spring water have not been removed.
This water does not even contain chlorine, so it is safe to use in betta fish tanks as long as the pH corresponds to the betta safety level.
Always check the pH of the water before adding it to the tank.
Betta fish thrive well in a pH level between 6.5 and 8.
Bottled water of different brands contains different pH values. Make sure you have treatments to increase or decrease the pH to change the value if necessary.
2. Betta Specified Water
Some bottled water is made specifically for betta fish. The water has been preconditioned for Betta fish.
It has the correct pH and has been freed from harmful chemicals. You can choose to use this if you want the convenience of the water which can be filled immediately in your tank.
Changing Betta Fish water
Always limit drastic changes in pH and temperature of your tank water. Betta fish must get used to the new water in their aquarium. Cycling, partial water changes, and acclimatization can really help.
These reduce stress, which is very dangerous for the health of a Betta fish.
Carry out partial water changes of 20-30% in your betta fish tank at regular intervals. This depends on the size of the tank and whether it is filtered or not. For deeper cleaning, a full water change is also recommended if necessary.
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