# What & How Often do you feed?



## OrangeDog (Apr 26, 2011)

I tried to search if this topic had been started and I dident find it so here goes:

I want to find out what other betta parents feed their bettas and how often you feed. 

Ronnie & Tre alternate between BettaMin Tropical Medley flakes, Freeze-Dried Blood Worms and Freeze-Dried Plankton and I feed them almmost every day.


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## PewPewPew (Nov 26, 2010)

As a rule, freeze dried anything should be fed in serious moderation, as theyre unhealthy and cause bloat, similar to our potato chips. Feed that one time a week.

I feed my boys Tetra pellets and Omega One Minipellets. I feed every 2-3+ hours, totaling 3-4 a day. It suits my boys best, as one is prone to bloat and the other is young and growing.


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## CyerRyn (Apr 8, 2011)

I know that there's at least one post like this roaming around since I recall posting on it, but doesn't hurt to bring it up again. 

I feed my bigger boys BettaMin pellets (1 pellet 3x daily) and *was* treating them to freeze-dried blood worms, but my new one Bloo got fat and Sazzer wants nothing to do with it so I guess those will be going to just one of my boys. I have to try a new brand for my new boy Bloo since the BettaMin pellets + freeze dried blood worms made his belly big and scared me that it was dropsy. D= I also have BettaMin tropical medley but none of my boys would touch it.


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## OrangeDog (Apr 26, 2011)

Wow! you guys feed multiple times a day?? I had somebody tell me she only fed her betta twice a week and he lived 7 years. I am trying to not over feed and just give them a little bit each day. So far so good... but its great to hear from others. One of the tanks I got came with the betta mini pellets and Tre would not eat them so I guess thats why I went to the flakes.


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## PewPewPew (Nov 26, 2010)

Seven years? I doubt it  I personally like pellets better, since its easier to tell how much they get.

Try giving a pinch twice a day.


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## newarkhiphop (Apr 22, 2011)

aqueon betta pellets 

2 pellets x 2 times a day ( usally in the morning right after my breakfast and at night right after my dinner) and sometimes 1 pellet inbetween as a snack


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## OrangeDog (Apr 26, 2011)

maybe I should get some pellets...


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## CyerRyn (Apr 8, 2011)

The bottle told me to give 3 pellets twice daily, but Sazzer was starting to get a round belly with it so I cut it down to 1 three times daily. I was considering on fasting them once a week after the incident with Bloo to cut down on possible bloat. He really scurred me! :<


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## OrangeDog (Apr 26, 2011)

next time I go to the petstore... which for me is very often. I have 3 dogs, the 2 betta boys plus I am changing my goldfish tank over to assorted tropicals. If I can get my mom's tank water issue fixed I will be headed to Tropical Isle tomorrow and I am sure they will have a great selection of betta pellets


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## PewPewPew (Nov 26, 2010)

Look for at least**** 42% protein, which is what they need. If your fish has a small mouth or is small itself, look for mini or micro pellets 

Omega One, Tetra brand, Topfin (rareish), Hikari (NOT bio-gold), aqueon, and wardley are often used on this site.


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## OrangeDog (Apr 26, 2011)

Thank you! 

on a side note... how many Betta's do you have?


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## PewPewPew (Nov 26, 2010)

Right now I have only two, but have had 4 in the past few years and 6 in total <3

Dont be fooled though... The number of fish you have isnt a good indicator of knowledge...

There are many members on this site who have gone from zero to upwards of ten in only weeks and know only the very basics, so keep that in mind  Base your trust in their info on what they post...and not how often and how much they post!


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## smellsfishie (Apr 14, 2011)

PewPewPew said:


> Look for at least**** 42% protein, which is what they need. If your fish has a small mouth or is small itself, look for mini or micro pellets
> 
> Omega One, Tetra brand, Topfin (rareish), Hikari (NOT bio-gold), aqueon, and wardley are often used on this site.


Just curious, why not the Hikari Betta Bio Gold? Because it is not high enough in protein?

Don't jump down my throat, but I have been feeding my bettas Hikari Bio-Gold for years, and Eli lived with me for 3 years (so he was at least 4 yrs old based on how long he lived with his previous owner). 

Obviously, want what is best for my fish... but, interested to hear your opinion. 

And to the original thread question: I feed (as stated above) Hikari betta Bio-Gold 4-5 pellets twice a day.


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## PewPewPew (Nov 26, 2010)

Recently (in the past few months) theyve changed the recipe to an amount of protein that is, yes, too little to live optimally on. If you can, you may want to consider changing, but its not too too bad. Just more of a warning to stay away since theyve yet to be purchased.


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## OrangeDog (Apr 26, 2011)

I was not asking how many you have to be rude... sorry if it came across that way. I am just curious how many everyone on here has. I had one as a kid and have always had great memories of him so I am just getting back into it. I have the 2 boys right now with plans to get more.


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## PewPewPew (Nov 26, 2010)

No no! Not rude, just letting you know, since you appear new here  Just as a warning because some people give bad advice, even though it would,sensibly, appear that they are knowledgeable.


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## OrangeDog (Apr 26, 2011)

Yea, I understand. I like these forums... I can get lots of peoples input and then choose what seems to feel right  

I just checked and the staple diet my boys get is 48% protein so I guess this is good.


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## smellsfishie (Apr 14, 2011)

PewPewPew said:


> Recently (in the past few months) theyve changed the recipe to an amount of protein that is, yes, too little to live optimally on. If you can, you may want to consider changing, but its not too too bad. Just more of a warning to stay away since theyve yet to be purchased.


I see... The bag I have now is min 38% protein. I am definitely going to research that. I guess I assumed it was one of the best out there. :/ That is disappointing. Thank you for the info Pew (and for not jumping down my throat )

Also, in regards to your ques. Orange- For me, I have 2 male bettas right now and a female on the way!  I have had a decent history with bettas... including this new female, I will reach a total of 10 in my lifetime.


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## smellsfishie (Apr 14, 2011)

i take that back. I know I had another female at some point... a looong time ago. So 11... but 10 I can remember clearly and name. LOL


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## PewPewPew (Nov 26, 2010)

I usually dont jump down people's throats, especially for genuine, honest questions. Dont listen to people who complain about me, theyre just mad that theyre wrong 

Its worth a shot looking into that...Hikari is a great brand, so its not wonder you thought that. They just changed it for some reason, which is odd. I think they have another product that works well, just not Bio-gold per se.

And dang! Thats great, they'll flourish with that. Flakes seem to be higher in protein content, though I personally dont like them because theyre messy. Booo!


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## Arianthy (Apr 13, 2011)

I feed my bettas twice a day, Once before work and after i take care of the furry ones when i get home from work. I'm using Hikari Floating pellets since most all of my bettas eat them, about 2-3 per fish (my females I have to try to lure away from each LOL but some get more then they should), And every third day I feed brine shrimp (not really a worm person LOL) that i just give about a drop size to my males and just put some in the current of my filter in the sorority tank so that they can chase it down  and it helps with distributing them a little bit. 

But I have a problem with my females eating the sinking pellets meant for the corys that i have O_O although its a little funny to watch because they cant eat them until the water has softened them a bit



OrangeDog said:


> on a side note... how many Betta's do you have?


I have 6 Females and 3 Males - But I also take care of the male that my Dad has sitting on his desk. And I have a pair on its way


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## denaliwind (Feb 27, 2011)

I feed in the morning and night, I don't have a specific amount or size I feed, I just monitor their bellies, I feed them one piece at a time. 

I feed... frozen mysis shrimp, frozen brine shrimp, frozen bloodworms, frozen daphnia, occassionally live insects (ants/fruit flies) and just recently I started feeding pellets (48% protein, 14% fat) as I'm leaving for a month in the summer and I don't think the pet sitter is willing to take the time with frozen/live foods. ^^;

Things I will never feed my bettas are peas (scary), freeze dried foods (scary) and flakes (only 'cause they're messy XD)! D:


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## luluo (Apr 6, 2011)

I feed D'Argo twice a day. In the morning I give him a couple of bites of _Omega 1 Betta Buffet flakes_ (soaked in tank water for a minute), along with a small piece of frozen food like a brine shrimp, bloodworm, or another pice of a frozen multi-pack. The frozen food I have is San Francisco Bay brand. In the evening I feed him from whatever frozen food I have left from the morning feeding, depending on the size of the critters, like 3-4 brine shrimp, 2-3 bloodworms, or a few pieces from a multi-pack.


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## iheartmybettas (Jan 31, 2011)

I have the old version of hikari bio gold I guess which has a much higher protein percentage. I feed my regular bettas 2 hikari pellets in the morning and switch between atisons and new life spectrum for dinner usually 3 pellets since they are smaller. My king male and giant get a little more. The sorority gets flakes and I'm trying to track down daphnia.

See sig for fish count.


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## smellsfishie (Apr 14, 2011)

PewPewPew said:


> I usually dont jump down people's throats, especially for genuine, honest questions. Dont listen to people who complain about me, theyre just mad that theyre wrong
> 
> Its worth a shot looking into that...Hikari is a great brand, so its not wonder you thought that. They just changed it for some reason, which is odd. I think they have another product that works well, just not Bio-gold per se.


HAHA  No one has complained about you that I know of. And, thank you. I didn't mean just you (about don't jump down my throat), but anyone who happened to read my post and wanted to comment... some people tend to get a bit touchy on this site, I noticed. But, I appreciate the input.  You've always been very helpful and informative to me.


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## alixhero (Apr 11, 2011)

I can't believe that u guys dunno that Betta Fish is actually a carnivores animal ...

Which mean it need MEAT to stablize the acid in its stomach , otherwise it will ended up slowly diguise its own stomach meats ...

And that is why normally they died in 4 years old , 2 times a week by feeding meat is way balance enought for it ^^


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## PewPewPew (Nov 26, 2010)

The Pellets and flakes are made of meat/protien, which its fine.
Feeding just "meat" and not worms or bugs is not recommended for the usual betta owner, as it is difficult.
Something like chicken our beef meat isn't in their diet and is just as unnatural as a pellet.

Please do not belittle other members, especially when they do actually know what they are talking about.


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## iheartmybettas (Jan 31, 2011)

alixhero said:


> I can't believe that u guys dunno that Betta Fish is actually a carnivores animal ...
> 
> Which mean it need MEAT to stablize the acid in its stomach , otherwise it will ended up slowly diguise its own stomach meats ...
> 
> And that is why normally they died in 4 years old , 2 times a week by feeding meat is way balance enought for it ^^


No kidding which is why we try to feed them high protein pellets. No fish gets pellets in the wild but they are designed to have a similar makeup so that the fish are healthy and receiving the same nutrients without having to replicate the food they get in their natural habitat.


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## Blazer23 (Apr 21, 2011)

I feed Lightning Hikari Bio-Gold pellets. (2 pellets 2x a day) I tried freeze dried bloodworms but he just ignored them so I stopped.


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## BluInk (Mar 14, 2011)

PewPewPew said:


> Look for at least**** 42% protein, which is what they need. If your fish has a small mouth or is small itself, look for mini or micro pellets
> 
> Omega One, Tetra brand, Topfin (rareish), Hikari (NOT bio-gold), aqueon, and wardley are often used on this site.


Is the bio-gold not good for some reason?
PLEASE DISREGARD! I DIDN'T READ THRU ENTIRE THREAD!!


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## smellsfishie (Apr 14, 2011)

BluInk said:


> Is the bio-gold not good for some reason?
> PLEASE DISREGARD! I DIDN'T READ THRU ENTIRE THREAD!!


Hehe... 

Now I am on the hunt for a new brand of food. Aqueon also has min 38% protein, just as an FYI... But Omega One Betta Buffet Pellets are min 42% protein. I feed my other tropical fish TetraColor Tropical Crisps, which one of my Betta's eats too because he eats with the other fish... Those are min 46% protein... But, not specifically made for Bettas. Although, my betta gobbles them down with no problems. The crisps (for anyone who doesn't know) are "harder" than flakes, so they keep shape better and make less mess in my opinion.


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## DarkMoon17 (Apr 16, 2011)

On a side note with the Hikari Bio Gold, not only does it not have enough protein but they increased the amount of wheat in it which has led to bloating in some fish. Yet another reason to avoid it 

I feed mine Attison's Betta Pro in the AM, the pellets are pretty small so I give a *small* pinch. The slightly rounder males like Apoc get fewer. In the PM they all get frozen blood worms or frozen brine shrimp. I put a bucket of water outside in hopes that I'll get some mosquito larva for them soon. 

Right now, I've got 9 bettas (4 females 5 males). I'll be conditioning 4-6 starting next week for breeding in mid-late May so I hope some mosquito larva show up!


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## luluo (Apr 6, 2011)

Anyone heard of angels plus foods? I needed to get some de-worming food for a molly fish and saw that they have all kinds of flake foods. I bought several kinds and thought I'd give it a try with the community tank. Might give a few to D'Argo too now and then.


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