# New Life Spectrum



## TheFishyFoxy (Nov 9, 2013)

I'm currently feeding Hikari Bio-Gold for my Betta, Picasso. I'm looking to buy New Life Spectrum for him today, since I like to have two foods at once. I also fed the Aqueon Betta food, but it's expired now. I've had that food for 5 years, and with only one fish, it is only half way done. I know neither are that great, so I'm going to NLS.

I'm wondering which type of NLS you feed. I know the Betta formula has less protein than the Small Fish one, and the Small Fish has smaller pellets. I know they have the Thera-A too, with garlic. I also saw some people feed the Grow formula? Which one do you feed/recommend? How long does it take to finish? Guess it's not too big of a deal tho, it's not too expensive and last a long time.

Thanks!


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## Kithy (Nov 21, 2012)

I use the betta formula though for a little while I was using the small goldfish formula since I was having trouble finding the betta one. 

At only 3 or 4 pellets per fish it seems like it lasts forever. I have 9 bettas and the container was only just past the top part of the label before my son dumped it on the floor.


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## MattsBettas (Dec 18, 2012)

I use the betta formula, it's worked very well for me and even my small fry have no problems eating it. 

The small fish and grow formula will also work.


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## TheFishyFoxy (Nov 9, 2013)

Alright, I'm leaning torwards the Betta formula then. I just find the smaller pellets more convenient because you can cater it more specifically to your fish's needs. Decisions, decisions.


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## cowboy (Apr 14, 2013)

I use the betta formula but not all my fish like it (believe it or not)


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## sandybottom (Nov 29, 2012)

i use the small fish formula right now as i recently had some baby betta. i am going to switch to the thera +a as it contains extra garlic.this is supposed to help with internal parasites and picky eaters will enjoy the extra garlic. the grow formula has more protein at 50% and includes squid,new zealand mussles along with a micro algae. small fish and grow both have the extra small .5mm size.i think the thera +a is larger.


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## DerangedUnicorn (Sep 5, 2013)

I just changed to NLS yesterday. Three of my fish are having no trouble with the switch at all. The other two seem to have trouble with the size & just grabbing a hold of it in general. I wonder if it's slipperier than Omega One. I got the betta formula. It's a huge container. It's gonna last forever!!!! Plus, I have two containers of Omega One that will last until the end of time. Anyways, I'm feeding the two that have trouble one NLS pellet & one Omega pellet until they get used to it. Maybe I should crush them up first. But my baby betta has no trouble eating them though. She's a piggy no matter how big the pellet is.


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## jaysee (Dec 9, 2009)

All of my fish are fed NLS Thera A exclusively. The bettas and other small community fish get the 1 mm size. The larger fish get 2 mm and some fish get the 3 mm. The 0.5 mm pellets are for when I get reeeeally small fish, like baby neons and stuff.


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## TheFishyFoxy (Nov 9, 2013)

Ugh decisions. xD

Thera-A seems really good, but doesn't it have less protein? I don't think I'll get the grow version, because it has a lot of fat content too. I think I'll go with the Betta kind. Thanks!


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## Stone (Jan 6, 2013)

I love NLS other than the fact if you have only one betta it will expire before you could ever use it all, they need a smaller container omega one betta buffest if just as good and a much smaller container


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## TheFishyFoxy (Nov 9, 2013)

Main thing that steered me away from Omega One is that the pellets seem really big. NLS seems to have more fish based ingredients too. Don't get me wrong, Omega One still is a great food.  

NLS doesn't seem to be on the Petco website anymore. Hopefully it's in store.


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## Kithy (Nov 21, 2012)

It was in the store last time I had to get some. But sometimes it's down on the lowest shelf, probably because it's more expensive and only "serious" keepers buy it. They make more money off the cheap stuff.


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## Chachi (Sep 22, 2013)

I use the betta formula for my adults and the small fish formula for my babies.


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## TheFishyFoxy (Nov 9, 2013)

Ended with Omega One instead. Sorry. xD

It was a lot bigger than I remember it being, and I didn't want to waste so much. Thanks anyways. Maybe when I get more fish. Wink wink.


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## Polkadot (Feb 10, 2013)

I also use the Betta formula,my little ones love it!


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## dramaqueen (Jul 7, 2008)

I have enough NLS to last me for the next 5 years. Lol It comes in great big containers and is best for people with more than 2 or 3 fish.


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## Cody27 (Feb 18, 2014)

When we got our male betta, Stormy, we fed him Tetra Foating Mini Pellets, but one thing they were *NOT* and that was "Mini".........at least compared to Hikari Bio-Gold and Omega One Buffet. Our guy had a real problem sucking the Tetra pellets into his mouth, let alone eating them. So, we stopped the Tetra and started Hikari Bio-Gold (b/c for the Reviews we read). There was two fish in Tetra, but after each "fish ingredient" was the word "meal" and the first ingredient was Fish Meal. After we learned more about Betta food, that brand just didn't cut it! 

He really liked the Hikari Bio-Gold, but we wanted to feed another brand with besides that (diversity in diet). Even though Bio-Gold's fish ingredients also have the word "Meal" after each one, many betta people use this brand, so it couldn't bad. Anyway, after reading info and reviews, got Omega One Buffet. He "swooped" these down fast. Now, Omega One Buffet actually states the kind of fish in the ingredients, but no "meal" word after.........that sounded great and the reason for such high reviews/recommendations. 

*NOW*, read excellent reviews for NLS Betta Formula.........sounds like the *VERY BEST *betta pellet on the market!! So, giving very serious thought about ordering a jar (50g) of this on Amazon. Petco carries NLS, but not this kind and no other LFS carries the NLS brand at all. I've read some reviews that state the pellet is too big, but if it's the size of either Hikari or Omega One.......it sure isn't too big for our guy. 

Last (sorry for the long reply, but when retired, have plenty of time to write good stuff for info LOL), we are wondering how may people out there actually do feed their betta more than one brand of pellet? Does "diversity in diet" mean more than one brand of pellet? I think it would, b/c the other betta food is pretty much for a "treat" not a meal.


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## jaysee (Dec 9, 2009)

Cody27 said:


> When we got our male betta, Stormy, we fed him Tetra Foating Mini Pellets, but one thing they were *NOT* and that was "Mini".........at least compared to Hikari Bio-Gold and Omega One Buffet. Our guy had a real problem sucking the Tetra pellets into his mouth, let alone eating them. So, we stopped the Tetra and started Hikari Bio-Gold (b/c for the Reviews we read). There was two fish in Tetra, but after each "fish ingredient" was the word "meal" and the first ingredient was Fish Meal. After we learned more about Betta food, that brand just didn't cut it!
> 
> 
> 
> He really liked the Hikari Bio-Gold, but we wanted to feed another brand with besides that (diversity in diet). Even though Bio-Gold's fish ingredients also have the word "Meal" after each one, many betta people use this brand, so it couldn't bad. Anyway, after reading info and reviews, got Omega One Buffet. He "swooped" these down fast. Now, Omega One Buffet actually states the kind of fish in the ingredients, but no "meal" word after.........that sounded great and the reason for such high reviews/recommendations.



The "fish meal" in hikari isn't the bad part of the food - it's the wheat, soy, potato, wheat, corn and more wheat that makes it bad. It's a terrible ingredient list.

"Meal" is not a bad thing. Omega one betta buffet uses fish meal just like every other fish food out there. Fish MUST be converted to meal in order to be used in fish food, so when a company states a protein on the label that is NOT a meal, most times it's a misrepresentation of the abundance of that ingredient. Plain old "salmon" listed means the preprocessed weight of the fish is used, and 80% of the weight of the fish is lost in the mealing process. So they can claim that 100 lbs of salmon are used, even though there is really only 20 lbs of salmon in the product.

The bottom line is that omega one uses the ingredients list as a way of making their food look better than it really is.


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## Cody27 (Feb 18, 2014)

So, what I'm gathering from your reply here is that NLS Betta Formula pellets ARE the best of all three.........being, Hikari, Omega One and NLS. Right?



jaysee said:


> The "fish meal" in hikari isn't the bad part of the food - it's the wheat, soy, potato, wheat, corn and more wheat that makes it bad. It's a terrible ingredient list.
> 
> "Meal" is not a bad thing. Omega one betta buffet uses fish meal just like every other fish food out there. Fish MUST be converted to meal in order to be used in fish food, so when a company states a protein on the label that is NOT a meal, most times it's a misrepresentation of the abundance of that ingredient. Plain old "salmon" listed means the preprocessed weight of the fish is used, and 80% of the weight of the fish is lost in the mealing process. So they can claim that 100 lbs of salmon are used, even though there is really only 20 lbs of salmon in the product.
> 
> The bottom line is that omega one uses the ingredients list as a way of making their food look better than it really is.


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## Otterfun (Dec 31, 2012)

NLS has garlic in it so fish tends to like it better and it is better for immune system. i feed OO and NLS (2 each) every day.

if the pellet is too big you can grind it down a tad using a mortor or the back of a steel spoon. also, if the fish spits it out and then pick it up and spits it out again, it means it's too big to chew.


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## G26okie (Jan 16, 2014)

I've been feeding my rasboras and betta Hikari micro pellets, but its a pain to feed them. They are separated into yellow/red/green. Yellow being vitamins, green being plant, and red being protein. I hardly ever see the red ones floating down so the rasboras can get them.

Ordered some NLS small fish formula Thera A, so hopefully that will be easier to "portion" out.


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## Otterfun (Dec 31, 2012)

G26okie said:


> I've been feeding my rasboras and betta Hikari micro pellets, but its a pain to feed them. They are separated into yellow/red/green. Yellow being vitamins, green being plant, and red being protein. I hardly ever see the red ones floating down so the rasboras can get them.
> 
> Ordered some NLS small fish formula Thera A, so hopefully that will be easier to "portion" out.


I remove the bulb of the turkey baster and put the food through it and allow it to sink to the bottom in a controlled manner (modified feeding tunnel) . the fish gets excited seeing the tube and the food come down. i usually land the food on my marimo moss log so i can see and clean up as needed.


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## jaysee (Dec 9, 2009)

Cody27 said:


> So, what I'm gathering from your reply here is that NLS Betta Formula pellets ARE the best of all three.........being, Hikari, Omega One and NLS. Right?



Yeah I think so. Omega one might be right up there with it though... Even though they don't list their fish as meals. It's better than hikari by far . Aqueon is actually pretty decent - way better than hikari.

However I hear that NLS has changed their label, not for the better.


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## Ian Tepoot (Mar 28, 2014)

*NLS Betta Ingredients Detailed and Explained...*



jaysee said:


> However I hear that NLS has changed their label, not for the better.


In reply to jaysee:

Greetings. I am Ian Tepoot from New Life, and felt compelled to address this conception. Although difficult to respond to "I hear..." rumors, some information might be helpful.

This is the label of ingredients for our latest iteration of the Betta Formula:

_Whole Antarctic Krill, Whole Fish, Whole Wheat Flour, Ulva Seaweed, Chlorella Algae, Beta Carotene, Kelp, Garlic, Omega-3 Fish Oil, Alfalfa, Scallops, Spirulina, Wakame Seaweed, Spinosum Seaweed, Vitamin A Acetate, Vitamin D Supplement, Vitamin E Supplement, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Niacin, Folic Acid, Biotin, Thiamine Hydrochloride, Riboflavin Supplement, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Calcium Pantothenate, L-Ascorbyl-2-Polyphosphate (Vitamin C), Choline Chloride, Ethylenediamine Dihydroiodide, Cobalt Sulfate, Ferrous Sulfate, Manganese Sulfate._

We have changed the formula, in fact. We believe for the better and that our new ingredients represent a non-trivial upgrade (which is our goal year over year). Some information to help you navigate, and what the changes have been recently:

(1) As a note, we do not, nor have we ever, mixed wet and dry weights in our ingredient listings. Everything is dry weight, and we don't play tricks with that. Thus the listing orders are consistent between ingredients and between older and newer labels.

(2) Ingredients such as "Ulva Seaweed" and "Chlorella Algae" have been added in addition to the kelp and spirulina. This provides more balanced "veggies" in the formula and is made possible by new processes we developed to reduce wheat as a binder for the pellet.

(3) I want to emphasize that we still using whole herring (not waste product) as an ingredient. However, we are now using the term "Whole Fish". Why? Herring harvest has seasonal variation, and fisheries in Canada must now manage their resources. This leaves the _possibility_ of it not being available. 

For example, although we had supplies to see us through, a previous year there was virtually no harvest. In this case, should we need to, listing the ingredient as such gives us the ability to switch to other _whole_ high quality oily, high quality fish such as mackerel or sardines rather than simply stop production. I want to emphasize that this has not been necessary as _every jar of NLS sold in the U.S. has whole herring._

(4) Fruit and Vegetable extracts are now replaced with Wakame and Spinosum seaweeds, which again have advantage for fish over terrestrial ingredients and was made possible by our new processes.

(5) The beta carotene comes from all natural sources, such as the krill and marigold.

You may also notice that the current ingredients don't have Soybean products (which may be a difference, depending on how old your jar is), which we eliminated a while ago. 

Small changes in the phrasing of some of the vitamins don't represent a change in the materials, but rather current standards on the preferred scientific/technical names of some vitamins and supplements.

I hope this addresses any concerns that we have changed our ingredients for the worse. If you have any further questions, please don't hesitate to contact me.


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## jaysee (Dec 9, 2009)

Thank you so much for your response. I'm a huge advocate of the product, but have been confronted with questions and assertions about the revised list. Buying 5 lb buckets, I haven't yet seen the new list yet. You have answered all the questions I had, so thank you. I will continue to push your product on everyone.


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## MattsBettas (Dec 18, 2012)

Thank you very much for the response, Ian. That's great information and excellent to hear from someone involved with the company. I love NLS and will continue to suggest its use to our members. 

I have one (small) question, though- Why are Wakame and Spinosum seaweeds advantageous to terrestrial based fruits and vegetables?


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## Romad (Jun 28, 2009)

Thank you Ian! That is very informative. I switched over to NLS a while back and am thrilled with the product. And so are the fish


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## Sathori (Jul 7, 2013)

I feed the betta formula to all my bettas. I will likely be buying the small fish formula for my community tank since the betta in there likes the micro pellets that the neon tetras eat, and the neons are always trying to eat the NLS that my betta misses (or at times they still the NLS pellets lol)
My bettas are MUCH happier eating the NLS and I've noticed how much more they enjoy it over Hikari (which is what I was feeding before)


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## jadaBlu (Feb 14, 2013)

I've read you should not feed garlic to them every day. It's true that there are two different sizes of the pellets. I've twice bought it and got the larger size on Amazon even though the small size in weight and picture was shown. That was not a problem a year ago. I can tell you Thera A is the small size which has the garlic since you won't be feeding it every day you could opt for it. I would suggest contacting the seller before you buy to be sure you get the tiny pellets which are perfect.
This for example is the larger size pellet which you want to avoid unless you have really large betta
http://www.bigalspets.com/betta-formula-1-mm-semi-floating-pellets-50-g.html

I think the smaller pellets are like a 50 gram size. Here's a picture so you can see the difference
The all purpose size is what I used to be able to buy but I am having trouble getting. Even though they promote betta food I've compared ingredients and sometimes some of the all purpose foods have the same ingredients.

http://badmanstropicalfish.com/products/New_Life_Spectrum.html


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## MattsBettas (Dec 18, 2012)

Why shouldn't garlic be fed daily Jada? That's news to me. I know plenty of people that feed Thera A daily as a stable with perfectly healthy fish.


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## jaysee (Dec 9, 2009)

My fish have eaten nothing but Thera A for about 5 years now.

There are more than 2 sizes of pellets.


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## jadaBlu (Feb 14, 2013)

I'll have see if I can find the information I read again. I saw it recently. However, the manufacturer says the following about the food themselves:
*'Thera A’ Formulas
*
‘Thera A’ is a balanced diet packed with garlic (containing allicin compounds) and especially suited to feeding during periods of stress such as: quarantine of new fish; during disease recovery; and for fry before and after netting and movement.
Garlic helps to optimise the immune system and protect against parasites.

http://www.nlspectrum.co.uk/product_freshwater.php?p=freshwater

I like the Thera A and I have fed the food myself daily but stopped because the info I read made sense. The above statement seems to imply it's not a daily food but for periods of stress. I have not personally called them to ask about it. What I remember reading was that it causes some sort of vitamin deficiency for one needed vitamin and it's hard on the digestive system when fed daily. In humans too much garlic can irritate the digestive tract and increase risk of bleeding so too much garlic does have some side effects. Maybe I will call NLS spectrum and report back. I need to call them anyway and find a supplier that will actually sell me the right size food.


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## Ian Tepoot (Mar 28, 2014)

MattsBettas said:


> I have one (small) question, though- Why are Wakame and Spinosum seaweeds advantageous to terrestrial based fruits and vegetables?


Simply speaking, tropical fish don't digest terrestrial fruits and vegetables quite as well as aquatic plants. While it can still be good for them (which is why we included them previously), they aren't receiving the full benefit of it since some nutrients are trapped in terrestrial forms of cellulose, starch etc. that fish simply weren't evolved to process. The seaweeds -- while oceanic and not freshwater -- are still more in line with their systems and contain helpful trace elements, vitamins and jelly form proteins. Having many varieties of seaweed (as these two are in addition to the spirulina, kelp, ulva, chlorella etc.) provides the same varietal "basket of produce" nutritional effect as having mixed fruit and vegetable extracts -- except in this case it's all aquatic sourced.

As a side benefit, the stuff (Spinosum in particular) is super gooey and reduces reliance on the wheat binder as well.

Hope this helps!


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## jaysee (Dec 9, 2009)

Jada, The statement in no way implies that it's not a daily food.


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## ABETTAVOICE (Feb 2, 2014)

Simply put....Live First, Frozen second, prepared third, freeze dried fourth.


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## Ian Tepoot (Mar 28, 2014)

jadaBlu said:


> The above statement seems to imply it's not a daily food but for periods of stress.


Jada,

In all our tests, garlic has not been a problem long term, and the amount even in Thera-A would not be sufficient to cause digestive issues. The reason we emphasize that it is for newly acquired, stressed stock is that the extra garlic has benefits for that. It is found that garlic strengthens the immune system and is a fairly effective anti-parasitic agent. Even the Cambridge Journal of Parasitology discovered such (*citation below)

Also, although not intuitive, in our experience fish really take to the taste and smell of garlic, so it's an attractant. Fish appeal is always important, but even moreso for fish who are stressed and thus less likely to eat (or to eat little).

However, Thera-A is perfectly fine long term/indefinitely. The main reason one might not want to feed this indefinitely is that it is more expensive than our standard foods. Also, some don't like the garlic smell and only want to put up with it for the amount of time it takes to beef-up their fish. Personal sensitivity to the ingredient on the part of users varies, you might find it not a problem at all.

Again, hope this helps!

- Ian Tepoot (New Life Spectrum)

*Citation:
S. M. PICÓN-CAMACHO, M. MARCOS-LOPEZ, J. E. BRON and A. P. SHINN (2012). An assessment of the use of drug and non-drug interventions in the treatment of Ichthyophthirius multifiliis Fouquet, 1876, a protozoan parasite of freshwater fish. Parasitology, 139, pp 149-190. doi:10.1017/S0031182011001867.


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## jaysee (Dec 9, 2009)

ABETTAVOICE said:


> Simply put....Live First, Frozen second, prepared third, freeze dried fourth.



I think that depends ENTIRELY on your intentions. If you were trying to condition fish for breeding, I would agree about live and frozen foods being ahead of prepared food. However, for a long term diet I'm going with the nutritionally engineered food as being better for the fish than a diet of live and frozen foods, especially when it comes to your average fish keeper. There's a lot of user error potential. Unless you had nothing else to do, trying to replicate a natural diet is just not an option, if it's even possible. I mean, there are EXPERTS that work on these prepared food formulas to provide complete nutrition. How many fish keepers have the experience and knowledge base to provide that on their own? Many, many less than that think they do is my guess.


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## ABETTAVOICE (Feb 2, 2014)

And so the average fish keeper should take what advice from you??


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## jaysee (Dec 9, 2009)

I think your average fish keeper recognizes that they don't know how much they don't know about what would be required to provide complete nutrition without the use of staple food.


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## ABETTAVOICE (Feb 2, 2014)

I apologize for repeating myself-Live, Frozen, prepared, freeze dried.


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## MattsBettas (Dec 18, 2012)

Thank you for your response to me and the information on garlic, Ian. Your presence and info is greatly appreciated. 

ABETTAVOICE, what exactly makes you so certain that live and frozen food trump a high quality, balanced prepared food? Live and frozen foods definitely have their place in fish keeping, and fish can be kept on a diet of them exclusively, but a well prepared, balanced, complete food like NLS are called staple foods for a reason- See jaysee's points above.


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## beautiful Betta (Sep 19, 2013)

Hi Ian, one question I have, I don't know for sure, but I have read that the new betta pellets float? The ones I currently have sink, and I am fine with that, because to me that means no air. Air in a betta's digestive system is bad, causes all sorts of problems. Just wondering do they actually float and if so is it because of air content? Or something else? That is the concern I have when I know soon I will need to buy a new tub of food.


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## jaysee (Dec 9, 2009)

Floating doesn't mean air in the food exactly. Those small pellets are often not heavy enough to break the surface tension of the water unless forcefully placed in the tank (throwing the pellets at the water). My 2 and 3 mm pellets do laps around the tank if I just place them in the water, though they are sinking pellets. Were you to release the pellets below the waterline, they sink. That being said I do not feed the betta formula so I don't know if they are supposed to float or not. I bet Ian knows


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## beautiful Betta (Sep 19, 2013)

I don't know mine are the NLS betta pellets, They are really tiny but they sink, even if dropped in, very rare any actually float. And I have heard the new ones float.


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## Agent13 (Apr 23, 2013)

The actual betta formula does float .. My cichlid formula , small fish formula , Thera A and regular NLS of 1mm and 2mm all will sink easily enough. The betta formula will go so far as to bounce back up a bit after being submerged. 


Sent from Petguide.com App


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## Destinystar (May 26, 2012)

I have the Betta formula and mine sink fairly fast if my Betta makes one false move which he will most of the time since Bettas like to jump for their food. I have to be very careful how and where I place the pellets, one at a time to make sure he sees it and eats it since they are so tiny. When they sink sometimes he will go after it and sometimes he will not. 

I think NLS is one of the best foods out their for Bettas but the above is the only drawback I have with using them.


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## Agent13 (Apr 23, 2013)

Maybe my bettas are weird (would make sense given who owns them ;-) ) but they all have had no issue looking through the bottom of the tank for food after it sinks .


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## beautiful Betta (Sep 19, 2013)

My boy snatches his mid sink. I feed him one pellet at a time, and pre-soak in a cup for about a minute before feeding, he eats about 6 to 8 in one feeding. gets fed twice a day. his evening meal every other day is alternated with proper frozen foods.


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## Destinystar (May 26, 2012)

Agent13 said:


> Maybe my bettas are weird (would make sense given who owns them ;-) ) but they all have had no issue looking through the bottom of the tank for food after it sinks .
> 
> 
> Sent from Petguide.com App


Maybe they are...lol I would say more then likely all fish may be a little different. What is the norm for one may not what is the norm for another. I am just going by my personal experience with my Betta. 

I love to see Perseus jump for his food, its his instinct at its best. So I will work with whatever he throws at me, no pun intended :lol:


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## Agent13 (Apr 23, 2013)

Haha.. Maybe you should try to throw it at him and see if he can catch it out of water . I'd kill to see that on video ! 


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## jaysee (Dec 9, 2009)

Agent13 said:


> Maybe my bettas are weird (would make sense given who owns them ;-) ) but they all have had no issue looking through the bottom of the tank for food after it sinks .
> 
> 
> Sent from Petguide.com App



None of mine ever had a problem either.


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## Hallyx (Jun 11, 2011)

When coaching new keepers on diet, we usually recommend NLS first, followed by Omega One Beatta Buffet.... because NLS is apparently not as easy to find in most parts of the U.S.

Something of which I'm sure you're aware, Ian.


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## Agent13 (Apr 23, 2013)

Good point Hal.
With keeping the amount of fish I do ( even have running QTs in a hall closet lol.. I swear I feel like a hoarder everytime I open that door) ordering online is the most sensible cost effective way to restock my NLS. However I imagine have a betta or 5 I would grab whatever is best at whichever store was closest .. NLS is not at petsmart here .. Only at petco and the specialized fish stores . 


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## ABETTAVOICE (Feb 2, 2014)

MattsBettas said:


> Thank you for your response to me and the information on garlic, Ian. Your presence and info is greatly appreciated.
> 
> ABETTAVOICE, what exactly makes you so certain that live and frozen food trump a high quality, balanced prepared food? Live and frozen foods definitely have their place in fish keeping, and fish can be kept on a diet of them exclusively, but a well prepared, balanced, complete food like NLS are called staple foods for a reason- See jaysee's points above.


Hi MattsBettas, I give my betta fish live, frozen, and NLS pellet. I feel betta fish benefit the most from a variety of foods and a well rounded diet should include, the live, frozen, and yes a high quality prepared food. I also feel that for the health of a betta fish the order of importance should be that of - live, frozen, prepared, freeze dried.


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## Destinystar (May 26, 2012)

Agent13 said:


> Haha.. Maybe you should try to throw it at him and see if he can catch it out of water . I'd kill to see that on video !
> 
> 
> Sent from Petguide.com App


Seriously well alright we might be able to work something out there. ;-) 

One way I solve my sinking pellet problem is using my pen flashlight when I drop it in , he will follow the light to the pellet. Perseus is all about the light, he loves to play that game. He will come and stare at me from the corner of his tank when I stop playing the flashlight game to guilt me into playing with him more. 

I ordered mine on line from Amazon, they have some pretty good deals, its also where I get my Prime from since my LFS doesn't carry either one of those products.


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## Ian Tepoot (Mar 28, 2014)

*Betta Pellets and Floating*



beautiful Betta said:


> Hi Ian, one question I have, I don't know for sure, but I have read that the new betta pellets float? The ones I currently have sink, and I am fine with that, because to me that means no air. Air in a betta's digestive system is bad, causes all sorts of problems. Just wondering do they actually float and if so is it because of air content? Or something else? That is the concern I have when I know soon I will need to buy a new tub of food.


Actually, all our Betta pellets are labeled semi-floating, meaning they are designed to float for a time, then sink -- with a certain percentage sinking consistently. The technology to make fully floating 1mm pellets is quite difficult, and likely the "floating" part of semi-floating is simply more accurate now based on our new processes (we also now have a 1mm FLOAT pellet as I noticed some keepers here would prefer this).

It is our position that the harm from "gulping air" is apocryphal, as we've kept all forms of fish for 20+ years, and this has never been an issue. Not to mention the myriad of bettas who have been feed flakes to no ill effect -- at least not from air.

However, keep in mind that each formula of our core line of food generally has very similar ingredients with minor tweaks for palatability, size, floating profile etc. per fish type. Thus, if a sinking pellet is more to your needs, you are fine going with community fish, cichlid or other formula and your fish will be happy.

Our lines such as Thera-A, Grow etc. do have more substantial differences, but even in these cases the nutrition is if anything better.

As a note, 1mm pellets and smaller also can sometimes also be "trapped" by water tension even for sinking foods. One approach is to break this surface tension when feeding by jabbing it right under the surface when placing it.

_*P.S., as a disclaimer, my intention is not to advertise foods, but respond to questions about our product asked, which may from time to time bring up options. Hopefully the moderators wish to let me know if anything I say goes into promotion territory. I'm also not weighing in on your internal discussion of items like frozen versus pellets, as I have a vested interest in such, and feel it would be inappropriate of me to discuss other products or product types, or to participate beyond answering any specifics about our product._


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## Agent13 (Apr 23, 2013)

ABETTAVOICE said:


> Hi MattsBettas, I give my betta fish live, frozen, and NLS pellet. I feel betta fish benefit the most from a variety of foods and a well rounded diet should include, the live, frozen, and yes a high quality prepared food. I also feel that for the health of a betta fish the order of importance should be that of - live, frozen, prepared, freeze dried.



What live food do you feed/recommend ? And what do you feed your live food?

I have some species that'll only take live ... Occasionally frozen but rarely prepared . Not bettas though .. Pygmy sunfish . I'm just curious about your food regimen. 
I'd prefer my Pygmy sunfish to convert to my small fish formula NLS so as to be less a PITA but that may never work .. Not sure . 


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## jaysee (Dec 9, 2009)

..


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## sandybottom (Nov 29, 2012)

ABETTAVOICE said:


> I also feel that for the health of a betta fish the order of importance should be that of - live, frozen, prepared, freeze dried.



i do not understand the point of the nutritionally inferior freeze dried food? i steer away from low moisture content foods for my fish.


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## sandybottom (Nov 29, 2012)

the worries of surface gulping are not unfounded for fancy goldfish. nls and many other brands leave a oily residue on the surface of the water.goldfish love to sit at the top and eat the protein slick left behind. one of my orandas has a problem getting floaty after this.

i have to feed them their nls goldfish formula slowly,and it has to be soaked in water first. if i fail to follow these steps, my blue oranda hangs upside down on the surface for half of the day. i have recently taken to pulverizing their nls pellets and adding them to a homemade gelfood mix.


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## Agent13 (Apr 23, 2013)

sandybottom said:


> the worries of surface gulping are not unfounded for fancy goldfish. nls and many other brands leave a oily residue on the surface of the water.goldfish love to sit at the top and eat the protein slick left behind. one of my orandas has a problem getting floaty after this.
> 
> 
> 
> i have to feed them their nls goldfish formula slowly,and it has to be soaked in water first. if i fail to follow these steps, my blue oranda hangs upside down on the surface for half of the day. i have recently taken to pulverizing their nls pellets and adding them to a homemade gelfood mix.



I'll be honest here.. This sounds like a filtration setup issue rather then a food issue .. But I could be wrong. How is your water surface still enough to maintain any residue ... Especially given the level of filtration goldfish require ? 




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## LittleBettaFish (Oct 2, 2010)

I feed my goldfish NLS (it is the only food they will eat believe it or not), and I have to admit that I have never noticed any oily residue. However, my three are shubunkin, and so don't mind the river rapids effect that the filters create. I also find that the food gets pulled under quite quickly by the current and so they don't spend a lot of time at the surface eating it.


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## sandybottom (Nov 29, 2012)

Agent13 said:


> I'll be honest here.. This sounds like a filtration setup issue rather then a food issue .. But I could be wrong. How is your water surface still enough to maintain any residue ... Especially given the level of filtration goldfish require ?
> 
> 
> 
> ...


it gets stuck in my floating plants.it is only on a small section of the tank surface. i have my canister outflows angled down. i do not want to sink the floaters. my bubble bar takes care of the rest.


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## Agent13 (Apr 23, 2013)

So therefor you're not sinking your food either . I don't think this is the foods fault . I have floating plants in a few aquariums .. Yet at least one nozzle or spray bar is pointed to the surface . The plants move but they still float . 


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## sandybottom (Nov 29, 2012)

Agent13 said:


> So therefor you're not sinking your food either . I don't think this is the foods fault . I have floating plants in a few aquariums .. Yet at least one nozzle or spray bar is pointed to the surface . The plants move but they still float .
> 
> 
> Sent from Petguide.com App


i soak it first, it sinks right away.soaking it also releases the oils in the food.when i dump it in,you can see the oil slick right away. i should clarify.my output is not pointed toward the tank bottom. it is just angled slightly downward so the flow does not break the surface.


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## Agent13 (Apr 23, 2013)

Is soaking the food first recommended ? I'd naturally think some of the nutritional value is soaked out .. Am I wrong ?


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## sandybottom (Nov 29, 2012)

i am sure some of the foods value is lost. soaking pellets is recommended for certain fancy goldfish.orandas are prone to swim bladder problems from their body shape. my calico could eat dry pellets at the surface with no problems.my blue guy has food related issues.this is why i am incorporating the nls into gel food now.


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## jadaBlu (Feb 14, 2013)

Wow! I didn't think my mention of an article I noticed would cause much comment. It's good to have some varying views. I respect the fishkeeping experience of some people commenting I've recieved some good advice from them.
Overall it would probably be agreed varying your fish's diet could not hurt just as it's good for people to have a varied diet. I alternate high quality foods pellets in my case as it's what is most affordable for me.

Thanks for giving some information about this Ian. Can you please tell me where I can find a reliable supplier of regular small sized betta food liKe I used to be able to get? Some "feedback" on the large betta pellets: it goes to waste, swells up way too much and most of my bettas won't eat it. Anyway I'd really appreciate knowing where I get the right product. Not all my bettas will eat Thera A either. They all will eat the regular small formula.


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## sandybottom (Nov 29, 2012)

sandybottom said:


> i am sure some of the foods value is lost. soaking pellets is recommended for certain fancy goldfish.orandas are prone to swim bladder problems from their body shape. my calico could eat dry pellets at the surface with no problems.my blue guy has food related issues.this is why i am incorporating the nls into gel food now.


i should have said buoyancy issues instead of swim bladder.

i am not saying that it is bad food. i am obviously still using it. it just gave me a few issues that had to be addressed in order for my sensitive fish to process it without problems. it is a wonderful addition to gel food.i am no longer experiencing the food related issues.


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## beautiful Betta (Sep 19, 2013)

Ian Tepoot said:


> Actually, all our Betta pellets are labeled semi-floating, meaning they are designed to float for a time, then sink -- with a certain percentage sinking consistently. The technology to make fully floating 1mm pellets is quite difficult, and likely the "floating" part of semi-floating is simply more accurate now based on our new processes (we also now have a 1mm FLOAT pellet as I noticed some keepers here would prefer this).
> 
> It is our position that the harm from "gulping air" is apocryphal, as we've kept all forms of fish for 20+ years, and this has never been an issue. Not to mention the myriad of bettas who have been feed flakes to no ill effect -- at least not from air.
> 
> ...


Thanks for that info Ian, I actually just checked my pot, and it does say 1mm semi float on it, lol. That's great because I can go out and buy the new version without any worries.


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## Agent13 (Apr 23, 2013)

sandybottom said:


> i should have said buoyancy issues instead of swim bladder.
> 
> i am not saying that it is bad food. i am obviously still using it. it just gave me a few issues that had to be addressed in order for my sensitive fish to process it without problems. it is a wonderful addition to gel food.i am no longer experiencing the food related issues.



Do you think it's digestive related issues? Perhaps soaking in acidophilus as opposed to water may help ? It's something I add to reptiles I own when they show issues with their digestive process ... Guessing at wYs to help is all 


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## sandybottom (Nov 29, 2012)

yeah,unfortunately there are a lot of oranda/ fancy keepers out there with the same issue. some are sensitive to dry,high protein foods. others have defects in their tract or pressure on the tract from their body shape. without cutting my fish open,i can not say for sure what the problem is with my blue oranda.all i can do is feed him food with high moisture content. with nls i have seen the least amount of floating. omega was really bad. he would float for days. the gel food i have been making is mostly vegetable based. 
i use... pea and mixed veggie baby food,tuna or salmon,wheat germ,nls,multi vitamin,acidophilus, gelatin or agar agar and depending on the time of year i will add some marigold and dandelion greens.


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## Agent13 (Apr 23, 2013)

Looks like that mix you have digestive and kidney function covered . Nice .. Similar to some of my syringe feedings to my growth stunted frilled dragon . Interesting . Good to know 


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## jadaBlu (Feb 14, 2013)

Does anyone know which size food is semifloating and like the regular size and where to get it? I think the one that has the overly large pellets says new concentrated formula but I am not certain.


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## Ian Tepoot (Mar 28, 2014)

jadaBlu said:


> Does anyone know which size food is semifloating and like the regular size and where to get it? I think the one that has the overly large pellets says new concentrated formula but I am not certain.


The Betta food in general is all labeled semi-floating. We will be working on this issue since we've gotten the feedback from a percentage of users that the (very) small increase in overall pellet size was not working for many users, despite the improved floating profile.

If you want smaller pellets that don't sink, I suggest that 1mm Community Fish formula will work for you, as it sinks and the size is likely more to the previous versions while still providing the improved formula. It also comes in the small jar, and the nutrition formulation completely works for betta.


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## jadaBlu (Feb 14, 2013)

Ian Tepoot said:


> The Betta food in general is all labeled semi-floating. We will be working on this issue since we've gotten the feedback from a percentage of users that the (very) small increase in overall pellet size was not working for many users, despite the improved floating profile.
> 
> If you want smaller pellets that don't sink, I suggest that 1mm Community Fish formula will work for you, as it sinks and the size is likely more to the previous versions while still providing the improved formula. It also comes in the small jar, and the nutrition formulation completely works for betta.


Whatever I was buying came in the same size jar and the pellets were smaller they acted like they were semi floating and their were bettas on the jar. They at least stayed on the surface long enough for the fish to eat them. I wish I'd saved the jar. I do know it did not say high concentration on it. Did you change the size of the betta pellets in the past year? I bought that jar last May.


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## Ian Tepoot (Mar 28, 2014)

jadaBlu said:


> Whatever I was buying came in the same size jar and the pellets were smaller they acted like they were semi floating and their were bettas on the jar. They at least stayed on the surface long enough for the fish to eat them. I wish I'd saved the jar. I do know it did not say high concentration on it. Did you change the size of the betta pellets in the past year? I bought that jar last May.


Basically, I think my previous post above addressed the question, so in order to not simply repost, I'll refer to that. 

As additional info: the difference is extremely small but the improved floating profile does change the form slightly so that it's on the high-side of the 1mm pellet tolerance. Again, if sinking pellets are more for you -- and a pellet on the small-side of the 1mm tolerance is preferred for your needs -- then community fish (while not sporting a beta on the jar) is a very viable option since it provides likewise the Spectrum Nutrition profile.

Hope this helps!


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## jadaBlu (Feb 14, 2013)

Ian I have one other question: is there a size difference in pellets between between the 50 gram and the 60 Gram jar in the Betta Formula?


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## Ian Tepoot (Mar 28, 2014)

jadaBlu said:


> Ian I have one other question: is there a size difference in pellets between between the 50 gram and the 60 Gram jar in the Betta Formula?


No, the weight difference is due to the newer formula. The pellets themselves should be the same millimeter specification. However, the newer formula has a bit improved floating profile to better merit the "semi-floating" tag.

The newer pellets are a full 1mm version, however, while some of the older pellets might have been on the smaller side of the tolerance (aka closer to .9mm).


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