# Feeding & Tropical Flakes



## tahbi (Apr 5, 2010)

I feed my betta twice a day. One bloodworm in the morning and then when I get home from school (8 hours later) I feed him usually two bloodworms and a tiny food pellet. Is that a good amount or should I decrease/increase the amount of food I give him?

I also have a question about tropical flakes. I feed my neon tetras these, but my betta usually eats the smaller pieces. He even eats the larger pieces of the flakes but he spits them out (which is actually good for the neons because the flakes get broken up). These flakes won't hurt him internally or anything will they? He's such a piggy.


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## Firefly (Apr 9, 2010)

hmmm i used to feed my Betta bloodworms and tropical flakes along with the neons, he seemed be okay with it, also i fed him normal tropical granules.  so he should be okay, just dont let him over eat


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## tahbi (Apr 5, 2010)

Okay, thanks! <3


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## xxabc (Feb 1, 2010)

Bettas can eat flakes, although I don't feed mine any. Are the bloodworms live, frozen, or freezedried? If they're freezedried, definitely feed more pellets. Freezedried are treats, not exactly nutritional.


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## tahbi (Apr 5, 2010)

Thanks xxabc.  So how about 1 pellet in the morning then 2 pellets and 1 bloodworm 8 hours after? And yeah, they're freezedried. I'm also thinking about not feeding him one day of the week every week so his digestive tract will clean out regularly. Is that okay? I did that today with him. No food today, but tomorrow he'll get on the new routine.


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## dramaqueen (Jul 7, 2008)

I wouldn't feed bloodworms every day. They should only be fed as once or twice a week treats.


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## iamtetsuo (Dec 10, 2009)

Yeah I only give my Betta bloodworms once or twice a week. I usually give him one after his weekly water change after he's done sulking.

Otherwise I feed him 5-6 pellets every morning, except one day a week when I fast him.


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## hamfist (Mar 25, 2010)

As others have said, bloodworms should really only be treat food, rather than a staple diet, as they are nutritionally not very diverse. They also can give some bettas gut blockages.

The key word for an ideal betta diet is always VARIETY. Those who are seriously into bettas, or breed them, pretty much always seem to feed a huge variety of food. This variety ensures the best chance that the betta gets all the essential nutrients it requires.
Ideally, you should be looking to get a couple more types of pellet (I recommend Tetra Prima, Atisons, and New Life Spectrum Community pellets)(remember to soak pellets in water for a couple of minutes first so that they don't swell in your betta's belly). Also a couple of types of freeze-dried or frozen foods, like bloodworm or brine shrimp (please remember to soak these as well first before giving to your betta). Then rotate these foods, so that your betta gets some of each during a week.
A diet consisting of bloodworms and one type of pellet will keep your betta going, no doubt. However, if you want your betta to be at peak health and to live as long as possible then a more varied diet will be very beneficial.


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## xxabc (Feb 1, 2010)

IMO 3 pellets a day would also be a little short... I feed about 4-6 a day. Amount varies per day or so, I'm not completely strict about it, haha. As long as its not over-eating or under-feeding. 

I pre-soak all pellets and treats in garlic juice. I don't skip a day of feeding, I've never had problems with constipation for a long time. If you do begin to have problems though, then skipping a day would be best.


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## tahbi (Apr 5, 2010)

Okay, thanks guys! xD 

I'll feed him 2 pellets in the morning and 3 in the afternoon then? And I'll give him a bloodworm or two after I clean his tank. Since I'm going to the petstore wednesday I'll see if I can find some more food for him. 

What does garlic juice do, xxabc? And how do you know if your betta is constipated? I've only ever seen him "use the bathroom" once, after I bought him from the pet store. I can't really tell what a bloated betta looks like, but he looks fine to me. And I can't exactly sift through the gravel for fish poo either haha.


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## xxabc (Feb 1, 2010)

I've been told that it helps with their immmune system, and that they actually like garlic. I have no actual proof, however they haven't been sick since I had them, and whenever I see a torn fin, there were many cases where aquarium salt was never necessary (although it was quite minor as well). I don't know if I can say it DID all these things, however, I saw overall differences after I began the garlic, somewhere in those areas. 

And plus, it has done absolutely no harm at all, and there has never been any trouble, except when I spilled and had to clean it up, haha.


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## tahbi (Apr 5, 2010)

Ohh that's cool. If my gramma has garlic juice I'll try that out then.  Thanks!


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