# Freeze Dried vs Frozen?



## Lonely Dragon (Mar 28, 2013)

I was at Petsmart today (what a trip) and I saw this betta "treat"...thing. It was called "Betta Dial-a-Treat" and it had freeze dried mysis, daphnia, and bloodworms in it.

I've heard that freeze dried food is bad for bettas, but I don't know if it's true or not. Is it just when you feed them too much? What do you guys think of freeze dried food? Is frozen better?

(By the way, what exactly is mysis and daphnia...?)


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## RackinRocky (Feb 11, 2012)

I'm fairly new at this myself (only had tanks for two years) but I feed a wide variety of frozen foods. The only freeze dried food I use is Tubifex worms. And with them, I soak them for a short time before feeding. 

*For frozen I feed:*
Brine Shrimp 
Mysis Shrimp
Bloodworms
Krill
Emerald Entree
Spirulina Brine Shrimp
Reef Caviar
Beef Heart

*Freeze Dried:*
Tubifex worms

*Flakes and pellets:*
Shrimp pellets
Omega One veggie flakes
NLS Betta pellets
NLS Cichlid pellets
Algae wafers

Then for my cories, shrimp, Kuhlis and Otos:
Crab cuisine
Shrimp cuisine

I believe variety in the diet is just as important for fish as it is for humans. I have 16 different kinds of fish food!

I don't know anything about the Betta Dial-A-Treat, but I would stay away from lots of freeze dried foods. Betta are susceptible to swim bladder problems and constipation, and unless freeze dried are well soaked, they can be troublesome to some. With this in mind, I only use the freeze dried Tubifex (soaked).

Mysis are a type of shrimp, and most fish adore them. Some like Daphnia, some don't. Most fish will go crazy for bloodworms.

The main diet for betta though, should be betta pellets (soaked for a few minutes if your betta has trouble eating them) with the frozen food given maybe 3 times a week. Change it around. This is what I try to do, and my fish accept all these foods. Sometimes it takes a while for them to recognize it as food, but eventually most do. I also stick with well known quality brands like NLS, Omega One and Hikari. Hope this helps.


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## frankiefire (Feb 26, 2013)

I thought I read somewhere that freeze dried foods lose the nutrients. I only use frozen blood worms and brine shrimp for my tanks.


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## smaughunter (Sep 15, 2011)

Freeze dried is O.K for a treat but frozen is definitely superior. Imagine the difference between a bit of beef jerky and a fresh steak. They like freeze dried but most will chose frozen over and frozen has more nutrients as well. An excess of freeze dried has been suspected as a potential cause of constipation also. Yes, I would say if you feed as a once weekly treat, it is o.k, but it shouldn't be considered as part of a regular diet rotation.

Daphnia are a small freshwater crustacean. They are very healthy and bettas love them. 

Mysis shrimp are a smallish saltwater shrimp. They are o.k but I finnd them a touch too big for most bettas. Brine shrimp are a better bet.


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## Lonely Dragon (Mar 28, 2013)

Okay, so do any of you know of a frozen "variety pack"? I'd love to add some variety to my little guy's diet, but I know my dad will complain about me having a bunch of frozen "bugs" in the freezer.:-(

Io gets about 6 pellets of Top-Fin betta food per day. He'd eat the whole container if I let him...:roll:


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## frankiefire (Feb 26, 2013)

Six pellets seems a bit much. Maybe someone who knows better will chime in. My guy gets three pellets a day.


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## Lonely Dragon (Mar 28, 2013)

I was planning to just give him 4, but he's a pig so I've been giving him 2 pellets 3 times a day. He's a plakat and extremely active so I don't think he'll have trouble burning them off.


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## newbettaguy (Apr 15, 2013)

man I see the frozen blood worms and want to give my guy some... But the cubes they come in are huge... how do you feed that to a betta? i mean the pellets are the size of a pin point... how do you feed that small amount of frozen?


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## smaughunter (Sep 15, 2011)

Just chop off a small part of the cube to defrost and put the rest of it back in the freezer in a ziplock baggy. You can also keep extra in the fridge for a day or two safely.


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## 10asartin (Mar 28, 2013)

You just cut off a small section and melt it in some water. 

I always say frozen is superior to freeze-dried because sometimes freeze-dried causes constipation.


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## newbettaguy (Apr 15, 2013)

by small you microscopic right???? lol


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## 10asartin (Mar 28, 2013)

Not microscopic maybe half the size of an eraser on a pencil. Maybe slightly more since your male is larger


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## AyalaCookiejar (Nov 20, 2012)

I think you've got some good answers here but I will put in my two cents.

I don't feed frozen food for now and freeze dried is definitely just a treat. Both have a slight risk of internal parasites (which I have dealt with and they are a pain to treat) but frozen is a bit higher. The freeze drying process usually eliminates that risk. With frozen food you have to be careful not to let any unused portions thaw. One reason I don't have frozen food is that the closest place to me that sells it is an hour away and I'm afraid of it thawing out on the drive home and too lazy to pack a cooler full of ice, lol. Plus I don't want to waste an hour trip just to get food and come right back.

There is also really no evidence that freeze dried foods cause constipation or bloat and soaking them is not a good idea because they do contain some nutrients and soaking them before feeding causes them to lose those nutrients. To put this into perspective, I feed my CT who has chronic bloat issues freeze dried food that is not Pre soaked and it doesn't cause any more bloating than pellets, if not less bloating than pellets.

I feed a variety of pellets, which should still be your staple. My main two are New Life Spectrum and Omega One. New Life Spectrums small size allows smaller fish to be able to eat them with ease but means you have to feed more of them (6 per day). Omega One is a little larger and only need to be fed 3 per day. New Life Spectrum, IMO, is good because it does not soak and expand and then deteriorate if it sinks like other pellets do, but it is also not good for soaking in medication if you ever need to do so.

I'm not sure what size the top fin pellets are but I would assume 6 is a little much for MOST bettas, but not all. You will find that different bettas need different amounts of food. For instance, my CT is also blind and not very active and if I fed him the same amount I feed my other fish he would get very, very bloated. Its kind of a guessing game with him and he usually gets more than 1 fast day per week because of it. I feed my sorority tank a little more because they are very active and I want to make sure all the girls get some.

Hope this helps a little.


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## Lonely Dragon (Mar 28, 2013)

Top-Fin pellets are a little on the bigger side. I crush them a bit so he can eat them easily, so he probably gets more like 5 since I don't throw the really powdery bits in. I do plan to have a fasting day for him.

My last betta had bloat once (and he didn't even eat as much) so I know what to look for. He's just so active and seems hungry all the time...

If you make sure frozen foods don't thaw until feeding, is there still a risk of parasites? How do worms even carry parasites?..


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## AyalaCookiejar (Nov 20, 2012)

Most of them seem hungry all the time  the more active they are and the bigger they are, the more they can eat. But technically, under-feeding is usually better than over-feeding. If the feeding schedule works fine for him, I wouldn't worry. I might look for a better quality food though. I believe top fin isn't that great but I don't know the ingredients so I'd look at the ingredients if I were you.

The risk of parasites is very small. I'm not sure exactly how it works. If you do notice long white stringy poo ever, I'd throw out the whole batch of frozen food. This is uncommon. My fish's parasites did not come from frozen foods. I'm actually still not sure where they came from.


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## Lonely Dragon (Mar 28, 2013)

To be honest, I never see him poo.(I know he does though) He probably burns it off before it's out of his body...
Top-Fin has decent protein, but fish meal is the first ingredient.
How many frozen blood worms should I feed him at once?

Also this is a little off topic but do any of you use betta hammocks?


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## AyalaCookiejar (Nov 20, 2012)

Lol when you first see him poo it'll be interesting xD but generally you just look to see if its the same color as the food you feed them. Sometimes you can see it at the bottom of the tank but with internal parasites, it can be a clear ish white color and hard to see in the rocks. Eventually you will see him in the act. Just take quick glances at him throughout the day. Internal parasites may also cause uncontrollable floating which you would not miss if you saw it.

I don't use hammocks but they are great and most fish love them. But if there is a metal wire in it, it needs to be removed first because it can rust and release toxins. I know some people who have made their own hammocks out of craft mesh. They like places to rest near the surface. You should have several things for him to rest on by the surface, be it hammocks or floating logs or tall broad leafed silk or live plants


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## Lonely Dragon (Mar 28, 2013)

Okay. I think I'll pick up some worms and a hammock on Friday. I might need a new gravel vac too since mine has gone missing...


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## AyalaCookiejar (Nov 20, 2012)

A gravel vac is a good idea.

What size is the tank? I have several types and sizes of gravel vacs but my favorite is a mini vac from earl may. Its very simple, was only $6, and isn't too big for my tanks. The "regular" sized one at Walmart is huge for all my tanks and the biggest tank I have is a ten gallon.


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## Lonely Dragon (Mar 28, 2013)

It's only a 5.5 gallon with rocks plants and a barrel decoration. I don't think we have an Earl May around here. Small would be nice though...


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## AyalaCookiejar (Nov 20, 2012)

Well the "regular" size from Walmart is too big for my 5.5 so the self start doesn't even work. I've never tried one with a pump but those might be good. Otherwise I get the small simple ones with no self start.


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## Lonely Dragon (Mar 28, 2013)

I found some small ones on amazon. They're only about $9 with shipping. I might just have to order one


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## Lonely Dragon (Mar 28, 2013)

Well I got some frozen bloodworms yesterday. I just gave Io a few and you'd think I was handing out gold the way he went after them!

So I thought of a new feeding schedule and wanted your guys opinions.
Mon-Tues: 2 pellets twice a day
Wed: 2 pellets in morning, 2-3 bloodworms at night
Thurs-Fri: 2 pellets twice a day
Sat: 2 pellets in morning 3-4 bloodworms at night
Sun: Fasting


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## frankiefire (Feb 26, 2013)

I use a turkey baster to clean the gravel in my small tanks. Works great.


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## Lonely Dragon (Mar 28, 2013)

I actually got a gravel vac at Petsmart pretty cheap. It works pretty good. The only mess in there is from a plant falling apart.


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