Can You Feed A Betta A Pea?

[GuppyGirl20]

Everything I've read on the internet says do NOT feed peas to bettas but I've read several posts on here where people do. Which is right? I've had my baby betta for almost a week and I hhaven't seen it poop. It also is a little bloated which makes me think it could be constipated. What could I feed it if not a pea?I'm

 

[attibones]

Try daphnia. It's a natural laxative but it's closer to a betta's preferred diet.

 

[GuppyGirl20]

Ummm what is that and where can I buy it? Also is it expensive?

 

[EllieJellyEllie]

Daphnia is a water flea and you should be able to buy it frozen at Petsmart, or a LFS that sells frozen food. Its about $5 max for a pack of 36 cubes. 

 

[attibones]

Of course, if you get the kind that comes in blocks, don't feed the whole thing to a single fish. You can cut them with a knife or a pair of really good scissors to break off a suitably sized piece. They also sell it freeze-dried, but freeze-dried foods lead to bloat in many species of fish, including bettas.

 

[GuppyGirl20]

Ah okay. Well that could be a reason my little betta is a bit bloated also. I've been feeding it freeze dried brine shrimp because it doesn't seem to have any interest whatsoever in the pellets I bought and since I still had a bunch of brine shrimp left over from my guppies I've been giving it that. Why are freeze dried foods bad??? I've heard some people say its not nutritious but the ingredients are nothing but good things. Would soaking it before feeding make it not so bad? 

 

[attibones]

I'm not sure exactly why, maybe someone else will be able to enlighten us. However, if you soak the pellets in garlic juice, then the pellets will be more appealing. Garlic is good for fish. You can also get frozen brine shrimp or bloodworms to vary the diet.

 

[GuppyGirl20]

How long are the frozen foods good for? Since I only have one betta it's not going to get used up quickly and frankly I'd be very annoyed if I had to throw abunch of it out (especially because I'm a broke college kid and cant afford to constantly be buying food that's jist going to be thtown away, ya know?).

 

[Lillefishy]

Freeze dried food should always be thoroughly soaked before feeding or it can cause digestive problems.
Frozen food keeps for a long time as long as it's not constantly defrosted & frozen again, just cut off the amount you need to feed with a sharp knife or scissors

 

[EllieJellyEllie]

Freeze dried food should always be thoroughly soaked before feeding or it can cause digestive problems.
Frozen food keeps for a long time as long as it's not constantly defrosted & frozen again, just cut off the amount you need to feed with a sharp knife or scissors

Freeze dried food should  not be fed to bettas as they bloat easiky, even soaking it doesnt help.

 

[Lillefishy]

Never had any problems using it with my Bettas as long as it was soaked but it wasn't fed regularly

 

[Chad]

Try daphnia. It's a natural laxative but it's closer to a betta's preferred diet.

I'm a huge fan of daphnia. It find it a bit difficult to find sometimes but it costs the same as blood worms or brine shrimp. I keep microfish in my planted tank and plankton eaters in my marine tank and both do very well with weekly feedings of daphnia. 

 

[KrystaK]

I fed my Betta freeze dried blood worms as a treat a few days a week. He really seemed to like them, but he would always get bloated come Saturday (As he got bloodworms on Thursday and friday) So his saturday food was usually a frozen pea that I had  boiled and cut into small pieces and he got no food on sunday.
Not the best way to diversify a diet, but when all you have around to get fish food from is a walmart, sometimes compromises have to be made
 
I've fed peas to several generations of fish over the years - usually that's all I feed my tanks on Saturdays! I've never had a fish suffer adversely from it, even shrimp and snails seem to enjoy them.
But I only use FROZEN peas or ones that I've grown myself. This is because frozen peas are blanched, meaning boiled and then frozen quickly. No preservatives are added. Whereas with canned peas preservatives are added and with market fresh peas they can have pesticides and other things on them (I'm not sure about veggies, but I know most fruit in Canada and the US is picked green, then sprayed with a gas that makes them mature very rapidly on the way to market.)
 
(Edit)
I believe pea's are high in fibre so act like a laxative for the fish. and help get their system cleaned out.(And pumpkin works for dogs

) Another way to help a fish recover from bloating is to fast them (So not feed them for a few days) As this way the fish only has to clear out what is already built up and you aren't add more to its problem. 

 

[GuppyGirl20]

It seems a little thinner but I'm in school and I work so I can't watch the tank all the time to if it poos so should I give it some more pea tomorrow (I haven't been able to get the daphina yet) or feed like regular?

 

[EllieJellyEllie]

It seems a little thinner but I'm in school and I work so I can't watch the tank all the time to if it poos so should I give it some more pea tomorrow (I haven't been able to get the daphina yet) or feed like regular?

I would fast it now. For 1-2 days, if still bloated, feed a little bit of pea. If not, feed normal food, either soaked (if pellets) or released under the waters surface (if flakes) to avoid most bloat. I would only feed every other day.