Help With Amount To Feed?

[Winterlily]

I have a new male Betta - just had him about a week. I have an Eclipse 3 gallon tank, which ran for about a week before he arrived. For whatever reason, it DID have ammonia in it - so the cycle (I think?) started even before the fish arrived. (I bought the LFS's story of how the bacteria in a bottle made it unnecessary for me to wait to add the fish, so now I'm cycling with him in and doing big water changes multiple times a day to try to keep him safe.) When I put him in the tank, I started feeding him Hikari Betta Bio Gold. My question is, how many of these teeny pellets should I be giving him and how many times a day? He's ALWAYS begging for more, but I very much don't want to overfeed him.

If it matters, he's just over 4 months old, and I also bought frozen brine shrimp and frozen bloodworms for him for once in a while. I also give him a bit of shelled pea 1-2 times a week in place of his pellets.

Any help and advice would be appreciated so I don't overdo it with this seemingly-always-hungry guy! Thank you!

Samantha

 

[ellena]

I have just got 2 new bettas, 1 in a 5.5gall at home and 1 in a 3.2 gall at work. The hikari pack says 2-4 pellets 2-3 times a day. While my (cycled) filter at work settles down, I am just giving him 2 pellets 2 times a day to minimise waste. No idea if this is right, but I know they can go for long periods without food, so figure it can't do him that much harm?

 

[loraxchick]

until the tank cycles only feed him a little bit a day...like 2 pellets morning nd 2 at night. 3-4 bloodworms as a treat every few days in replacement of one of his meals. good for you for knowing about peas and bettas already ( i see youre failrly new)..mine only gets them once a week or so. it also doesnt hurt to starve them for a day.
keep it up until you are cycled and then you can increase the feeding.
as far as them begging- they ALWAYS beg. most pets do as they associate you wtih food.
have fun...and post a pic

 

[rdd1952]

Bettas in a tank by themselves are the simplest fish to not overfeed. When I kept bettas (don't currently have any), I fed them the Hikari Betta Bio Gold. I gave them 2 in the morning and 2 in the evening. Since they came to the top of the tank, I fed them off my finger. They always took both and they were gone. No food to settle to the bottom and decay. If I was feeding blood worms, I did basically the same thing. I fed one at a time (never more than 3 a week). They ate them and that was it. Once again nothing to decay.

I agree with feeding lightly until the tank finishes cycling. You can easily feed only every other day They won't starve. In the wild, I'm sure they go more than a day without food quite often.

 

[silverrabbit]

My betta tanks are cycled and I still only feed them 2 pellets in the morning and maybe 3 at night, with 2 bloodworms per fish once per week. I find if I give my lot anymore pellets, they get a bit bloated =\

 

[heygetsmart]

Well... I feed my bettas 4 pellets every other day [ :
They're all doing fine.
It's hard not to give in to those little buggers when they beg for more.

But you must resist temptation!

 

[Winterlily]

Thanks everyone! I will cut back a bit on what I was feeding him (was following the Hikari instrux of 2-4 pellets 3x a day). It's true though, so hard to resist giving him "just one more" when he does the puppydog thing! I do though - I know it's best. Don't want to "kill him with kindness."

Thanks again, all!

 

[loraxchick]

get him to follow your finger...or flare him with a mirror several times a day for short intervals..then at least you can be interactive with him and not have to feed him so much.
i think people overfeed because they think that's the only interaction they get with their fish. wither that or guilt.
enjoy.

 

[draco20288]

i feed mine 4 pellets once or twice a day depending on if their belly is round or not

 

[DiscusKeeper403]

Agreed. Even if you cut back to once every other day feedings it might be better during your cycle. Cut back on waste thus less ammonia in the tank. Once it is cycled you can go back to regular daily feedings.

 

[Winterlily]

Okie doke! I have indeed cut back on feedings - though he still begs like you cannot believe. Nutjob.

Loraxchick: I do that! He plays follow-the-finger, he nibbles at my finger if I put it in the water, he's just starting to be willing to swim into and stop inside my cupped hand (quite open - not touching his body), and I've gotten him to flare at a mirror a few times, too. Cool fish, these.

Thanks everyone!

 

[loraxchick]

yes, bettas are my favorite. there is plenty one can do to interact wit hthem other than feed them

 

[Platygirl11]

Our old beta used to flare at our fingers. It was cute.

 

[backtotropical]

Hi Winterlily,

I'd never advise anyone to follow the instructions on fish food containers. Unfortunately the manufacturers almost always seem to recommend way too much. I suppose the more they can trick you into feeding, the more you will buy. Sad, but true.

Good luck with your new feeding regime. It will be fine to slowly increase feeding again after the cycle has finished.

Cheers

BTT

 

[Winterlily]

Thanks everyone - so much.

(Currently struggling big time with a nitrite spike - ammonia now 0 but nitrite going insane - big water changes bring it to 0 and just a few hours later it's right back up again or more. Arrrrgggh!!! So yes, feeding has been cut way back! I won't starve the bacteria that way, though, will I? By giving them less food in the form of his waste?)