How To Feed The Betta

[pahansen]

We have a new male betta in our community tank, and he's doing very well.  The only problem is feeding him with everyone else.  The LFS said that they fed primarily pellets, so I bought pellets for him.  Meanwhile, I feed a variety of other foods in the tank -- tropical flake, frozen foods, algae wafers, and peas and cukes for the pleco.  There are also live plants (and algae) to nibble on.  Oh, and we've lost 8 ghost shrimp in the past few weeks, so someone's munching on those as well!
 
What is happening is that everytime I try to feed the pellets, the largest diamond tetra (who is a bit of a bully) catches most of them.  The betta doesn't seem to care -- I've rarely seen him eat pellets.  For a few days, I honestly didn't see him eating much of anything, but now he's munching away at the flake every time I feed it, and he's mostly ignoring the pellets (when I can get him to notice them before the tetra swoops in!).  I could stop using tropical flakes and move over to betta flake, but I don't know if the rest of the tank should be fed that on a regular basis -- we've got danios, tetras, an SAE, and a pleco in there.  Needless to say, when I feed the frozen foods everyone chomps those up as well, not just the betta,  So I can't imagine moving to frozen as an exclusive thing either.
 
I obviously can't feed the betta separately from everyone else, and he does seem to be eating a variety of foods.  (He's particularly crazy about the shelled peas!)  Should I be concerned about the feeding situation, or should I just go with the flow and keep feeding a variety of foods?  Should I exchange my regular flake for betta flake or just not stress over it?
 
Thanks,
Pamela
 
 

 

[majerah1]

As long as he is eating he is fine. Frozen is perfectly ok for him and for everyone else. Just make sure its a variety. Flakes are not the best but as long as he is eating them and not getting bloated they do not pose a threat for him. 

 

[Shelster]

I have found that pre soaking the pellets in an egg cup or whatever, then using a straw cover the pellet, put your thumb over the straw and release near the betta. He will soon get used to the fact that is where his food comes from. If the pellet doesn't release, just lower the straw into the water (thumb off) then place thumb over end of straw again, lift straw out of water and release thumb.

Phew that was long winded, but I hope you see what I mean? I have recently been using this method with my bettas to great success!

 

[Mamashack]

At one time I had a problem platy juvenile in with my previous betta and they would eat each other's food with the betta eating the flake and the platy eating the betta pellets! They both seemed to thrive on it and as majerah said as long as he is eating something he should be fine.
 
That's a great idea Shel! Wish I'd known about that when I had my dragon betta who eventually went blind and couldn't see his food. This technique could have helped prevent his demise I think. Will certainly bear it in mind for the future!
 
I always soak my foods anyway for both the platies and the betta.
Someone once suggested a garlic additive helps - does anyone know what it could be? I can't remember the name if I ever knew it! lol

 

[Shelster]

It's working really well mama, I've only been doing it since I had Gaston too

 

[GuppyGirl20]

As long as the betta isn't being over fed he should be fine Or you can try the method that Shelster suggested.

 

[Meeresstille]

Don't know how they managed it, but my son and his GF are feeding their Betta by placing the food (Betta pellets, bloodworms) in a small cup and letting the Betta swim into it for feeding. This Betta is sharing a 15 gallon tank with Harlequin Rasboras. The rasboras feed on their flakes while the Betta is busy dining in his cup.

 

 

 

 

[Mamashack]

Love those pics Meerestille! They can be trained - I once saw a video on You-tube about a guy who had a betta and he trained it to swim to whichever finger he touched with his thumb and the betta got it right every time. I guess you need to be consistent in what you do so that they know what to expect.
As soon as I pick up the glass where his pellets are soaking, Cobalt starts his little dance.

 

[Shelster]

Ha ha, those pics are awesome

 

[Wildbetta]

You should be ok with the variety you are already feeding.  Just bear in mind that community bettas can be hard to keep for several reasons one of which is overfeeding since bettas are horrendous piggies.  If your betta starts to be bloated, then I would recommend trying to see about either feeding him separately or getting him his own tank.

 

[pahansen]

Thanks for the ideas.  I had been feeding the pellets near the betta, but I hadn't tried pre-soaking them.  I'll try that first.  And the straw and cup ideas are great.  I may try those as well.  The problem hasn't been getting the food near the betta so much as getting the betta to want it!  Softer food may be more appealing, especially since the pellets usually aren't staying on the surface long enough to soften on their own.
 
If bettas are that piggish, I may just leave things pretty much the way they are.  Compared to the other fish his size, I don't think he's consuming more than anyone else.  He also doesn't seem to be starving.  So he's probably okay, calorie-wise.  I was more concerned about the nutrition he's getting, particularly since the flake I'm using wasn't designed for bettas.
 
Interestingly, I've noticed him pushing back on that big tetra a bit over the past few days, and it looks like someone may have nipped the tetra.  Maybe they're getting things worked out between the two of them?
 
--Pamela

 

[BubblesLotsOfBubbles]

Don't know how they managed it, but my son and his GF are feeding their Betta by placing the food (Betta pellets, bloodworms) in a small cup and letting the Betta swim into it for feeding. This Betta is sharing a 15 gallon tank with Harlequin Rasboras. The rasboras feed on their flakes while the Betta is busy dining in his cup.

 

feeding from cup 1.jpg
 

feeding from cup 2.jpg
 
 
LOL a big nose bag! Or due to the size - skip diving.
 
I had a Betta that would jump out the water to the food I was holding. Only an inch or so but yeah I really like these critters. People go on about oscars being characters and intelligent but Bettas are up there afaic.