how do i encourage my betta to eat? they dont seem to like betta food?

Question

they go for the food but then spit it back out- they are like scared of it. . . eat and spit out, eat and spit out.
i have tried regular tropical fish food- eat some of that, maybe some pellets, other than that its like nothing. what do i do?

Answer 1

Betta's get accustomed to one kind of food and stick with it. If you switch their food, it will take them up to 3 days to finally accept that another food is being fed to them and eat it. With the betta pellets, if they are not soft enough when they try to eat them they will continue to spit them out until they do get soft enough. Give it a couple days, they will eventually eat.

Answer 2

FieryDiva is wrong several counts. 1st betta are carnivores, and will generally only eat plants if very hungry. The idea feeding cycle is 6 feeding days, and day of fasting. The 3 day feeding cycle assumes that you are over feeding your betta on his feeding days. (Note that 3 days feeding,1 day fasting is also a good feeding cycle.) Over feeding may lead to constipation, and swim bladder disorder. A betta should be feed daily a small amount about the size of his eye ball. Don't worry about missing a day, or even a weekend.

Betta can be picky, but will eat when they get hungry. Alternating food is more healthy, and keeps the from getting too picky. A good food is small, soft, and made of some sort worm/shrimp/fish. Normal tropical fish flakes have too much in the way of plant matter. Also they can be a bit big. Bettas will bite, and spit out large flakes and pellets to break them up.

I personally feed my males an alternating cycle of blood worms, brine shrimp, and betta flakes (which are rather small flakes). Note that while blood worms, and brine shrimp are great betta foods neither alone are a blanced diet. Also get them freeze dried it's easier, and more sterile. (Live/frozen food can carry diesase.)

Answer 3

You wanna get that Betta eating good? Your Betta wants what you are not feeding it. He wants LIVE FOOD. You can get that at the better pet shops. Food to give your Betta would be: rinsed Brine Shrimp (not the freeze-dried stuff), tubifex worms (not the whole ball, just a small part) in a worm feeder, baby guppies (cruel I know), and my favorite, Mosquito Larvae! The mosquitoes must be collected in stagnant water as they are not sold.

This is the type of food that the Betta eats in the wild.

Answer 4

Betta breeders often feed their fish live and frozen foods to keep them in the best possible shape and qrowing quickly. When we bring them home from the store we may try to feed them pellet or flake food, which they have never seen before and may not recognize as food at all. I haven't known a betta yet that could resist the temptations of a live wiggly worm or a delicious frozen brine shrimp. Here are some ideas and info to get your started...

Bettas are carnivores and need food high in protein. Bettas cannot survive off of just vegetables or plant roots.

There are many foods available for your betta that can be bought at your local fish store or cultivated at home. Here's a quick list to get you started. Remember that like people, a variety of foods allows your fish to get a balanced diet.

+ Frozen or live bloodworms or bloodworms in gel
+ Frozen or live brine shrimp or brine shrimp in gel
+ Frozen or live daphnia
+ Frozen glass worms
+ Frozen beef heart (can be purchased at many local fish stores or your supermarket or butcher)
+ Frozen tubifex worms (live tubifex often carry parasites or bacteria and is better avoided)
+ Frozen mysis shrimp
+ Live white worms
+ Live grindal worms
+ Live flightless or wingless fruit flies
+ Live black worms.

Answer 5

I had the comparable element happening with my betta. He in simple terms have been given bored of ingesting pellets each and all of the time so I have been given some Betta flakes too with dried bloodworms in them! i like to alter it up for him so he in no way is time-honored with of if he's getting a pellet or flakes.

Answer 6

I dont feed my bettas "betta food" at all. I keep them on a diet of goldfish food, and freeze dried bloodworms. Blood worms improve not only health, but improves color as well.

Answer 7

I had the exact same problem! The only way my family could get him to eat was by feeding him thinly sliced frozen meat (especially stake) on a tooth pick. He might have been expensive to feed, but it kept him alive for many years. I guess betas just tend to be picky... Hope this helps!

Answer 8

You're not feeding them everyday are you?
They are only to be fed 3 times a week and thas just a pinch..
They also eat off the roots of the plant you put in the vase..
It's normal for the betta to do what its doing..

Answer 9

Use Garlic with their food - trust me - they will begin to eat if you do.

http://www.petstore.com/ps_viewitem.aspx?idproduct=KM3631

Or just get Garlic cloves from the stores and create your own juice and pulp.

Answer 10

They are fish, they will eat when they get hungry enough