General Betta Care Questions...

[NeonJulie]

So I've had this guy for about 3 weeks now. Whereas he was very territorial early on, he seems to have calmed down quite a bit and now I see the small fish actually trying to rip food out of his mouth. :irked:

(I have 2 feed rings now and try to put enough food in at once that the frenzy can happen hopefully away from him!)

So here are a few questions I've been wondering about.

1. Because it's fairly well-stocked (and some food sinks to the gravel before the fish eat it), I have only been feeding 1x a day. I've upped it to 2 "servings" because everyone has started finishing off the first serving so quickly. By the time I've added a few more flakes and bloodworms, a few flakes have usually sunk.

I figure if I only feed them around morning, that will give them all day to search out the sunken flakes (and it looks like they do.)

Should I be feeding more often, or is this enough nutrition for a betta? I would guess his breakfast equates to 3-5 dried bloodworms and 2-3 flakes. (Plus whatever he finds when he hunts later).


2. The first day or so I didn't see him poop at all, so I bought some frozen peas. (Amazing how he just loves them!) How often is it recommended to feed him a defrosted pea? 1x a week? Should I give him the entire pea, or just half of it? And what happens if he eats flakes and the pea in the same setting (the other day it was like he couldn't even close his mouth he was so stuffed with food!)


3. It looks like he scuffed up his side a little bit - maybe while he was exploring or digging in the gravel? I've left it alone and not medicated or added salt, just upped the frequency of my water changes for the last 2 weeks. He hasn't healed completely. Should I try medicine, or maybe salt first? I have tetras and Otos in there, so I don't really salt unless I think it's necessary. How much salt would I need to increase on the next water change (which will probably be today since I'm about to leave town for a week.)

 

[RiVerfishgirl]

Can you post pics? If he looks healthy I'd guess he's getting enough food. They don't need to eat much. I'd feed my male betta 2-3 hikari pellets a day.

What you're doing with the pea is fine, though I'd venture to say that half is enough since bettas aren't very big. He can eat pea and flake in the same sitting since the pea is just adding fiber.

As far as the scrapes, you could add a bit of salt, but your water changes should be sufficient for him to heal as long as your water quality is good. But if he's getting scrapes I'd make sure you don't have any plastic plants or anything that he's rubbing against. And sharp gravel that he can scrape on is not good. Also, if it happens that other fish are picking on him you might want to consider moving him or them to another tank. Tetras can be prone to picking on bettas.

What is the temperature of your tank? Too low a temp will also prevent a betta from healing as quickly. Temp should be 78-82, IMO.

 

[Ara]

:iagree:

Pics would be very helpful if possible.. but as for the feeding, I only feed my bettas once a day, and they are fine. Your fishies stomach is only about as big as their eye, so they really don't need too much food.. the peas is a good plan as well!

As for the scrape, not too sure without pics. What kind of water conditioner are oyu using? A good water conditioner can help with the fishies slime-coating and help with the healing proces, as well as help him not get hurt again. .. might be worth it to increase the dose a little, depending on your conditioner.

 

[NeonJulie]

I use Prime but I confess I only use a few drops in each bucket, I'm careful not to overdose it. I can add a few drops to the tank as well, if that would help to heal.

The temp is at 78 so I think we're good there. I'll make some tests on the water parameters and get back to you, but I know when I tested it just before doing my last 50% change less than a week ago, the numbers were 0 / 0 / 5ppm Nitrates.

Could maybe post a photo tonight of his head where it seems he has little gouges. Based on the area, I'm wondering if he's maybe sitting under the feed rings and it's rubbing on him.

I don't have plastic plants, but I do have silk plants in there. The leaves are silk, but the stems are plastic (don't really see him rubbing up against them though?) It's possible he might be getting close to the clay pots when he's swimming around them. Whatever's happened, it doesn't really seem like it's bothering him, but then it's not exactly like he can tell me...

 

[jpappy789]

You can safely dose prime up to 5x the recommended dose.

 

[BettaFishMommy]

if it is just an abrasion/missing scales then i would continue the water changes to help him heal. daily is ideal.

i'd remove the feeding rings and just sprinkle food over the surface of the water, spreading it out so there isn't any frenzy. this will allow everybody to eat a little bit more peacefully?

 

[RiVerfishgirl]

Good idea posted above. Probably better if they don't have to fight for food in one small area. Another option is you can feed the betta by himself by sticking a cup under him temporarily so he's blocked off from the rest of the group. Bettas aren't generally easily stressed by stuff like that. I used to put mine in a plastic cup when I went to change the water on his small tank and he'd just sit there and blow bubbles, watch me and wait to be put back in.

 

[Amour]

Just some of my opinions based on my own bettas,

I feed mine Omega One Betta Buffet pellets. I don't feed my fish anything that has "fish meal" as the first ingredient. You have to soak the pellet first to get the air out so that they don't ingest air and make themselves constipated.

Also, personally, I think a pea which is roughage should not be used unless needed.

Betta's eat only meat in their native habitat, and their digestion systems were NOT meant for 'fiber' and 'roughage'.

Also take into consideration that a betta's stomach is about the size as one of their eyes. SO... it's better to only feed them one pellet several times a day and not several pellets at a time.

And when feeding them a pea, I usually put one frozen pea in a little sauce server cup in the microwave for thirty seconds, and then keep the pea in there about three minutes. Then take it out of the shell and only feed them the tiniest bit of really smushed pea.

I'm not sure why people think that since bettas like to eat peas mean they should have one all the time.

 

[NeonJulie]

I'm not sure what you mean... as I stated I've only given mine less than 1 pea twice in 3 weeks. I don't even give it to him once a week...

 

[NeonJulie]

Also I would be fine if my betta only ate the bloodworms, but he eats the others' food as well. If I isolate him, he's eating the untouched flake off the bottom.