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.)
(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.)