My Betta wont eat

[BettaJake]

Hi all, I am a new Betta owner, in fact this is my first fish ever. I have read a lot of informative posts on here but I just got my betta yesterday evening and he hasnt eaten anything all day today. I just have regular pellet food for my betta as that is what they gave me at the pet store and I put just one pellet in his tank at first to see if he would eat it because I heard you werent supposed to let the food float around in the water for lengthy periods of time... anyways that was at 9:30 am and it is 3:00 and he didnt eat the pellet :( is this normal? I'm worried about him. Why wont he eat? Sorry if this is dumb but it's my first fish so I dont really want him to starve himself by not eating.

[CodeRed]

Sometimes it takes a little time for bettas to get used to their new homes, and they won't eat. Two of my four bettas didn't eat for two weeks, but they're doing just fine now. Give him a little time, and he should be eating like there's no tomorrow (:

[CodeRed]

Oh, but keep trying everyday, because he might decide he's hungry enough. Just remember to take the food out if he doesn't eat it.

[dr2b]

Welcome to FishForum! Like CodeRed said, they just take time to acclimate to their new home. He'll eat eventually. Keep offering him food though. And they can go (I think) up to 4 weeks without food. Also, bettas are picky, so it maybe he doesn't like the pellet also. You may need to try a different brand. Many betta owners use Hikari biogold or Wardley's. I know my betta wouldn't eat Topfin pellets. Each one is different though :)

[CodeRed]

Plus, some don't even like pellets. My Ace will only eat flakes, but he doesn't care what kind of flakes. The only time he'll eat a pellet is if I sneak it in there, and he's already in his eating frenzy. And even then you can tell he doesn't like it xD
Some bettas are just extremely picky. I think I have 5 different types of food right now.

[BettaJake]

ok thank you! I will try and get some different kinds of food just to see if that makes a difference. Thank you all for the replies! How long should I wait before removing the uneaten pellet?

[CodeRed]

I don't like to leave it in for more than 4 or 5 minutes. If he doesn't eat it right away, he's usually not going to change his mind.

[BettaJake]

ok thank you!

[CodeRed]

Good luck with your fish! (:

[dr2b]

Good luck!