[Asha]

How many times is best to feed bettas? Some people have told me only once a day and others have said up to 2-3 times. What is best?

 

[onekatietwo]

I haven't had a Betta for very long, but from the sound of it, it seems that how many times you feed it is a lot less important than how MUCH you feed it each day. Do you use pellets or flakes? I think most people recommend somewhere between 3-6 pellets per day on average.
I feed slightly different amounts everyday, but never more than six pellets per day.

 

[dramaqueen]

I feed mine Hikari betta bio gold pellets for their staple diet. I feed 2 pellets twice a day. You can feed 2-3 twice a day. I think most of us fast our bettas once a week.

 

[Nataku]

My feeding regimen differs on certain bettas, as some of them have different preferences. My standard is feeding twice a day, 2-4 pellets at each feeding. Once a week (approximately, depending upon availability) they are fed live food, and are then fasted the day after. Every other week or so, they get daphnia. Some of them like it, some of them generally won't touch it and give me a nasty "what were you thinking?!" look.

Some of my bettas are larger and more active than others, and thereby they tend to get more food (aka 4 pellet 2x a day) all the way down to my most lethargic betta who usually gets one pellet in the morning, and two in the evening, as anything more he tends to simply leave in the tank and not eat. Really, it all comes down to the individual fish and their particular needs, which you will find as you spend more time with your fish.

 

[ifish]

i feed mine once every 2 days thats what the store said but i know its doing well

 

[dramaqueen]

You need to feed him more than once every 2 days. More like twice a day.

 

[Chicklet]

I know as some might say "it's just a fish" But look at it this way, Would you like to be fed only once every two days? one big meal is not good for you however you look at it, Smaller more frequent meals are healthier & better for you...

1 day a week of fasting is best, Even us as human beings should fast 1 day a week for optimal health, but we don't.

 

[LaniBaby]

i was doing 2 times per day with my young ones per the breeder's advice because they were still growing. i noticed crumb getting fat, though, so i cut down to 1 time per day and the belly fat/bloat subsided. i do 4 pellets of hikari gold each morning. they don't tend to like to eat at night anyway. they ignore the food when i try. i also fast them every saturday. sunday is blood worm day.

 

[dramaqueen]

4 pellets once a day is good. Mine get 4 pellets, also. Just not all at once. Sunday is my fast day, too. Then monday they gey daphnia, wednesday they get brine shrimp and fridays they get bloodworms. The rest of the time they get pellets.

 

[LaniBaby]

i've always been leery of brine shrimp because i heard they can spread disease to the bettas if improperly stored/handled by the manufacturer. are they freeze dried brine shrimp that you use? i saw some of those but they were rather pricey...

 

[dramaqueen]

Yeah, they are freeze dried. I don't remember how much I paid for them.

 

[Campbell]

I feed my male 2 pellets twice a day and my smaller female one in the morning and two in the evening. They also get rehydrated bloodworms once a week and are fasted the day after.

 

[MarieBettaMom]

I believe in "grazing" too. George gets 2 meals per day, 2 pellets each feeding. And we occasionally substitute a treat at one of the mealtimes, with blood worm or brine shrimp. I should add that I've had George for about 2 weeks now. Well, that's the plan...

George thinks I'm starving him. He KNOWS when mealtime is and gets very animated and excited. In his excitement this morning, he made a U-turn so quickly/violently that I heard him go "thunk" against the side of the tank. He didn't seem to notice or mind though. After he finished eating, I swear his eyes look at me, then his eyes glance up at the water surface, and he then looks back at me ... it's his way of saying, "I want more!" I tell my 4 yr old that George is a pig, to which she replies, "No! George is a FISH!"

 

[dramaqueen]

lol. They all think we are starving them to death. You're right, they ARE little pigs. Always wanting more. lol

 

[Asha]

Thanks for all the good advice everyone