What do you feed Betta fish?

Steps

1. Figure out your budget. Do you have enough money for a 3 gallon (11.4 L) bowl or a 15 gallon? You should still have enough money for a heater. Betta fish are tropical fish and one thing they need is a heater. They might not need a filter but a heater is a must!
2. Go to the pet store!
3. Pick out the item you had in mind. A lot of betta fish experts say a 3 gallon (11.4 L) bowl/tank is the minimum. You shouldn't put any betta in anything under 1 gallon (3.8 L).
   • A good rule of thumb says a gallon per inch of fish. That's enough for exercise and for the betta to be comfortable.
   • Please do not put your betta in a vase with a lily and expect it to eat the roots. The betta fish will die from the lack of a proper diet.
4. Get a betta fish while you're at the pet store! Betta fish can be as little as a dollar up to 30 dollars at the pet store.
5. Get some betta food while you're at it.
   • Some betta fish will not eat flakes, while others won't eat pellets. Some won't eat either. You may have to try a lot of different foods.
6. Don't forget to get a heater, sand/gravel, hiding places, plants, gravel vacuum for your finned friend.
   • Maybe a filter if you're feeling a bit generous!
7. Get home, fill your tank with water! Don't forget the water conditioner! Start the heater to warm up the water.
8. Arrange the tank. Leave enough room for your fish to swim. Be creative with this part.
9. Acclimate your new fish to his tank! Don't just drop Mr. Fishy in his new home! And then try to feed him.
10. 10
    Remember to change his water and feed him!
    • A good rule of thumb is every gallon in his tank is 2 days without changing his water. Take how many gallons he has in his tank and multiply it by two! Say you have a 5 gallon (18.9 L) tank so multiplied by two equals 10 days without changing his water 100%. That's means every 10th day change his water 100%.

Community Q&A

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• Do I need water conditioner?

• What sorts of aquatic plants can I buy to add to his home to make him happier?

  wikiHow Contributor

  Some common ones are Java fern, Amazon sword, Java moss, and hairgrass. These are all easy to grow.

• My fish is not eating anything. What should I do?

  If it has not eaten anything in a week, try feeding it bloodworms. Bettas go crazy for them. Try different foods; check the ingredients to make sure it's safe.

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Tips

• Please don't get a baby betta fish, this should be left for the most advanced members.
• If you do get a baby betta fish, it won't be big enough to eat pellets. You will have to feed it high quality live food. If you feed it small pellets you could ruin their delicate mouth by feeding it hard pellets.
• Pick a happy healthy betta fish, to avoid having problems with betta fish illnesses.
• Don't change the water while the betta is in it! You could stress it to the point of dying!

Warnings

• Betta fish can get sick by bad water quality. Change their water frequently if living in an unfiltered bowl. Kind of like how you'd get sick by living in your own waste.
• If your betta has horizontal stripes running across him, he is severely stressed. Leave him alone for a couple of days. Still feed him though!
• Never keep male betta fish together.
• Avoid plastic plants only get silk plants. Plastic can severely injure a betta fish by tearing its fins.
• Don't breed betta fish if you don't have enough heated tanks for a few hundred baby betta fish.
• Keep a lid on your betta's habitat, so he doesn't jump out.
• Alternatively, get live plants! Not only do they not harm a betta's fins, but also give them a place to rest, as bettas LOVE to lounge on the leaves. Plus, they have an added bonus of oxygenating the water and keeping it clean for longer.