The 5 Best Betta Fish Foods You Need to Try
Not all betta fish are created equal. Some are born with bottomless stomachs like a miniature shark, and others are picky eaters who turn their noses up to everything you offer. The refusal to eat can cause stress if you are the latter. Fortunately, there are many high quality, high protein foods you can try feeding them to whet their appetites.
#1 Frozen Bloodworms
Since betta fish are able to eat small insects and crustaceans in the wild, frozen bloodworms (the brightly colored larvae of midge flies), is one of the best food options you can give them. These can be purchased at your local pet shop in either individual foil-sealed cubes or a frozen slab you can cut off pieces. In the United States, our favorite brand to purchase is Hikari since their bloodworms are of the highest quality and feed out very cleanly.
A betta fish is unlikely to finish a cube of cubes in one sitting. To make this happen, you might need to place the cube inside a container and give a few bloodworms a pipette (or tweezers) to help. While most betta fish will be content with a diet that only contains bloodworms, they also need other nutrients. Rotate between at least two to three different foods to make sure they get all the necessary vitamins and nutrients to live a long and healthy life.
Blackworms
Live foods are the best choice for betta fish because they most closely reflect their natural diet. We recommend live blackworms because as a true freshwater species, they can live for quite a while in your aquarium without fouling the water. They like to burrow into the substrate, which provides hours of enrichment for your betta fish as he hunts them down one by one.
The downside to live blackworms are that they can be difficult to find in local fish shops, and they could also bring in parasites. We still recommend them because they are so nutritious and mentally stimulating for bettas. Just make sure to get the blackworms from a reputable fish store that keeps them refrigerated in clean, odorless water.
#3 Betta Pellets
While pellets may not be the most natural-looking choice, they combine the most important nutrients a betta fish needs into a bite-sized package. Betta food pellets are nice because they don’t tend to dissolve quickly in the water and they generally float at the surface (which is preferred since bettas have upturned mouths and are used to eating from the water surface).
Xtreme Betta Pellets
We like Xtreme Betta Pellets because they contain high-quality proteins like krill, come with a handy scoop to avoid overfeeding, and are packaged in a small container that’s ideal for keeping one betta fish. You don’t want a large jar of fish food that you can use for many years. Although the expiration date is still valid, the food can become stale due to repeated exposure to oxygen and moisture. This could potentially lead to health problems for your betta fish.
Freeze-Dried Foods
Freeze drying allows food to be preserved in a light, dry form factor. However, it retains as much of its original nutrients and flavor as possible. Therefore, we love using freeze-dried bloodworms and brine shrimp as an alternative to frozen foods. Unlike frozen foods, they do not need to be stored in a freezer, and they tend to float at the top of the water. Also, they’re easy to portion out for appropriate-sized feedings and can be easily removed from the tank if your betta fish doesn’t finish everything.
Hikari Freeze Dried Bloodworms
Insect Based Pellets
Fluval Bug Bite Betta Formula is another type of betta food. It is made primarily from black soldier fly larvae. This helps to closely mimic a betta fish eating an insectivore diet. It contains high amounts of quality protein, as well as other essential vitamins and minerals to boost your betta’s health. It is a slow-sinking granule that some bettas might not like, but if your tank has corydoras or tetras, they will happily eat any leftovers your betta leaves.
Fluval Bug Bites – Betta Formula
In our experience, most bettas are not too picky and, if kept in a community tank with other fish, may even choose to snack on other foods you feed the aquarium. But if you’re looking to add more variety to your betta’s meal plan, give one of these top five go-to foods a try and your betta fish is sure to beg for more.