Adding a New Pet- How to Feed a Betta Fish

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by Renae Chiovaro on January 5, 2011

betta fish

Meet Starfish, our new pet Betta Fish!

Captain M. has been a horrible sleeper for the whole four years of his life. Bedtime for the kids is something that hubby and I used to dread. It is always a battle getting the two boys to settle in and fall asleep. Captain M. can stay up until 10pm without a problem- seriously wish I had his energy!

I came up with a sleep chart for Captain M. If he went to bed easily and slept all night, he was rewarded with a sticker on his chart. Once the chart was full, he was able to pick out a fish. The chart was completed last week (yeah!) and we headed to the pet store. We decided to start with a Betta fish since they do not require a big tank, they are cheap and pretty!

Although the care of a Betta is supposed to be relatively easy, the feeding instructions for Starfish vary greatly! On the way home I read through the instructions from the pet store as hubby drove:

  • Pet store instructions said– Feed Betta once every few days as much as he can eat in 30 seconds.
  • Betta Food #1 said– Feed Betta 2-3 times a day as much as he can eat in 2 minutes.
  • Betta Food #2 said– Feed Betta 1 time a day as much as he can eat in 2 minutes.

Of course the answers online vary as well. So how much do these guys really need to eat?

By the way, if you need to order anything for your pets from PetSmart, they are currently offering $4 off a $15 order with coupon code AFF11JAN.

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Renae Chiovaro

Renae is a married working mom of two handsome boys. She works as a registered dental hygienist by day and blogs here at How to Have it All by night. She enjoys cooking from scratch, working in her vegetable garden and functional training.

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Comments

  1. Loreli says:
    January 6, 2011 at 11:19 am

    When we have had Betta fish in the past, we simply dropped a TINY pinch into the bowl either each morning or each evening whichever works with your schedule. But once a day is generally enough.
    Warning—do not feed to much —-Capt M will be VERY SAD. They also don’t seem to live for us beyond 18-24 months.

    GOOD LUCK with your new family addition.

    • Renae says:
      January 6, 2011 at 6:13 pm

      Thanks Loreli! Our fish doesn’t seem to be eating much so I am only putting 2 flakes in at a time- once a day. Hope he will at least live for a few months!