The question of Bettas eating human food may often come to us for many reasons. Maybe you are out of food and didn’t have the time to buy some, or perhaps it’s the weekend and the store doesn’t work late or it is just closed. Our answer is yes, but only occasionally and as a supplement. You can serve your Betta with a portion of human food. What should you present and how much will you learn from our story? We will provide the information you are wondering about.
In this article:
What Can Betta Fish Eat of Human Food?
Your Betta in basic needs a specific diet to grow and be happy but it doesn’t necessarily mean that you can`t offer a treat in other forms, from time to time.
Apart from presenting pellets or flakes, live, frozen or freeze-dried food that is specifically designed for carnivores, you can also use human food. But Bettas prefer meat and the best food you can serve are bloodworms, Daphnia, white worms, glass worms, mosquito larvae, shrimps, and other small fish.
We will tell you about some kinds of food that we humans eat, that you can use and the way and amount you can serve your Betta with.
- Serving pea is advisable when certain conditions happen like constipation or bloating. It moves Betta’s digestive system because it contains fibers that help Betta to relieve the symptoms. Since your Betta’s stomach is the size of an eye, you should serve not more than a quarter of a pea if you do not want to overeat it.
- Bettas can also eat cucumber, lettuce, zucchini and spinach but it doesn’t mean that your Betta will eat it because they are picky eaters. These vegetables should be boiled before being served to your pet. When softened it can be served but be careful about the amount, not to over eat it.
- You can also use sweet corn but you need to peel it first after of course boiling it. It is advisable to cut it into smaller pieces, too.
- If we talk about seafood such as tuna then you are safer because Bettas are used to eating smaller fish. A tiny piece of tuna can be served as a meal even fresh. As long as the fish tastes like from a natural habitat you are on safe ground. You shouldn’t give your Betta a tuna that is kept in oil because Betta`s digestive system isn’t used to it and it can pollute your tank too. It is possible to give your Betta pieces of shrimp too because it matches their natural diet.
Make sure that whatever seafood you present cut it in small pieces before you serve the meal and never overfeed your pet.
- When it comes to fruits you can think of – sweet fruit like bananas, mango or melon because many Bettas go crazy for it. Until you try you won’t know what your Betta likes so start with serving one kind of fruit with just a piece of it. If your Betta doesn’t eat it in the next twenty minutes take it out because it will decompose and pollute the water.
What Human Food to Avoid Giving to Your Betta?
Certain kinds of vegetables should be avoided. We can put carrots and beans in this group and all the others that are very fibrous because they are difficult to chew and swallow. The other thing is that they can cause digestive problems.
The other group is vegetables that have bitter taste such as cabbage, sprout, broccoli, onions and leek should be left out from Bettas diet.
If you are thinking about bread crumbs that you used to feed fish on a pond it is not advisable to feed them on this often. Why is that? Because bread consists of many additives, salt, oil yeas and other chemicals and it can make your Betta bloat or cause constipation problems.
There are many conflicting opinions about feeding Bettas with meat. We do not recommend it but some owners do offer their pet from time to time a tiny piece of cooked chicken or other meat without salt or other spices. With this you have to be very attentive because farm animals can be treated with antibiotics and therefore that meat could harm your Betta`s health. If you offer bacon, it will most surely upset your Betta’s stomach.
When we talk about citrus fruits it is absolutely NO to this – your pet can die. They shouldn’t be served to your Betta pet. They are full of acid that can hurt your pet`s sensitive digestive system and influence the water quality as well. So do not serve your Betta with oranges, lemon, mandarins and similar fruits.
Can Betta Fish Eat Human Food Instead of Betta Pellets?
Bettas need a specific diet high in proteins with certain nutrition requirements. Unfortunately, your Betta pet will not survive only on human food.
Final Words
Since you are in charge of providing the proper healthy carnivores diet we hope that now you understand better what human food you should and shouldn’t serve occasionally and as a treat to your Betta pet. It is time to recap so pay attention:
- From a group of vegetables, you may use cucumber, peas, lettuce, spinach, zucchini and sweet corn. Do not forget to boil it first and peel it if needed.
- When it comes to seafood the choice comes to shrimps, oysters, scallops.
- Never use canned fish because it contains oil which is harmful to your Betta and the tank.
- Small amounts of meat such as chicken, beef and pig meat are possible if boiled first but it is not advisable. Remember that it is not harmful but you should avoid it if possible.
- Fruits that are possible to serve are bananas, mango and melon but never serve citrus food to your Betta. It can be fatal.
- Use only small portions and as a treat not regularly
- be careful not to overfeed your Betta
- take out the food if it stays uneaten it can pollute the tank
- have a feeding plan for your fish.
When certain circumstances occur, you can introduce something from the list above but the best advice is to use it with attention and not as a part of a regular diet.