What is the best way to figure out what betta fish eat? Feed them! I am just kidding here, but you can not feed your fish whatever you feel like or whatever he will devour. When I got my first betta fish, I was giving him the wrong food – but he devoured it in a minute! I should not have owned a fish or had an aquarium at the time – I just didn’t understand that they need to be properly cared for and that they could not eat just anything – like I can.

As you can imagine, I ended up learning the hard way, and sure enough he got sick. The first thing I noticed was that he got really swollen, I mean, he looked like someone attached a bicycle pump and pumped up his tiny belly full of air. I was scared for my poor pet, I really thought he was going to kick the bucket, and it was all my fault. The pain that I experienced when my poor helpless pet looked that way drove me to learn all that I could about what his problem might be, and how to prevent it from ever happening again in the future.

If you have never had a sick fish, it is not a fun experience, so please pay attention and learn from my mistakes. I have been caring for and successfully breeding bettas for nearly 16 years, and they live nearly 2 years longer than the average in the United States.

That being said, it is not uncommon for betta fish to be picky at times, especially if they get used to eating certain types of food. What you decide to feed your fish will have a huge and lasting effect on their overall health, and if you give them the right things each day, they can live up to twice as long.

You are probably wondering what it is that I gave my first betta that got him sick by now. I had no idea what I was doing, and gave him flake fish food. To make matters worse, I also gave him live worms, and both of these are examples of how to get your betta sick in a matter of days. Whatever you do, do not feed these to your fish. The water will get murky and the health of your fish will rapidly deteriorate.

To play it safe, feed your fish either “betta food” or “betta bits” from your pet store. You will be much happier and your pet will be much happier that you did.