A question about detritus worms

[Slaphppy7]

I don't currently own any bettas, but when I did, they were fed no more than once a day...sometimes, every other day

The fish I keep now are fed (adequately) every 2 or 3 days, with supplemental veggies on "fast" days...they live long, and prosper

Underfeeding tropical fish, in most circumstances, is much less detrimental than overfeeding, depending on the tank setup and the fish involved

Water quality is the most important factor with our fish, and overfeeding can cause it to go bad, fast ... especially in a small tank

Feed adequately, but sparingly

Cut back on feeding, as already suggested, and the worm population should dwindle

 

[biscuitbetta]

I am far from an “expert” but have a couple Bettas for a few years, not my main focus, I have a community tank and Fire Belly Toads, but I believe the rule of thumb was a few pellets of food every couple days, they have very tiny stomachs and don’t need to be feed daily. Google on care on these pretty fish. They definitely don’t need twice a day feeding. I use Omega One Betta pellets. A few tiny pellets every couple days. Google Betta feeding… Something about their stomach is as big as their eye balls from what I recall? Feeding until a fish isn’t interested is really not good.

I have been only feeding him a few small pellets daily and once a week I give him a couple of bloodworms. It's not crazy overfeeding like it may sound!

I'd also like to add I spent months researching this fish before I got it through Google, Youtube videos and this forum, and that's what led me to believe I was supposed to be feeding him twice daily until no longer interested.

 

[WhistlingBadger]

I don't currently own any bettas, but when I did, they were fed no more than once a day...sometimes, every other day

The fish I keep now are fed (adequately) every 2 or 3 days, with supplemental veggies on "fast" days...they live long, and prosper

Underfeeding tropical fish, in most circumstances, is much less detrimental than overfeeding, depending on the tank setup and the fish involved

Water quality is the most important factor with our fish, and overfeeding can cause it to go bad, fast ... especially in a small tank

Feed adequately, but sparingly

Cut back on feeding, as already suggested, and the worm population should dwindle

The only exception to this is with bottom feeders. It sometimes takes effort to make sure they're getting fed. I seem to have lost a few of my Pangio cuneovirgata, probably because not enough food was getting down through the micro-rasboras to them. But overall, I agree that it's better to er on the side of underfeeding, especially with B. splendens. They are prone to obesity if you overfeed. Then you have to sign them up for one of those expensive fish diet programs.

 

[On_a_dishy]

My betta would take down a cow if he could.
I found one of those worms in my tank today. I'm trying not to worry about it, but we're just so programmed to recoil from anything segmented and wriggly.

 

[sharkweek178]

It’s how most bottles and pet stores will say to (so you did nothing wrong, you just followed instructions) but it usually causes great amounts of waste, hence the high amounts of detritus worms. I would cut down to once daily, in the morning, and just a small amount. It will improve the water quality, the levels of the worms, and prevent obesity in your betta
Fish don’t need very much food, most are over fed

Since fish are cold blooded, they don't need the calories to regulate their body temperature.
I think I read somewhere that that a tropical fish only needs to eat the equivalent of one or two of their eyeballs worth of food at a time.

 

[sharkweek178]

The only exception to this is with bottom feeders. It sometimes takes effort to make sure they're getting fed. I seem to have lost a few of my Pangio cuneovirgata, probably because not enough food was getting down through the micro-rasboras to them. But overall, I agree that it's better to er on the side of underfeeding, especially with B. splendens. They are prone to obesity if you overfeed. Then you have to sign them up for one of those expensive fish diet programs.

I have pygmy corys. So I grind their dry food up with a mortal and pestle to almost a powder. The other fish can only eat one piece at a time so enough gets to the bottom for the corys. Plus, it's a more manageable size for the little guys.