Can You Share Lunch with Your Betta Fish?

Betta fish are one of the most beautiful freshwater fish out there. It likes to live a lonely life, but one happy and healthy Betta fish is enough to make your aquarium look fantastic. It’s a fantastic creature and makes for a great pet as well. It can do tricks and can recognize his owners among a lot of other things.

Have you ever wondered if you can feed your pet Betta human food? In this article, we will be tackling this question. We will be clearing doubts such as what kind of human food is suitable for Betta fish, hoe often can you give human food to Betta fish and can you substitute Betta food with human food. Let’s not waste any time and jump straight into the topic!

Is pizza safe for your Betta?

You might love pizza, but you can never feed it to your Betta. First of all, Betta fish are naturally carnivores. They eat small shrimps, fish, worms, and insects that contains high amounts of protein.  The fact is that their natural diet is absent from fats, oils, and preservatives.

If you subject your Betta to these substances, it’ll harm their digestive system and overall health. It would be best if you were very selective about which human food is safe and how you provide it to them. Just remember- the lesser, the better!

What human food is safe for Betta fish?

There is a small selection of human food that can be fed to the Betta fish without any problem. This selection consists of:

• Boiled and skinned peas.
• Boiled spinach leaves.
• Boiled sweet corns.
• Boiled lettuce leaves.
• Fresh meat and seafood.
• Unsalted crackers.

Among these selections, crackers, seafood, and boiled green peas are the most favorable options. Meat is their natural food, and therefore fresh seafood is harmless to them. The meat of animals such as beef, chicken, and pork is technically suitable for them, but you need to make sure it’s fresh and boiled thoroughly.

What human food is unsafe for Betta fish?

Some human foods are unsafe and dangerous for your bet Betta. A list of these foods and the reasons for them being hazardous is given below:

Fruits- fruits are naturally acidic. Betta fish cannot handle the citrus nature of fruits, and it can cause a lot of problems for them.

Canned food- Betta or any fish in their natural habitat eat fresh food. Their bodies are not accustomed to the preservatives and oils present in our canned food. It can seriously mess up their bodies.

Spices and salts- you need to remember Betta fish are freshwater fish, and the amount of salt inside and outside their bodies needs to be precisely regulated; otherwise, it can cause death. Therefore don’t even think of giving you Betta salted food. Their guts are not designed to digest spices. Thus it can cause health issues for them.

How often can you give your Betta human food?

Though there are some human foods you can feed your Betta, they cannot substitute its natural diet. Human food should act as a treat for them. Every once in a while, you can give your Betta human food to cheer it up or bring a change in its diet.

Some human food like boiled peas and cucumbers are known to help clear out Betta’s guts. Therefore you can incorporate them into their diet as a form of treat cum therapy. On the other hand, safe foods such as crackers and meat should be used as treats only.

Fresh seafood is the only thing that comes close to their natural food and can be fed to them without any worries. As aquarium fish city suggests, you need to make sure they are free from oils preservatives and, most importantly, are unsalted.

Best way to incorporate human food in a Betta diet

The best way to incorporate human food within a Betta diet is by maintaining a proper feeding routine. Here are a few points you can follow to maintain a healthy feeding routine-

• First of all, never over feed your Betta.
• Secondly, feed it at intervals of 12 hours, which sums up to twice per day.
• Feed it primarily special Betta food in these two sittings.
• You can give your Betta boiled peas and seafood in between these sitting.
• You can use crackers and meat while teaching it tricks as a treat twice to thrice a week.

Conclusion

You can provide you Betta with human food to feel more close to it and to show it, love. But there is a sure way to do that. You cannot give your human pet food for extended periods, and neither can you give it a piece of all your food. Maintain a healthy habit and routine to keep your fish healthy and happier.