Feeding The Fry

Now that Dad is out you need to feed your fry immediately as they will have used up most of their yolk sacs.

We tend to use Vinegar eel rather than Microworm.  The reason for this, is that it is believed by some breeders that microworm causes longer than normal fins in females. Whilst this causes no problem for the individual fish, it makes it harder to distinguish the sexes apart until they are mature.  There is also the issue regarding future breeding. If females with long fins are bred with long finned males, their offsping may develop longer fins again, which can cause swimming problems.

The other benefit of Vinegar eel is that it is slightly smaller than Microworm and will live much longer in the tank.  Remember that your fry are tiny and as such will have tiny mouths so small food is a must for them.  Please click the pictures below for instructions on how to prepare your Mother Culture and Feeding Culture.

Feeding Culture	Mother Culture

Other alternatives are Banana Worm, Walter Worm which can be bought from online suppliers or ebay and come with instructions.  If you'd like to try Vinegar eel then please contact us as we may have cultures available.

You'll need to feed the fry 2 – 3 times daily but don't overdo it as this will cause the water to pollute if any is left uneaten.

Freshly hatched brine shrimp can be used after a week. The brine shrimp you may have seen at your local fish shop will be far too big for the fry, so you will need to hatch your own.  Please click the Image below for instructions on setting up your own hatchery. Again this should be fed 2 – 3 times daily and you should be able to see the fry chasing them down.  You'll know if they have been eating ok as their stomachs will enlarge slightly and will go a pinky red colour.

Setting Up Your Own Hatchery

Once the fry are around 2 months old you can start introducing chopped up or grated bloodworm, daphnia etc.  Please remember though to clean out any that isn't eaten.

As they get bigger they will gradually move onto dried food.  We feed ours crushed Betta Pro and/or Aqua one Betta pellets until they are big enough to take whole pellets.  

Great First Food For Fry Atisons Betta Blue