How Long Can A Betta Fish Go Without Food?

How Long Can A Betta Fish Go Without Food? – Ultimate Guide

How Long Can A Betta Fish Go Without Food? Usually, it has been seen that a betta fish can easily survive for 14 days without food. Study shows that adjusting the Fahrenheit can help them survive more without any food. Just by adjusting their water temperature, you can slow down their metabolism.

Let’s take a quick view of Betta fish. Betta fish are one of the most popular aquarium fish in the United States and they are also known as Siamese fighting fish. They belong to the gourami family and are very know popularly high territorial.

Siamese fighting fish or Betta fish are carnivorous species and they usually feed on insect larvae, small worms, shrimps, and carrion. Domestic betta can also eat flakes if they had to but their natural and live food would be highly preferred.

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Do you need to go for an urgent meeting far from home or are you planning to travel for a vacation and worried about your betta fish? Every pet owner should worry because it is something that needs to be solved.

Most of the fish species need to be fed daily but things are quite different when it comes to betta fish. They belong to different kind of species and can live for days without food

What To Feed Beta Fish?

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Betta fishes are known for having upturned mouths and primarily feed on the surface of the water. 


They usually feed on insect larvae, small worms, shrimps and carrion. A good and healthy diet of betta fish has brine shrimps, daphnia and dried blood worms.


Betta fish are very picky eaters and prefer to eat food on the surface of the water rather than on the substrate of an aquarium. Betta fish are naturally carnivorous species so they should be fed a well-balanced diet that is rich in protein.


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Many folks believe that betta fish can also live on plant roots. Well, let me get it clear for you – It’s a myth, and doesn’t rely on such myths. Betta fish will never prefer to eat such things. Yes, they do eat flakes if they had to but they only tend to prefer their natural food.


Many betta fish owners think to feed their fish with pellets because pellets are effective as well as simple. Pellets are created less mess and are rich in protein. You can also add some live frozen food and live dried food into their feeding routine as treats.

How To Keep Betta Healthy and Safe While You’re Away on a vacation?

Below, I have shared some tips and tricks that you can use to keep your betta fish in a healthy and safe condition while you are away from your home.

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• Just to remind, fish are cold-blooded animals and their metabolism directly depends on the environment they live in. As an example – the fish kept in cold water needs to be fed less than ones living in warm water. Therefore, the betta is tropical fish and can’t survive in cold water.
  
• So, it is certain to make sure that you took of the water as much as you care for your betta while you are away. 

• If you want to keep your betta fish in a healthy condition and environment, you should always keep them in stable tropical water temperatures. The ideal temperature of water for the betta will be within 76 – 81 degrees Fahrenheit, it works best for them.

• Too hot or too cold water can lead your betta fish to stress or worse like death. Coldwater temperature can be life-threatening to them. Water temperature can also be used with the starvation of the fish. Keeping the water temperature low can lead the fish into a lethargic one or state.
  
• You can easily decrease their metabolism and activity levels by lowering the temperature. In this way, you can stop them from burning the food or stored fat quickly. To reduce their caloric consumption, keep them in the temperature within 71 to 73 degrees Fahrenheit.

• You need to change 50 to 100 percent of aquarium water if you are going on a longer vacation like more then 4 days. You need to swap the water twice, once just before the day when you are going to leave and once when you are back.
  
• The percentage of water change totally depends on the size of your tank. If your tank can hold less than 4 gallons of water, then definitely you may need to change almost 80 percent of water. 

• Betta fish usually expel ammonia and food waste along with their breaths in the water which contains the toxin. These types of toxin are very harmful to fish. Living long totally depends on perfect conditions and a healthy environment. The chances of betta fish living increase more than ones living in unfiltered water and with health issues.

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• If you have a large tank, then you can avoid care for an extended period without any hassles. You just need to make sure that you have a lid with holes in your aquarium as it helps and increases the supply of oxygen.

• Certainly, you want to know where should I keep the tank then, well you can keep them in an ideal and safe corner or place with indirect sunlight. Make sure to provide your fish a canopy light above the water.

Nowadays, there is several automatic fish feeder available in the market. I will recommend not to use they can overfeed your fish and sometimes they don’t even work at all. 

• If you still want to try an automatic fish feeder then I would suggest you try it for at least 1 week before you leave for your vacation to ensure it works perfectly and properly. However, betta fish can survive for two weeks without food so you may not need them.

But still, it is not recommended to leave them for more than 4 days as they begin to tap into their reserves and start to enter into starvation. This can lead them to organ failure and increase stress levels. So, you can leave your fish alone for a maximum of 4 to 5 days.


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The betta fish belong to the gourami family and are a very rare species as they can survive without food for a very long time than other domestic species. You should always make sure that they are in proper health and the genetics of the fish is good.


If you find or feel that your fish is affected by some kind of disease then there is a huge possibility that they can’t sustain 14 days with food. Always make sure that the aquarium water is ideal and perfect for your fish to thrive in.

How to keep betta healthy and strong?

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To ensure optimum health in betta, you must keep and retain a stable water temperature that can range from 76 degrees to 81 degrees Fahrenheit.

Chances of death, illness, and stress increase if the water temperature is extremely hot or cold. If you find your tank too cold then it is recommended to shift the tank to a warmer and safer location.

It will make your fish lazy and sluggish as water with low temperature reduces their metabolism rate as well as their activity level.

You can regulate the temperature within 71 degrees Fahrenheit to 73 degrees Fahrenheit, to bring down their activity and calorie consumption level.

In this way, you can keep your betta healthy as well as strong without giving too much attention. 🙂

How can you extend the life of a betta fish?

Fortunately, there are few tips, that can be followed to extend their life span and I have mentioned five of them in this article.

The betta is generally freshwater species that are commonly found in the marine world. You can expect their life longevity for almost three years.


Tip no. 1 


If you keep the betta fish in a large tank that contains clean water and ensure their proper care, it will make them easily survive for 3 years.

Tip no. 2


Always pick the ones that show healthy signs and appear to have crystal clear eye and colorful skin.

Tip no. 3


When you procure a betta fish, you must pay close attention and always pick the healthy and strong ones. And one of the most certain facts is to purchase them for a reliable pet store.

However, I have shared some characteristics, so that you can end up purchasing a healthy and strong betta fish.

Avoid buying the betta fish that shows the following characteristics.

• Ripped Fins
• Injured Body
• Skin discoloration
• Protruding eyes
• Slow response time

Tip no. 4


Male betta fish fins and colors become visible once they reach one year of age. So, as soon as they reach one year of age, they get distributed from pet stores. But in the case of females, they get started being sold immediately once they reach six months of age. The female betta fish life expectancy is a little bit higher than the male betta. However, peoples prefer to keep the male betta fish as a pet because of their attractive colors and beauty.

Tip no. 5


Pick those who show remarkable responses in no time. 🙂

What is an ideal tank size to keep betta fish happy?

If you prefer to purchase directly from a reliable pet store, then definitely they will supply the betta in a small tank. However, it is preferred to keep them in a minimum of the five-gallon tank.

How long does betta survive in the wild?

Well, it depends upon several circumstances. The life expectancy of a betta fish living in an aquarium or tank is much higher than the ones who thrive and are found in the wild.

The main reason for short life expectancy in the wild is due to contaminated water which brutally hampers the ecosystem and brings down the legibility of the betta fish & others.

They usually thrive in shallow freshwater ponds, canals, and lakes, they are known to be indigenous to countries like Cambodia & Thailand. However, they can also be found in Singapore, Malaysia, and Brazil.


The betta ones who live in the wild are considered endangered species. There is no doubt that wild betta fish is categorized as an endangered fish species.

The main reason behind this is the polluted air that depletes their habitat. Another factor that leads them toward their extinction is agricultural field development. 🙁


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How can you extend the life of betta fish?

After getting a proper answer to How Long Can A Betta Fish Go Without Food, everyone looks for the next one and that is How can you extend their life?

Let me tell you first, the male betta is very aggressive by nature. Also, some countries like Thailand have a tradition of betta fish fighting in tanks. The people in Thailand use the male betta for fighting, just similar to cØckfighting. 


In the wild, the betta fishes fight and compete for the female for minutes until the less dominant backs off and seek a different territory.

Similarly, owing to less space and with no chance of escaping in a fish tank, they can fight until death. However, a female betta is the opposite of male species, they are not that aggressive.


If you want to increase their life span, you should keep the male betta fish in a different tank with other communities of fish like loaches, rasboras, and many more. It’s better to keep the male ones apart in a separate tank, you should transfer them safely to another tank. 

Why should I install and filter in a betta fish aquarium?

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Well, there are several advantages of installing a filter and heater in a betta fish tank. It is extremely important to install a heater if you reside in a colder region.

With the help o theater, you can adjust and control the aquarium temperature, an ideal temperature for the betta that should be maintained is within 75 degrees Fahrenheit to 80 degrees Fahrenheit.


Coming to filter, betta fish can’t survive for too long in contaminated and dirty water, so it is necessary to install a filter in the tank to ensure the cleanliness of the tank water.


Plus, it will also absorb debris and harmful chemicals like nitrates and ammonia as well as making sure the water is always aerated. However, you should always replace the water at regular intervals even you installed a filter in an aquarium.

What Are The Advantages Of Placing A Plant In Your Betta Tank?

There are many advantages of placing a plan in a betta tank.

• Firstly, it creates a positive and fresh environment for betta fishes.
  

• Secondly, It enhances your aquarium beauty. The combination of green plants and colorful betta suits well.
  

• Thirdly, Placing a plant replicates the natural environment inside the tank and moreover, you can notice positive changes in their behavior.
  

• Fourthly, It works as a hideout place for the fish.
  

• Finally, placing plants enhances the oxygen supply inside the tank.
  
  

What are the best plants to keep in betta fish aquarium?

Some of the best plants that you can place inside your betta fish tanks are

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1. Anacharis: – This type of plant can thrive even in harsh climatic conditions. Plus, it grows rapidly.
2. JavaMoss: – If you are looking for a plant that can be easily taken care then this plant will be a perfect match for you as they are easy to be taken care of.
3. JavaFern: – It can only grow at a height of about eight inches, so you don’t have to worry for the plant to overreach the height of your tank.
   
   

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Taniya

94% of pet owners say their animal pal makes them smile more than once a day. In 2007, I realized that I was made for saving Animals. My father is a Vet, and I think every pet deserves one. I started this blog, “InPetCare”, in 2019 with my father to enlighten a wider audience.