Basics of Aquarium Fish Food

Feeding your fish is one of the few ways in which you can interact with them. A varied diet is important to maintain good nutrition and the well-being of your fish. It is important to know whether your fish is a herbivore (eats plants), a carnivore (eats animals), or an omnivore (eats both plants and animals) and accordingly you can choose the right food for your fish.

When it comes to feeding your aquarium fishes, there are an enormous number of commercially available food items to select from. Fish foods normally contain macronutrients, trace elements, and vitamins necessary to keep aquarium fish in good health. Many fishkeeping hobbyists feed their fish prepared foods that are commonly made in pellets, flakes, or tablet form.

There is a large variety of commercially prepared food that you can choose from according to availability and convenience. The different kinds of prepared foods are-

Dry Fish Food
Dry fish food can be of different kinds like flakes, pellets, wafers, tablets, granules, or sticks. They are manufactured with floating, slowly sinking, or sinking particles depending on the species they are designed for. They are available in formulations for herbivores, carnivores, and omnivores. They are available also for a few specific kinds of fishes like bettas, goldfish, cichlids, etc.

Flakes are the most commonly found dry fish food. They are consumed by a wide variety of tropical and saltwater fish and invertebrates. It is most suitable for top-dwelling fishes and mid-water fishes. Although, after flakes have settled to the bottom, many bottom-dwelling fishes have it. Flakes are baked to remove moisture as dry fish food, tends to have a longer shelf life.

The more moisture a fish food contains, the more easily it deteriorates in quality. Flakes can be pulverized to service different-sized fishes but are not bulky enough to sustain large-bodied fish. Sinking Wafers are an excellent pick for bottom feeders like catfish but are of little use for surface feeders like hatchet fish. 

Frozen Fish Food 
Frozen Fish food has more appeal to the fish as the freshly frozen food promotes bright coloration. It is a high nutritional product full of natural vitamins, trace elements, carbohydrates, and proteins that will improve the immune system. If your fish is a picky eater, frozen food is easily accepted and will stimulate your fish to eat and give it a healthy appetite again.

Frozen food has a long shelf life and must be kept frozen until ready to use. It is less demanding for your filter system compared to dry food. Hence, the water stays clear and there will be a stable biological balance.  

Freeze-Dried Fish Food
Freeze-dried fish food is similar to frozen fish food and is used to maintain the natural nutrition, texture, and shape of live food but is processed differently so that they can be fed easily and stored more conveniently. An advantage of freeze-dried fish food is that can be easily crumbled for small fish.

Shrimp, daphnia, blackworms, krill, and tubifex are among the most common choices. Freeze-dried food is more shelf-stable as it has moisture removed from it.

Medicated Fish Food
Medicated fish food is an effective way to give medication to your fish. These foods do not contaminate the aquatic environment and do not negatively affect the fish.

Vacation Fish Food
Vacation fish food is designed to keep your fish well-fed when you are traveling or are absent for some reason. They are also known as fish blocks. These blocks release small amounts of food as they dissolve. They are a good choice for smaller tropical fish but can pollute the aquarium if it is neglected for too long.

However, one must never overfeed fish as it is not only detrimental to them but will also deteriorate the quality of your aquarium. Uneaten fish food can also be toxic for your fish so it is important to keep your aquarium clean. 

Here are some recommendations for you- 

Hikari Micro Pellets 

Hikari food sticks

Australian black worms

Tetra Bits Premium Fish food

Azoo 9 in 1 Arowana Sticks

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