Summer is here and with it comes vacations spent with family and friends away from home. This time of year we get a lot of emails asking, “how long a betta fish can survive without food?” Many betta keepers are going out of town and don’t know what to do with their betta while away. Some fear leaving their fish without care for even a day or two, while others write in hoping they’ll find their betta alive and well after a week long vacation. I thought I’d take this opportunity to fill you in on your betta’s feeding schedule requirements as well as some tips to keeping your betta safe while on summer vacation.
- Fish are cold blooded. Their metabolism (and nutritional needs) are based in part on their environment. As a general rule, fish kept in warmer water need feeding more often than fish kept in cooler water. Take Koi for example. Koi kept in a warm pond in the summer are fed regularly, while in the winter, when the water is near freezing, their metabolism slows to the point they can go for long periods without food. Bettas are tropical fish and could never survive in very cool water. They require regular feeding and can never go for very long periods without food. They can go longer than mammals though.Skipping a day or two of feeding is not a problem for a betta fish.
- A healthy betta of a good size living in a large, fully cycled aquarium may survive longer than one who has suffered health problems, is underweight or who lives in an unfiltered fish bowl. In a perfect case scinario (large 10 gallon tank, fully cycled, etc) I might personally go as long as 3 full days without food assuming I’d be home to feed him by the 4th day and every day after that.
- Automatic fish feeders are notoriously unreliable. They often over feed your fish or don’t work at all. The web is filled with stories of automatic fish feeders gone bad. If you are sure that your only option is an automatic fish feeder, I suggest setting it up a week before you leave and monitoring it daily to see how it works. Remember, if it dumps it’s entire load of fish food into the aquarium (like some have reported) the decaying food can turn to ammonia quickly, making your tank water toxic to your fish.
- Surviving is not thriving. It’s funny, but whenever I get an email from a reader it always asks, “How long with my betta SURVIVE without food?” I always cringe a little when I read that because surviving simply means that the fish isn’t completely dead when you get home. Starvation is a horrible way to die and no animal, no matter how small, should be left to starve. After a short time (maybe 4 or 5 days, I’m estimating) the betta’s body will begin to go into survival mode using up it’s reserves to stay alive. During prolonged periods of fsting, stress from starvation can be tremendous and eventually will cause the kidneys to shut down and can lead to organ failure. Even if the betta appears alive and healthy, his immune system can become quickly weakened leaving him susceptible to common illnesses that can lead to serious complications or death. Betta fish in the wild live in a very lush environment with lots of insects and larvae to eat. It is not likely that bettas in their natural environment would have to go long without food.
- Keep in mind there are other dangers to leaving your fish unobserved for several days. Take care to make sure the tank or bowl is covered so he can’t jump out. Bettas are great jumpers and will do it. Also, be sure your equipment is in good working order. Check that the filter basket on the intake is firmly attached so your betta doesn’t get sucked up while you are gone. If you are using a heater, be sure it isn’t set too high and is in good working order. Often tank heaters get stuck in the “ON” position and the tank can quickly get over heated in the summer months. Be sure your tank isn’t left in direct sunlight or in a place that is too cold either.
So for a quick recap, by taking a few cautionary steps most betta fish will be fine without food for a weekend. For trips longer than a few days you should consider asking a friend or family member to watch over your fish. A betta fish should never be left without food or supervision for a week or more.
Betta Fish by Rhizae
View Comments (62)
Thank you, Christie for all this info on the Fighting Fish. We got one recently ( I don’t even know how old it is) and we will be away for exactly 4 days and won’t be able to get a sitter. I’m hoping we can feed it well and keep it in roughly 70 degree water in his fish bowl. I’ll still see if I can find somebody to take care.
I’m glad we could help. I’d only add that you should aim for a stable temp in the mid to high 70s. The low 70s is a little too cool for bettas even if you are attempting to slow his metabolism. Have a great trip!
My class project was a betta fish and my teacher let me bring it home. My teacher feed it today and I wont be able to get food intill tomorrow. Will my betta live. Its in the container my teacher bought it in.
Yes, it’s okay to skip a day of feeding just make sure you get food within two days any longer than that can be stressful for the fish.
I am leaving on a vacation for about a week or six days. My betta is in a tank with no filter. I usually clean the tank once a week so that will be no prob but feeding and temp of tank I am worried about. We got these time release food blocks but am still worried. I am not trying to be a bad fish owner it’s just I am at a loss. PLEASE HELP!!!
Oh and FYI my tank is a half gallon tank
my betta quit eating over a week ago. I put in food for 1/2 hour and remove it while still floating and put in new. he won’t touch it. neither will he eat krill, shrimp, bloodworms nor veggie.???????
if i get a betta and not weed it on the weekend will that be ok?
cause i am a college student and come home on the weekends.
Bettas make great pets for college students because they can be left over the weekend. I suggest, in your case, that you feed him 5 days a week, twice per day. Then it won’t be a big deal to skip the two days you are away from school. Just remember to keep your tank covered. Bettas are great jumpers and are notorious for leaping to their death when their human is out of town.
Greetings, I have a nice turquoise super delta tail, at the time I purchased him he looked fairly healthy and with vigor but when I brought him home he wouldn’t accept any food I gave him (freeze dried blood worms, brine shrimp flakes, beta pellets). Now he has clamped fins and looks lethargic, I did salt water baths for 3 days and used a beta health aid solution afterward, then I changed his water daily using only a good conditioner, still he wont eat :( he has no signs of shredded fins or fungal infection and the water temp is 74F – to 78F, what could be wrong? thank you for such nice forum.
Hi James, youre betta might be suffering from DEPPRESION!!!! Try and increase the tempurature to 80-ish and make sure you have some extras to keep him happy and entertained. Mine has to plants, a spinning top and a back drop I drew myself.
From the boy who STILL isnt in high school! Not to brag.
Good for you not being in high school, kid. Quit being a douche abouut it and shut the fuck up fgt
The warmer the warmer the less oxygen. My beta likes room temp wate rI had him for 3 years already.
Ok, my daughters betta is in a 10 gal filtered tank. 5 weeks ago it got sick out of the blue with a curved back and can’t swim straight AT ALL! it also hasn.t eaten ANYTHING!!! for those 5 weeks!! is this possible!!!! what should we do?? we give it food every night before bed but it doesn’t come out to eat like it used to. the pellets are on the bottom or stuck in the filter, he isn’t eating them. he has become almost straight again but is cowering in a little cave we bought him. any info???
Thanks, marty
Hi Marty, youre betta is going through a disease, I forgot what, but if you search on google about betta diseases you might find what is happening.
PS Remove ALL uneaten food!!
From the young boy who isn’t even in high school yet!
Hi Christy,
I’m going on a vacation from the 14th of Jan till the 21st.
Will mine be ok?
Hi I just recently got a new betta fish because my old one died and i just fed it food and it wont eat. Is this normal?
Wonderin why my beta fish lays on the rocks in his tank. I thought he was dead and freaked out cause I didnt want my 3yr old seein that, but wen I tapped the tank its like he woke up. Do they sleep like that?
Yes Betta fish are actually one type of fish that enjoys lounging around, mine did that too! If you don’t want him lying on the rocks the sell these awesome “Betta Leaf Hammocks” (try to google it) as soon as I bought mine one the rock lounging stopped!! now he just lays on his little hammock and loves life!
If your fish is laying on or inbetween the rocks in your tank it means that it is either sick or scared and trying to hide. To avoid making the fish scared place a small plastic tank plant suitable to the size of the tank into the tank. Note before placing the plant or object into the tank be sure to wash it with fresh water and no cleaning products. Also note that betta fish sleep in a L shape position ( head up and feet down)
Betas don't have feet Annabelle.
I know this article is very old, but I was wondering what variety/color betta is displayed with this article?
Thanks.
i feed my betta fish once a day and clean the tank every week. i always leave the food and water conditioner right next to the tank but when i got hoe from school the food and water treatment was gone. i asked everybody in my house if they had seen it (no one was home at the time it went missing) but no one has seen it. i put bottled water in the tank intead of tap with treatment and it was rather cold (around 65 degrees f.) and i put a little hot water to warm it up to around 75 and i put him in it. he is now verry pale and he wont respond when i tap the tank (usualy he starts looking for food at the top of the tank). also i have a few plants in the tank and i know that they can eat plants but i was wondering how long before having no food will start to hurt him (before i should feed him next) because i have no money to buy new food at the moment.
Help!! My betta hasn’t eaten for a MONTH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! How can it be????????????????? I have no idea what’s going on!