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Feeding ADF So Betta Won't Steal Food

Golum

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I keep one Betta and one African Dwarf Frog in a 14 liter (3.7 gallon) tank.
I feed my Betta first, with floating food. I then offer my ADF one "Repto Min" pellet at a time through a thick plastic straw (originally used for drinking bubble-tea ;-)
The ADF grabs it from the end of the straw about half the time, and often misses it so it falls to the aquarium floor. Then, the race is on to see who finds it first. Results - an overweight Betta.
Has anyone found a better way to feed? Cupping one or the other for separate feeding seems to guarantee success but I'm looking for a simpler solution. Some kind of ornamental feeding station or shelter the ADF can enter but the Betta cannot.
My first experiment was a clear shot glass with three rubber bands wound around it to restrict the size of the opening. Betta determinedly solved the puzzle and squeezed himself in there - eventually getting stuck so I had to rescue him.
Is anyone else trying to solve this kind of puzzle?
 

xxianxx

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Adf are easily out competed for food by fish, despite what you read about feeding them pellets they really need live food to thrive, pelleted and frozen foods will reduce their life expectancy. Personally I would keep them separate from fish in a planted tank, add daphnia and other small inverts, plus chopped earthworm and whiteworm.
 

frogbody

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One of the biggest problems in keeping dwarf frogs with fish is the fact that the fish tend to be more aggressive and faster, stealing food and nipping at delicate webbing! Successfully keeping them together depends a lot on the individual fishes temperament.

Commercial pellets are alright, but live food really is best. Nutritional value aside, ADF's have trouble finding pellets because they have bad eyesight, and hunt based on scent. If you have trouble with finding readily available live food small enough for them in your area , you can often find frozen packs of blood worms/brine shrimp at most pet stores.

I personally thaw out a cube of blood worms in a separate cup, and I use a turkey baster to suck 'em up and drop them in front of my frogs. They go after them pretty quickly and seem to vastly prefer them over pellets!

Good luck with helping your little buddy get to its food! They're slow and a little silly, so it might take some time to figure out a system that works for you. :D
 
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