Betta won't eat

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Lung fish, you keep dragon gobies in a freshwater tank?! D:


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Not only that, it's in a 45g tank I believe. It's a highly overstocked tank.

*insert kermit* but that's none of my business..


Caleb

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I just went and looked at your old posts Lung Fish.

I have literally close to zero experience with fish tanks, and my only tank is a 5 gallon betta tank, so while I might be in no place to advise you, I still think you should listen to others. So many people, especially the experienced regulars here like ImACoolGuy or Nigel seem to have warned you so many times in previous posts. Please don't disregard their advice. For the fish's sake.


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Last i checked someone swore and refused to take it down. I'm pretty sure that was near the end.

I know that thread got way off topic, but it was really great to vent about that stuff for once...
 
Last i checked someone swore and refused to take it down. I'm pretty sure that was near the end.

I know that thread got way off topic, but it was really great to vent about that stuff for once...


Yeah it was CandyMann that said it.

Back on topic... So bettas like to eat food ya know.


Caleb

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Yeah it was CandyMann that said it.

Back on topic... So bettas like to eat food ya know.


Caleb

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I was just here to make sure nobody suggested soaking the food in garlic as an "appetite stimulant" lol

So yeah, don't do that
 
I see that everywhere when reading about betta fish, is it actually bad or just ineffective?


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I say this as someone whose academic advisor has extensively researched this(and is also an avid fishkeeper with like 8 freshwater tanks in his office): All the evidence we have suggests that garlic:
1. Has no positive benefits
2. Can cause serious long-term damage to fish, particularly the heart and liver.

Fish generally don't have the right enzymes to digest "terrestrial" lipids, and so they end up being deposited in the body which can lead to lesions.
 
I say this as someone whose academic advisor has extensively researched this(and is also an avid fishkeeper with like 8 freshwater tanks in his office): All the evidence we have suggests that garlic:
1. Has no positive benefits
2. Can cause serious long-term damage to fish, particularly the heart and liver.

Fish generally don't have the right enzymes to digest "terrestrial" lipids, and so they end up being deposited in the body which can lead to lesions.


Woah, so all those betta fish owners out there hoping to help their fish are actually hurting it? I wonder where this method came from, who thought of giving fish garlic...


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Woah, so all those betta fish owners out there hoping to help their fish are actually hurting it? I wonder where this method came from, who thought of giving fish garlic...


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It's like a lot of urban legend sort of things, like cures for hangovers, or leaving an onion next to your bed to cure a cold. Somebody did it by mistake, they believed it worked through a placebo effect, and they spread it around. It's at the point where people believe it works no matter how many studies I cite.
 
It's like a lot of urban legend sort of things, like cures for hangovers, or leaving an onion next to your bed to cure a cold. Somebody did it by mistake, they believed it worked through a placebo effect, and they spread it around. It's at the point where people believe it works no matter how many studies I cite.


To be honest, when I first saw this garlic myth, I was a little skeptical. Garlic juice is so strong smelling and not exactly pleasant to have in one's mouth in high concentrations. I thought, something like this couldn't possibly be tasty to a fish.

But then I saw multiple people recommending it, even on the betta fish forums people were saying that it helped. I kinda believed it after that. But if given the choice I still wouldn't have done it, First of all, our local supermarket doesn't sell garlic juice, second, I don't want that stuff floating around in my tank and making it smell like garlic.

I'll be avoiding it from now on, and will try to spread the word. Thanks for the warning!


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Just to touch base on the blood boiling thread being shut down, it wasn't due to candyman swearing. The reason it was shut down was due to the fact that it served absolutely no purpose other than trash talking people who aren't on this site asking for advice. If one of those people or someone with a similar set up came on here wanting advice and saw that thread it would turn them away. There is no reason to have a thread to vent, if you have tried educating people and they are persistent they are doing it the right way then there isn't much else you can do. If you don't like seeing it, don't go on their Instagram, don't watch their videos, and don't encourage other people to post pictures of similar setups. It was destructive, not constructive.


In regards to feeding fish with garlic, it absolutely does have proven benefits as far as aiding against certain freshwater parasites and worms. The scent of garlic may lure fish closer to the food to figure out what the smell is which in turn will cause them to eat the food, but it's not necessarily an appetite stimulant.


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Just to touch base on the blood boiling thread being shut down, it wasn't due to candyman swearing. The reason it was shut down was due to the fact that it served absolutely no purpose other than trash talking people who aren't on this site asking for advice. If one of those people or someone with a similar set up came on here wanting advice and saw that thread it would turn them away. There is no reason to have a thread to vent, if you have tried educating people and they are persistent they are doing it the right way then there isn't much else you can do. If you don't like seeing it, don't go on their Instagram, don't watch their videos, and don't encourage other people to post pictures of similar setups. It was destructive, not constructive.


In regards to feeding fish with garlic, it absolutely does have proven benefits as far as aiding against certain freshwater parasites and worms. The scent of garlic may lure fish closer to the food to figure out what the smell is which in turn will cause them to eat the food, but it's not necessarily an appetite stimulant.


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Do you know of any studies done that actually show it being used practically and effectively?

I'm near certain there's no scientific evidence of it as an appetite stimulant, and it's not considered by researchers to be an immunostimulant or effective as any kind of treatment.
 
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