Post date: Dec 26, 2010 6:40:41 PM
I had been looking for ZooMed's dial-a-treat product, but apparently they were out of stock. It contains bloodworms, mysis, and daphnia. At Petsmart, though, I found
December 26, 2010
Happy Holidays everyone! Being the betta fan that I am, I've received two fish products this holiday season. As you saw in my betta wishlist, I asked for the ZooMed betta exercise mirror , a little circular mirror that floats from a bauble on the water. Check out this video from the ZooMed website.
The directions say to give the mirror a rinse in warm water before use, and then to just drop it in. My males both took a minute to first see it and then flared quite a bit. They don't go crazy like they do in sight of the females or even in site of each other, but they're still getting in some glaring time and showing off their colors. Because they don't seem to be overstimulated by the mirror, I don't think it's necessary to obey ZooMed's rule of the maximum of five minute use. I think they just don't want people letting their bettas use the mirrors all day and becoming overly stressed. The females, who usually respond to the sign of the males, didn't really respond to the mirror. My older female flared once and that was it, and the younger one never seemed to take notice. I'm going to give them a few more tries with it, though.
The mirror's float is small enough to be easily dropped into any bowl or tank, and it sits pretty still once dropped into still water.
Overall this mirror is a great way to keep your bettas busy for a few minutes without having to put a mirror by the tank or butting betta bowls next to each other. It's also great if you want to see your fish show off his colors a little bit more, especially for only $6.
a similar product from the Top Fin brand with the same mix of betta treats. The product is a whole .7 oz (20 g) and is about twice the size of the betta pellet container, just as a frame of reference, and so it has more treats than anyone would ever need for their fish. It's not labeled specifically as a betta product, and the only problem with this is that some of the mysis shrimp are too big for bettas. I've been breaking them into smaller pieces and soaking them first to make them easier to swallow and digest. Actually, though, one of my females played with a too-big piece for a good ten minutes and found it really entertaining. As usual, if you buy this product, ignore the directions of feeding as much as your fish can consume in 3-5 minutes. Feed one treat every few days as a supplement to pellets or instead of pellets. I highly recommend soaking them for a few minutes first because freeze-dried food can wreak havoc on a little betta's digestive system. Being so large, the container was $6 but, as a I said, could feed thousands of bettas. It comes in a "large" variety too, meaning larger treats, but these are much too big for bettas. Look for mysis shrimp, daphnia, and bloodworms in medleys like these or separate, because it's really important to offer your betta a varied diet.