The right kind of food will increase the activity and longevity of your fish and help them adapt quickly to the aquarium environment. It also helps in keeping your fish healthy and bringing out their best colours. There are a variety of foods available for your saltwater and freshwater fish. It is important to know the types of foods your fish need and how much food they need.

Food may include live foods and processed foods. Live food consists of plants, animals and microorganisms that do not cause harm to the fish. Live foods are always better than dried processed foods as they contain better quality of protein than dried foods. Processed foods include fresh, frozen, freeze-dried, and canned foods. Fresh foods can be small bits of meats, vegetables and fruits like beef, chicken, pea, beans, peeled apple etc. Canned foods provide a balanced diet and comes in a variety of forms such as flakes, pellets, granules etc. Among canned foods flaked food is the most common food used and is best for small fish.

Pellets such as the floating ones and sinking ones are suited for big fishes. Frozen diet such as shrimp or bloodworms provide a good source of digestible protein. Insect larvae, worms, meats etc are available in freeze dried forms. They should be moistened before feeding.

Most fish should be fed two or three times a day. Some fish have slow metabolisms and need be fed only once a day. eg. goldfish. Fish need only a small amount of food at a time. Sprinkle food over the top, wet them if needed. Feeding more than needed will dirty the tank. Stop feeding when they stop eating should be the rule.