Are my fish picky eaters when it comes to new foods?

[sageSe]

I recently introduced some pellet foods into my neon tetra's diet to mix things up. He used to only get flakes from his previous owner, but I've been giving him a break from those every other day. The thing is, he's just not great at eating the pellets. He'll eat them, but it's clear he's not as stoked about them as he is about flakes. Even the Hikari vibra bites, which are supposed to look like bloodworms, don't get him too excited - although he does seem to like those better than the other pellets. Sometimes, he struggles to get them into his mouth, despite the vibra bites being "baby" sized and the others being 1mm, meant for fry. He'll "chew" on them for a bit, and if it takes too long, he'll just drop them. Since he still eats flakes no problem, I don't think it's an appetite thing - I genuinely think he's just not used to pellet foods.

I've had experience with marine animals taking time to adjust to new foods - I once had some wild-caught sea stars that primarily ate clams and barnacles, and it took them a while to learn how to hunt urchins. I figure something similar might happen with freshwater aquarium fish too. Has anyone else noticed this with their fish?

[infold]

I'm not surprised your neon tetra is having trouble adjusting to the pellets - they can be quite particular. Many animals, including fish, tend to stick to what they know and love. Cows, for instance, are all about the grass, while birds are often seed-eaters or bug-eaters, rarely both. As for your tetra, I think it's worth trying something that really grabs his attention - like frozen brine shrimp or live fruit flies. If he's hungry enough, he'll give it a shot. Given his small mouth, it's possible the pellets are just too big or crunchy. Have you considered trying newly hatched baby brine shrimp? I think he'd go wild for those.

[graye]

Pellets can be a real issue for small fish. The industry might love them, but I've lost count of how many times I've seen them just sitting at the bottom of the tank until they're soft enough to eat. And the way some fish try to eat them - dragging them across their teeth, spitting them out, and repeating the process - it's almost painful to watch.

I think the problem is that pellets are just too convenient for manufacturers. They're easy to produce and sell, but that doesn't mean they're the best choice for small fish. I've tried grinding them up in an old coffee grinder to make them more manageable, and it makes a huge difference. Suddenly, they're gone in seconds.

For me, flake food is the way to go for small fish. It's not about the nutritional content - that's not what I'm getting at. It's just that flake food is a better format for them.

[bettaMagenta]

I've found that grinding pellets into a dust using a mortar and pestle works well for my smaller fish, particularly the fry. I also have a dedicated electric coffee grinder that I use to chop up dried black fly larvae into smaller, more manageable pieces for them.

As for the pickiness of fish, I completely agree - they can be quite particular about what they like and dislike. I recently added Bug Bites to the rotation of foods I offer, but despite all the rave reviews, it's actually one of the least favorite foods among my fish.