Tiger Barbs are known to eat in such a desperate fashion that it may lead owners into believing they haven’t been fed in a long time.
Fish that eat in such a fashion are called gobblers, and feeding them should require different care.
For instance, if there is more than one Tiger Barb in the tank, a single unit of food, no matter what it is, simply won’t do.
The nature of the Tiger Barb is to consume as much food as possible during mealtimes.
Also, due to their semi-aggressive nature, Tiger Barbs will normally argue over food with other fish, especially smaller ones.
For that matter, smaller fish like Danio can even become the food itself, which is why it’s not recommended to keep Tiger Barbs with considerably smaller fish.
Related:
When it comes to feeding Tiger Barbs, there can be no mistakes if you stick to the basics.
The only important aspect to be observed is to refrain from feeding them food that takes more than two or three minutes for them to finish eating.
Tiger Barbs, due to their gobbling nature and active lifestyle, can easily become obese if the proper care is not taken. So, mind the amount of food you give them.
One of the best things about Tiger Barbs is that they barely require any special treats and, as omnivores, they should devour pretty much anything you give them.
Remember to feed them once or even twice a day and they will surely do fine.
However, for a series of reasons, some foods are more highly recommended as they should help your Tiger Barbs keep a healthy and richer diet.
Additionally, Tiger Barbs are normally happier in schools of 6-10/12 so there has to be extra attention during mealtime or some of them may not get their chance to gobble something.
Read: How much Tiger barbs in a tank
So, if you’re in doubt as to what to give your Tiger Barbs, check the list below:
Foods To Feed Tiger Barbs
Brine shrimp: these tiny crustaceans which inhabit both inland and coast saline waters serve as a great source of proteins for Tiger Barbs.
They can also be served as treats in-between meals and Tiger Barbs enjoy them fresh or frozen.
Daphnia: also known as water fleas, due to their saltatory swimming style, these even smaller crustaceans can also serve as food or as treats to Tiger Barbs.
Daphnia should be quickly gobbled up, both in frozen and fresh form.
Bloodworm: closing the list of small prey Tiger Barbs love, bloodworms are actually enjoyed by most kinds of fish. However, there’s a particularity when it comes to bloodworms.
Due to their parasitic nature, it’s extremely important that the number of bloodworms released into the tank is appropriate to its size and also to the number of fish in there.
Too many bloodworms can cause infections in fish and besides the risk of obesity and even death, female Tiger Barbs, if infected, also carry a considerable risk of miscarriage.
Just like Brine Shrimp and Daphnia, Bloodworms will also be enjoyed both in fresh and frozen forms.
Blanched Vegetables: spinach, lettuce, peas, zucchini, and even other vegetables can be used to feed Tiger Barbs.
They shouldn’t, however, constitute their primary source nor be fed these too often.
These vegetables will work fine as a substitute for the days you forget to buy your fish a new batch of live prey or flakes.
Remember to peel the vegetables and boil them without adding any salt or seasoning of any kind.
Lettuce and Spinach Leaves: due to their lower fat and caloric levels, these vegetables are a great source of protein and constitute a considerable alternative to live prey.
Also, they should be easier to find and even cheaper. Apart from that, should your Tiger Barbs be heading towards obesity, adding fresh leaves to their diet should definitely turn things around.
Flakes: There is a large number of flakes Tiger Barbs enjoy. Due to their hardiness, this kind of fish will eat a large variety of food.
Flakes, however, tend to be one of the best options because they normally bundle a series of nutrients that are found in different foods.
Among the most common flakes enjoyed by Tiger Barbs are tropical, colour and even tropical granules and shrimp pellets.
Live Plants: Should you have live plants in the aquarium, you may notice your Tiger Barbs taking the eventual nibble at them.
The image below shows how my live plant looks like after a period of time, the tiger barbs are eating the plants.
While there are no known risks associated with Tiger Barbs eating live aquarium plants, they definitely cannot be the only source of food for the fish.
They normally have no considerable protein, fat, or any other nutrient value, making them a kind of useless food.
However, as Tiger Barbs like to nibble, it may be a good idea to keep a few of them scattered around the aquarium so the Barbs turn their nibbling towards other fish’ fins.
Lastly, it is of utmost importance that the diet of your Tiger Barbs is rotated. Ideally, the rotation should be done daily.
However, due to the possible difficulty in logistics, some owners only shift the food twice a week.
Despite not being the perfect rotation frequency, that shouldn’t be harmful to the Tiger Barbs whatsoever.
Now, if you normally travel and, whenever you’re not around there is no one to feed your Tiger Barbs, it may be a good idea to find a solution so the fish don’t starve.
That is considered by most specialists as the main factor for their stress and semi-aggressive fish, once stressed out, tend to become more and more aggressive as they find themselves in need of food.
A good idea is to get an automatic feeder. These devices will keep your fish fed when you are not away and can be set to deliver the food once, twice, or even more per day.
Therefore, they should be of great help not only to prevent your Tiger Barbs from starving but also to allow you to better control their diet and stop these gobblers from getting too fat.
