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Balanced Nutrition for Fish

Fish like all animals require food.  The food they eat should contain all the ingredients necessary for healthy growth and welbeing.  Too often, owners give only one type of food to fish.

This results in deficiencies which result in stunted growth and other abnormalities.

Healthy fish should be vigorous in motion, bright-colored with proper proportions.  Examine your fish regularly for any signs of poor nutrition.  
To provide proper nutrition, it is first necessary to understand the dietary habits of fish.  Some fish are carnivores (meat-eating).  Some are herbivores (plant-eating). While most fish are omnivores (eating both plant and animal food).

Carnivorous fish need a protein based diet. These include dried worms, shrimp, etc. Herbivorous fish require plant-based food.  Examples are Spirulina, peas, etc.

Hence, try to find out the natural food for the fish you keep.  There are different types of foods available in the market.  If you have a community aquarium, it is best to add a mixture of animal based and plant-based food.

Adding natural plants to the aquarium gives a source of food to herbivorous fish.

Another reason for poor nutrition among fish is the wrong of choice of type of food.  Fish food can be broadly categorized into floating food and sinking food.

Choose the type of food depending on the fish you have.  Surface floating food will not be accessible to fish living the middle regions or in the bottom.  These fish will become malnourished.  Sinking food which slowly sinks to the bottom gives a chance to these fish to have food.

Hence, provide a combination of floating and sinking food to your fish.  Ensure that the food are in proper size.  Small fish with their small mouths cannot handle big chunks of food. These fish will go hungry.