cory catfish Pygmy Corydora Help!

[Just a Pygmy Corydora]

So, I have a 5.5 gallon tank with 5 pygmy corydoras and one veiltail betta fish. And the corydoras cannot eat enough food, because Aurora, my betta, steals their food. I give Aurora enough betta pellets, but he still eats the sinking wafers that were meanth for the corydoras. The poor corys are slowly starving and they are not moving often. What should I do??? Help! I give one hikari sinking wafer a day, and two Xtreme Aquatic Foods Semi-Floating Betta Pellets for Aurora. Thanks!

[CorydorasEthan]

This happens all the time with my corydoras. Since they have such great temperaments and won't hurt another fish, they are not usually capable of competing for food with more aggressive, territorial, or voracious fish. I find that feeding the cories their sinking foods before the lights go on (maybe 10 minutes before the lights go on) and after the lights go out is best, as they can locate the food while the other fish cannot. This enables them to get their fill in without bullying from other fish as well.

I hope this helps, and good luck!

[FrozenFins]

Classic Betta Problems😆

Hugo Loves food! But he also has neon tetra tankmates, so he needs to share!

Heres what I do:

• I feed the neon tetras flake food and push the flakes down so that they sink. I then feed Hugo FLOATING pellets. He seems to not even notice the flakes.
• I've found that a feeding ring helps. Hugo wont go after food thats outside of his feeding ring. This will take a few days for Aurora to learn that the feeding ring = food.

One thing I would be tempted to try is to feed both your betta and the corydoras sinking foods. My thought behind this is that Aurora wouldn't be able to eat all the food before the pygmy corys get it. 

Good Luck! Let us know if Aurora decides to share, you may have to tell him "sharing is caring..."

[Just a Pygmy Corydora]

My betta also can eat in the dark, as he is very greedy. XD He also goes to the bottom and acts like a cory, searching to steal cory food. Poor corydoras. I took the feeding ring and water lettuce out of the tank because there is a mite/black bug problem in my tank's surface and glass. The bad thing is.... I also feed Aurora krill flakes that sink down, so he eagerly eats those, along with frozen daphnia.

Edited June 1, 2021 by Catfish_Lover_Jane

[CorydorasEthan]

Here's a thread on my situation with my pearl gourami. Also try getting the sinking food to more hidden areas where the pygmy cories hang out more so that they can find it while the betta might not be able to access it.

[CorydorasEthan]

1 minute ago, Catfish_Lover_Jane said:

My betta also can eat in the dark, as he is very greedy. XD He also goes to the bottom and acts like a cory, searching to steal cory food. Poor corydoras. I took the feeding ring and water lettuce out of the tank because there is a mite/black bug problem in my tank's surface and glass.

Try turning off all of the lights in the room while you feed so that it is very dark. He shouldn't be able to locate the food this way. More obstacles like plants or caves help as well. The cories will be able to get into small spaces (like tight caves) while the betta might not.

[Just a Pygmy Corydora]

Practically no hiding place. Also, this is an example of my betta acting like a cory. This is an old photo btw.

Edited June 1, 2021 by Catfish_Lover_Jane

[CorydorasEthan]

1 minute ago, Catfish_Lover_Jane said:

Practically no hiding place. Also, this is an example of my betta acting like a cory.

Yes I've noticed labyrinth fishes like gourami and bettas will forage along the bottom when they see other fish eating there. What might help is a log or rocks or something from the Co-Op (if I remember correctly that is your local store). Maybe the cholla wood, coconut hut, or just a piece of driftwood?

[Just a Pygmy Corydora]

Will it still be ok with those plants? My parents think its too much, but I can always buy more.

[FrozenFins]

The new decor will be fine for the plants @Catfish_Lover_Jane

I see that your tank cleared up from the green water mess🥳

 

[CorydorasEthan]

2 minutes ago, Catfish_Lover_Jane said:

Will it still be ok with those plants? My parents think its too much, but I can always buy more.

Yep I think it will work out fine.

[Just a Pygmy Corydora]

I also have a black bug/mite problem in my tank, in the glass that is out of the water, there are tiny moving, black dots, they were on the glass, surface of water, feeding ring, and dwarf water lettuce too. How can I get rid of the bugs?

[CorydorasEthan]

5 hours ago, Catfish_Lover_Jane said:

I also have a black bug/mite problem in my tank, in the glass that is out of the water, there are tiny moving, black dots, they were on the glass, surface of water, feeding ring, and dwarf water lettuce too. How can I get rid of the bugs?

I've had this problem once with one of my tanks before. I don't know how to get rid of them, as the betta we had didn't eat them. So eventually we just threw the duckweed out.

Edited June 2, 2021 by CorydorasEthan
Spelling Error

[Just a Pygmy Corydora]

I threw my water lettuce and feeding ring out, and they are still clinging to the side of the glass. What should I do?

[FrozenFins]

Try to get Aurora to eat them, it would be a nice snack

[Just a Pygmy Corydora]

=O Also, they are out of the water, like the gap between the lid and water in the tank, the glass.

[FlyingFishKeeper]

Hi, I second the idea of hardscape from ACO, although I remember in one of her videos @Irene mentioned that it can help to try to spread the food around the tank since the fish can't be everywhere at once? 

[Patrick_G]

You can try some food that spreads out in the water column such as frozen baby brine or any small slowly sinking food. You could even just feed some flake food. 
Another idea would be to make a cave out of a couple of rocks and put the sinking wafer in the cave. 

[Schmorty]

Have you tried feeding Repashy gel food? I've found that my betta didn't go for it while corydoras go nuts loving it. You can make a big hunk for the cories to snack on for an hour or two, and then remove the excess since it's so stable in the water. Since it's a big hunk (like the size of a pink pearl eraser or a 6-sided die), it's not fed in a mode that Bettas like. They like little bite size bites.

[Just a Pygmy Corydora]

Update:
I tried feeding the sinking wafers to my corydoras 10 minutes before the lights went on, like @CorydorasEthan suggested. Aurora dashed to eat SOMETHING, because he saw my hand over the lid. But thankfully, he couldn't spot the wafer, and the corydoras were still sleeping.

[CorydorasEthan]

49 minutes ago, Catfish_Lover_Jane said:

Update:
I tried feeding the sinking wafers to my corydoras 10 minutes before the lights went on, like @CorydorasEthan suggested. Aurora dashed to eat SOMETHING, because he saw my hand over the lid. But thankfully, he couldn't spot the wafer, and the corydoras were still sleeping.

So were the corydoras able to eat peacefully?

[Just a Pygmy Corydora]

I do not think they notice that wafers are food. They are still sleeping. I think they will eat soon.

[Colu]

I would try feed them hikari mirco pellets as well as the wafers

[Just a Pygmy Corydora]

Second Update:
I have been feeding them cories like that every day, and Aurora still finds 2/3 of the wafers I put in the DARK.

[FrozenFins]

At least Aurora isn't eating 3/3. Try placing several of the pellets in the tank. Yes your betta will be eating more, but with there being several pellets spreaded along the tank aurora cant be all places at once.