Harlys And Cherrys

Hope this works. Poor pics but best I can do

They look nice fish  I'll bet you're glad to finally have some thing live in the tank - well alive and big enough to see 

Some species settle in straight away, others take a few days. Give the harlies a bit of time. You'll probably find that both of them get more colour as they settle in.
They've been through a series of traumatic experiences - shipped to the shop, put in a tank where they get stared at with nowhere to hide, and every so often someone sticks a net in and chases them round. These particular ones were caught today and put in a bag, then into a strange tank with water that'll be slightly different from where they were (even of the shop was next door). It's not surprising that fish are a bit stressed when they get to the new owner's tank.

Oh wow, now those are nice looking fish.   

Is it best to just feed once a day?

Either once or twice, but if you feed twice use half the amount of food each time so the total amount per day is the same. I do realise it's next to impossible, but try to feed the same amount of food per day that is the same amount as one eye per fish. A fish's eye is about the same size as its stomach.

Feed a variety of food. The main staple should be flake or pellets (that is, commercially prepared dry food). They are designed to have all the nutrients a fish needs. If they keep spitting pellets out and trying again, soak them in a bit of water before putting in the tank.
Live food, or frozen live food, can be fed as a once or twice a week treat instead of flake. Frozen is safer as it kills any bugs you can get in alive live food. Bloodworm, brine shrimp, daphnia should be available as sheets of cubes in a freezer in most shops. The cubes go a long way. For the fish you have at the moment, cut a cube into four and defrost a quarter in some tank water before feeding. Dried live food is available but this should definitely be soaked before feeding to rehydrate. Dried has less nutrients that frozen or alive because the drying process destroys a lot.
And peas once a week. Microwave a few in a bit of water or save some from your meal (unless you cook them with a lot of salt). Squeeze the insides out of the skin and chop up or mash till the pieces are the right size for the fish's mouths. I feed peas the day before I do a water change so I can get out any bits left uneaten before they decompose. Even carnivores go mad for peas 

Quote from: Andy M on June 19, 2013, 07:54:22 PM

Is it best to just feed once a day?

Either once or twice, but if you feed twice use half the amount of food each time so the total amount per day is the same. I do realise it's next to impossible, but try to feed the same amount of food per day that is the same amount as one eye per fish. A fish's eye is about the same size as its stomach.

Feed a variety of food. The main staple should be flake or pellets (that is, commercially prepared dry food). They are designed to have all the nutrients a fish needs. If they keep spitting pellets out and trying again, soak them in a bit of water before putting in the tank.
Live food, or frozen live food, can be fed as a once or twice a week treat instead of flake. Frozen is safer as it kills any bugs you can get in alive live food. Bloodworm, brine shrimp, daphnia should be available as sheets of cubes in a freezer in most shops. The cubes go a long way. For the fish you have at the moment, cut a cube into four and defrost a quarter in some tank water before feeding. Dried live food is available but this should definitely be soaked before feeding to rehydrate. Dried has less nutrients that frozen or alive because the drying process destroys a lot.
And peas once a week. Microwave a few in a bit of water or save some from your meal (unless you cook them with a lot of salt). Squeeze the insides out of the skin and chop up or mash till the pieces are the right size for the fish's mouths. I feed peas the day before I do a water change so I can get out any bits left uneaten before they decompose. Even carnivores go mad for peas 

And i was just going to use flake 

I will mention it next time i go, will have to be couple of weeks for more fish

I'm really glad you got the fish. My male Cherry Barbs have turned an incredible shade of cherry red, but it's taken them six months. Remember, too, that you fish are still very young. They tend to colour up as they get older.

Probably. Harlies are not known for being aggressive. They are even on the list of possible tankmates for a betta. Keep an eye on them and see if it settles down in a few days.