My Female Betta

Question
QUESTION: Hi! I've had a female betta for about 1 year now. She's been acting a little weird lately. Besides the fact that she acts very violent towards her food (doesn't seem bad but you're the expert), when she goes by the heater, if she touches it just a little, she turns around quickly in a kind of freak-out mode. I'll see her touch it and swim away real quick. Just now she did that with the heater and then did something similar with the thermometer. Is she okay? Shes eating fine, I don't see any sign of parasites. (I've lost two bettas to parasites already) She swims around fine and acts as cute as ever. I'm just worried about her freak-outs when she touches the heater. Can you help me?

ANSWER: Hi Jasmine,
The heater should just light up a little, and should not light up all the time.  If your heater is always hot, then it means that your heater is not strong enough for your tank.  When a heater keeps the water stable, it lights up for a few moments, then the lights go off.  If your heater is working properly, then there is nothing to worry about.  Fish know to stay away from something that is hot, so I don't think your betta would approach it if your heater was hot.  She is probably just playing.  If you have no toy for her to go through, it may be a good idea to buy her one.  They love little toys they can go through.   Betta who are sick stop eating, this is one of the first signs of sickness.  Since she is eating well, I would think that she is in perfect health.  Be careful not to overfeed her.  Feed her 2-3 times a day in small amounts.  2 pellets, or 2 flakes for one meal.  Her tummy is the size of her eye, so we must always remember this when feeding our bettas.  Feed her one frozen cooked pea with the outer layer removed, and cut into tiny pieces once a week.  Feed the pieces one at a time to her, making sure she eats it, and that they do not fall to the bottom of the tank.  This is important.  On the day you feed her the pea, feed her nothing else, so she can clean out her system.  This way, she will avoid Swim Bladder Disease to which bettas are prone.  Daphnia is also good for her, as it helps with the digestive system.  
I hope this helps.
Lynda

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: The heater light hasn't been on in a long time because it's been at a steady temperature for months (the thermometer is in the green [healthy/safe temperature]) so it's not like I thought it was too hot, but ALWAYS hot. She only does that with the heater though so she must be playing (thanks for telling me that :D)
And also thank you so much for the info about Daphnia. I've been wondering if there were any more foods I could feed her. She's my darling! I'll buy a bottle as soon as possible!

Answer
Here is a list of foods that bettas should have:

Betta Pellets
Betta Flakes
Plankton Flakes
Daphnia
Bloodworms
Mealworms
Glassworms
Frozen Brine Shrimp
Wingless Fruit Flies  (If you do not know how to make them, your pet store may have some, or you can find out how to do this on the net.  Just put in "Wingless Fruit Flies" on Google, and it will bring you to where this is explained.
Peas

When you feed her pellets etc.  Feed her one food each day.  For instance if you feed her Daphnia on Monday, feed her only Daphnia, and the next day feed her something else, but the same food for that day, and so on.  Do not buy big quantities, as the betta is sometimes fussy when it comes to food.  Check the date on them.  Sometimes the expiry date is at the bottom of the little container.
I hope this helps.
Lynda