To the First Time Betta Fish Owner
Did you notice the bettafish one of your friends had and now you think you might like one of these guys, or gals, in your life?
Like with any pet, even one that doesn't require a ton of time like bettas, you want to take some time to find out what you are in for. You know what's involved? In fact, you likely want to take at least a week to prepare just a little bit anyway before running out and getting a finny friend. Asking yourself some questions each day about various aspects of caring for crowntails and getting answers before you proceed. That’s right. You need to do a little homework to get the best outcome here. Because like better-bettas.com points out, there might be more to this betta care thing than meets the eye.
So let's take a quick looks at some of what you might want to learn during your week of discovery.
Monday Tank Set Up
While you may see these guys housed in tiny bowls they can barely turn around in, that is not the ideal situation. So while books have been written on this topic, which makes it hard to answer that one in 25 words or less, for now let's see if we can't agree that bowls are where healthy bettas go to die. A slow, cold, agonizing death. Clearly you want the best setup you can for your pet and that bowl thing is a pet peeve of mine so please forgive me if I seem to come down a little too hard on those who go that route.
Because size does matter. Just like most don’t prefer living in an efficiency apartment, bettas need the elbow room a five gallon acrylic aquarium offers. They’ll appreciate you for providing it too.
While this video is more than you need to do I couldn’t resist sticking it in here because it’s interesting to see how an aquascape is set up exactly.
Like with any pet, even one that doesn't require a ton of time like bettas, you want to take some time to find out what you are in for. You know what's involved? In fact, you likely want to take at least a week to prepare just a little bit anyway before running out and getting a finny friend. Asking yourself some questions each day about various aspects of caring for crowntails and getting answers before you proceed. That’s right. You need to do a little homework to get the best outcome here. Because like better-bettas.com points out, there might be more to this betta care thing than meets the eye.
So let's take a quick looks at some of what you might want to learn during your week of discovery.
Monday Tank Set Up
While you may see these guys housed in tiny bowls they can barely turn around in, that is not the ideal situation. So while books have been written on this topic, which makes it hard to answer that one in 25 words or less, for now let's see if we can't agree that bowls are where healthy bettas go to die. A slow, cold, agonizing death. Clearly you want the best setup you can for your pet and that bowl thing is a pet peeve of mine so please forgive me if I seem to come down a little too hard on those who go that route.
Because size does matter. Just like most don’t prefer living in an efficiency apartment, bettas need the elbow room a five gallon acrylic aquarium offers. They’ll appreciate you for providing it too.
While this video is more than you need to do I couldn’t resist sticking it in here because it’s interesting to see how an aquascape is set up exactly.
Meanwhile back to our first day assignment, actually the best rule of thumb when it comes to size is you want something you can keep warm with an aquarium heater. So it has to be tall enough or wide enough to install one safely. Because even if your house warms up into the 80’s in the afternoon it may well cool down overnight. The impact on your fish would be they would find themselves swinging from temps that are toasty like they like it to something less so. All these temperature swings can affect (read weaken) their immune system. Which means you are exposing them to coming down with more than a cold (read diseases) even if you don't mean to.
Plus having more and better quality water simply gives them more room to roam. Making for a happier fish which is what anyone would want for their prized pet.
Hmmm. Seemed to go a bit overboard. But I warned you insufficient housing was a pet peeve. Guess we’ll have to make up time with rest.
Tuesday Sexing the Fish
Most bettas you’ll find on sale are males. You can tell by the gaudy colors and flowing fins. Still some prefer catering to the fairer sex. So today you'll want to research the answers to questions like the following...
How do I know if it's a female betta? It all comes down to physical characteristics which is easier to explain this from the male point of view. Males are showy. They've got finnage enough to impress any passing female. And they tend to be more aggressive although that's not to say females aren't.
Which could lead to question “Are female fightin’ fish less aggressive than males? You should typically find that most of the time this is true. But that’s not to say they don’t still their share of flaring. They are bettas too after all.
Wednesday Shared Quarters
While bettas do not get lonely, you may wonder “Can I put two or more female bettas together in one tank?” Sometimes. And there’s even a name for such living arrangement. Sorority tanks. And the success of this depends on the fish. Some female tolerate other females. Others not so much. Mostly you want to have at least three females so a pecking order can be established. This also prevent one fish from being excessively bullied by the other.
But that’s not to say it is okay to mix a male and a female betta in the same tank. Even if you don't intend to breed them this is not a good idea.
Thursday What’s For Dinner?
Ultimately you’ll have to get around to feeding your finny female. Which may have you confused when it comes to what food should be offering Also how often? Again there is lots of info to be found on the topic of feeding, trust me. And this is where people go wrong. They over indulge their pets like we tend to do ourselves. And this leads to poor water quality and sickly fish. Generally you can’t go wrong with high quality pellets. If asked your betta would vote for mosquito larvae. But alas, I’ll have to leave the how much and the rest of this for another time however. Still getting this right is crucial to keeping your betta healthy and happy.
Friday Breeders Cup
How old should the female Siamese fighter be for her to be fit for breeding? Honestly, I’m not a fan of newbies getting into breeding. It’s like taking a 16 year old with a freshly minted driver’s license and letting them race in the Daytona 500. It can be done. But it’s just that it most likely won’t end well. This topic is another book. But here are a few more questions to raise to try to deter your budding breeding aspirations.
Is there a specific type of food to be given when conditioning my female betta for breeding in the future?
What are the signs that she is already ready for breeding?
What precautions should I take when breeding my female betta with a male?
See, that earlier question about age just scratched the surface actually. The answers to these questions and more are very crucial to the well-being of your fish.
Honestly while there are two days to go, I’ve given you plenty to think about. This should help get you prepped for your new or pending betta ownership.
Plus having more and better quality water simply gives them more room to roam. Making for a happier fish which is what anyone would want for their prized pet.
Hmmm. Seemed to go a bit overboard. But I warned you insufficient housing was a pet peeve. Guess we’ll have to make up time with rest.
Tuesday Sexing the Fish
Most bettas you’ll find on sale are males. You can tell by the gaudy colors and flowing fins. Still some prefer catering to the fairer sex. So today you'll want to research the answers to questions like the following...
How do I know if it's a female betta? It all comes down to physical characteristics which is easier to explain this from the male point of view. Males are showy. They've got finnage enough to impress any passing female. And they tend to be more aggressive although that's not to say females aren't.
Which could lead to question “Are female fightin’ fish less aggressive than males? You should typically find that most of the time this is true. But that’s not to say they don’t still their share of flaring. They are bettas too after all.
Wednesday Shared Quarters
While bettas do not get lonely, you may wonder “Can I put two or more female bettas together in one tank?” Sometimes. And there’s even a name for such living arrangement. Sorority tanks. And the success of this depends on the fish. Some female tolerate other females. Others not so much. Mostly you want to have at least three females so a pecking order can be established. This also prevent one fish from being excessively bullied by the other.
But that’s not to say it is okay to mix a male and a female betta in the same tank. Even if you don't intend to breed them this is not a good idea.
Thursday What’s For Dinner?
Ultimately you’ll have to get around to feeding your finny female. Which may have you confused when it comes to what food should be offering Also how often? Again there is lots of info to be found on the topic of feeding, trust me. And this is where people go wrong. They over indulge their pets like we tend to do ourselves. And this leads to poor water quality and sickly fish. Generally you can’t go wrong with high quality pellets. If asked your betta would vote for mosquito larvae. But alas, I’ll have to leave the how much and the rest of this for another time however. Still getting this right is crucial to keeping your betta healthy and happy.
Friday Breeders Cup
How old should the female Siamese fighter be for her to be fit for breeding? Honestly, I’m not a fan of newbies getting into breeding. It’s like taking a 16 year old with a freshly minted driver’s license and letting them race in the Daytona 500. It can be done. But it’s just that it most likely won’t end well. This topic is another book. But here are a few more questions to raise to try to deter your budding breeding aspirations.
Is there a specific type of food to be given when conditioning my female betta for breeding in the future?
What are the signs that she is already ready for breeding?
What precautions should I take when breeding my female betta with a male?
See, that earlier question about age just scratched the surface actually. The answers to these questions and more are very crucial to the well-being of your fish.
Honestly while there are two days to go, I’ve given you plenty to think about. This should help get you prepped for your new or pending betta ownership.