what do I keep it in at home?
2006-06-28 10:55:39 · 11 answers · asked by chocolate smoke 1 in Pets ➔ Fish
Bettas may, in their purest forms, be used to small bodies of water, but the ones we see in the pet stores today are bred from captivity. Your betta will be much happier in a filtered larger tank where he actually has room to swim around. Even a nice 2.5 gallon tank is better than those little bowls the pet stores keep them in.
There are at least two reasons why pet stores keep them in the small bowls. The first is for spacial reasons. They cannot be housed in tanks with their own species (even putting them in with female bettas is risky), and they can also be aggressive towards other fish already in the tanks. The second reason is to pull the pity-strings of people's hearts, like mine. I can't stand the way those poor fish look in those little bowls, knowing that they can't swim around and that they're festering in their own feces and body waste.
If you choose to keep him in a small bowl, remember that you will have to do water changes almost every other day to keep the ammonia levels down and to reduce the risk of any fish disease (fin rot is especially common in poor water conditions).
If you want to cut your water changes down to once a week, I highly recommed you get a tank with a filter and heater, and cycle it. Your betta will live longer, and he will thank you for it.
2006-06-28 12:21:38 · answer #1 · answered by birdistasty 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
They are territorial with other bettas, and they will survive for a while in a small container. Note folks bettas don't live in foot prints in the wild. (Some times they'll get washed into them by flooding, but they don't survive very long in them.) A rice paddy is shallow, but has a lot of space otherwise.
A 2-3 gallon bowl will do if you change the water once a week. The other method to reduce the amount of time and effort cleaning. Is to shell out for a 2.5-5 gallon tank with a filter. (Eclipse makes a nice one with an integrated bio-wheel filter.) With one of these you can use a cheap plastic gravel vacuum, and a bucket once a week. Cleaning 2 betta tank takes me maybe 4 minutes once a week. Then once a month use the gravel vacuum to change 75% of the water.
2006-06-28 14:47:50 · answer #2 · answered by Sabersquirrel 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Because they are fighting fish. The pretty ones are males and have to be separated or they would kill each other. Also, they are in small containers at the store, 1. because the store has to condense them as much as they can so that they have room for them and 2. because they can live in small amounts of water. I have two bettas and I keep them in small glass vases that hold about a half gallon of water. They seem to be a lot happier in more water than what the stores provide them! Also, I put a clipping from a hanging plant in there. It grows just out of the water, no pot or anything. The plant gets its nutrients from the fish doo doo and the plant helps to keep the tank clean. Plus, the fish like to hide in its roots. That's all...no filters, no heaters...just fish food and attention. They're great!!!
2006-06-28 11:06:42 · answer #3 · answered by terrapinqueen76 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
just a beta bowl. They are housed in such small container becuase unlike most fish betas don't require much room. They are really simple to care for also
2006-06-28 10:58:29 · answer #4 · answered by MelC 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Betas are used to small bodies of water in their natural habitat. When I say small I mean elephant tracks in rice patties. Betas are in the Anabantid (sp.) family so they have what is called a "labrynth". It's an organ adjacent to the swim bladder that allows them to gulp air in order to extract oxygen, so they can live in oxygen poor environments.
That also explains the reason they are so agressive towards members of their own species. They have to be in order to cope with these harsh conditions. It's a perfect forum for natural selection.
2006-06-28 11:28:25 · answer #5 · answered by habaceeba 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
once bettas are separated at birth, hey can no longer be put together without fighting--they are kept in small containers for that reason, also the containers they are kept in "magnigy" the size of the bettas makng them much more attractive and colorful and eye-catching and also a betta only needs to be kept overed with water because they are surface breathers and go to the top for brathing.
2006-06-29 17:10:08 · answer #6 · answered by gInber 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Because Betas only require small bowls or tanks. They live in rice field puddles in Japan or is it China? I forget, but I know they live in puddles in rice fields, and since it's so muddy they don't have very good eye sight, so it's best for them to be kept in small bowls.
2006-07-05 07:19:46 · answer #7 · answered by Mark H 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
If they are put together in the same tank they would kill each other, so it's more cost effective to put them in small containers rather than a large tank for each. Just get a small aquarium and don't put them together!
2006-06-28 10:59:31 · answer #8 · answered by jdimmitt22 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
the males (usually with the long fins) are territorial and will attack other male betas.
they live in small containers because that's all they require. They could live in tank, but with no other male betas or other fish. Usually, other fish will nip their fins though :(
2006-06-28 10:59:15 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
I really don't know why they keep them in those tiny cups, I think its horrible, just like any fish they need room to swim. Wild bettas don't all live in tiny rice paddies, they live in streams and lakes too. I keep mine in a nicely planted 5 gallon tank.
2006-06-29 03:20:13 · answer #10 · answered by Nunya Biznis 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋