I'm thinking about getting a betta fish. Can any one tell me about them and what they eat?

Question

also can there be goldfish in the aquarium with the betta fish.

Answer 1

while the general belief is that betta are easier to take care fo because they only need to be in a little bowl or vase and fed very little and cleaned when you remember, this is not PROPER care for them.

bettas are tropical fish from eastern asia and are used to temps aorund 75-85F. some peopel say they live in puddles, this is untrue. they live in rice paddies (ex http://img214.imageshack.us/img214/6458/... ), calling them puddles is quite a stretch. while it is true the rice paddies are often not DEEP they are very large and the bettas have big territories to themselves. so keeping them in a bowl is quite unfit. however, finding a tank that is wider but not very tall, say 6inches tall but holds a couple gallons, would be quite suitable for a betta as long as is can have both a filter and heater.

it is easy to understand how your betta feels when kept in a bowl or vase at room temp. considering water at room temp in most houes is around 65F that's about 20F lower than they need. so think of it this way, some one is keeping you in a 45-50F closet. this closet has no toilet so you're forced to go on the floor. your care could vary depending on your caretaker, most will feed you either twice a day or 3 times a week from under the door. it's the same food every time. while your care taker is recommended to clean out your closet every three days to keep the floor clean of your "waste" you're lucky if you get a caretaker who cleans it once a week, most will clena it once a month or when they remember. can you survive? for a while, but you'll quickly be in poor weakened condition, and most likely end up sick and dead.

a happy betta lives in a 5gallon(or larger) tank with a filter and heater and a few live plants. for a 5gallon tank a tankmate like a mystery snail or fan shrimp is a nice addition that will keep your betta busy. for 10gallon tank or larger you can add tank mates like tetras, mollies, platies, or cory cats. any tropical fish (not not goldfish) that aren't agressive or fin nippers should be fine.

give your betta's diet some variety, add in some freeze dried bloodworms as a treat, and floating pellets as an everyday food. peas once or twice a month are good in keeping your betta from developing problems with his swim bladder.

males can't be kept with other bettas, females can be kept with other females.

hope that helps

Answer 2

It is a complicated undertaking I don't recommend if you are new to aquariums.. Goldfish need 20+ gallons per small fish in a warm water tank. They grow quickly in warm water. The warm water is needed by the betta. You can house them together with care. You will need strong filtration for the goldfish, but an area with low water flow for the betta to rest in. Sometimes a betta can find it hard to compete with other fish for food. Watch the fish carefully to make sure their needs are being met.

Answer 3

Bettas are siamese fighting fish that should never be put into a tank with other males, they will fight each other. They shouldn't be in a tank with other fish because they may GET attacked by the other fish. They eat betta pellets available at pet stores, they aren't real big on flake food. You will see them occasionally go to the top of the tank to swallow air, this is how they breathe, you should change 1/3 of the water in the tank once a week, they usually don't require any sort of filter or heater in the tank. Occasionally they will lie on the bottom of the tank, don't panic they are only resting.

Answer 4

Hi. I don't mean to be rude, but Debi, I disagree. You can put a betta in with other fish...just not males of their own kind. I have several bettas in my 75 gallon tank and they thrive and there are not fights. They keep to themselves. You don't want to put them in with super agressive breeds, because they will get their fins nipped off. Gold fish are great, mollies, platys, any peaceful fish. No matter what they tell you, don't just put them in a small little cup size bowl with no filtration. I would recommend a nice 10 gallon for a betta and three small other fish. (just not there own kind) Make sure you have a nice filter, water conditioner and proper food. For food, they actually make pellets that are made just for them. Walmart carries all of the supplies you need from tank to food. If you do not have access to the pellets, you can feed them regular fish food, but It is always best to give them the best food they can get. I have huge fish tanks in my home and have had fish for years. If you need any other advice, email. I would be glad to help. Good luck

Answer 5

Bettas are tropical fish from southeast Asia (Thailand, formerly Siam). The proper name is betta (pronounced bet-tah, not bay-tah) splendens. They come from water temps in the area of 78-82 degrees and should therefore have a heater in their tank. Never keep one in a small bowl, the temp fluctuations between night and day in your home will cause a lot of stress and eventually compromise their immune systems. Opportunistic bacteria and parasites will then attack them and cause sickness and eventually death. Fading color and listlessness is a sign of stress and impending illness.

Bettas are solitary fish who must not be kept with others of their species. Males will kill males and males will kill females unless the female is ready to spawn. He will kill her after spawning if she cannot get away from him. The male guards the nest and takes care of the eggs and then the babies (fry) until they become free swimming. A group of females can be kept together, they are not agressive to their own species like the males. In the wild, bettas live as long as 5-7 years.... in our "care, they are lucky to last for 2-3 years.

You should not keep goldfish with bettas. Goldfish are coldwater fish and need temps in the 60-65 degree area. Bettas are tropical and need temps in the 76-80 degree range. Both of these are farenheit.

Answer 6

betta fish are better kept alone -- they like it that way. you can have a tank of female bettas they get along together.

goldfish get along with other goldfish and minnows. if you want community fish then you need to buy just community fish. there are lots of them.

i have goldfish and bettas and the only thing i keep with them are shrimp. shrimp are fun too.

bettas can live in smaller spaces than goldfish. a gallon is good for a betta. i keep my males in divided 2 1/2 gallon tanks. bettas like lots of stuff in with them. plants -- places to hide out -- stuff like that. every betta is different though. i have bettas that love plants and some that love hideouts. you can switch up the tanks to their preferences. i feed them hikari pellets. 6 a day in 2 or 3 meals. easy. i keep ghost shrimp with mine. they become meals sometimes. ghost shrimp are 3 for a dollar so its no big deal if they do. bettas like to chase them around and its kind of fun to watch. gives a bored betta something to do too.

goldfish require much more space. and eat a lot more and poop a lot more and require a lot more cleaning. they are a lot more active than other fish and more fun to watch and come in numerous varieties. i feed mine hikari pellets for goldfish. just enough that they can eat it in a minute a couple times a day. they still get fat. i keep bamboo shrimp with my goldfish and they get along fine.

for a starter tank get something with good filtration. the aqua tech tanks at walmart are made by marineland that makes tanks that sell in pet stores for twice as much. the bio-wheel filtration the best you are going to get in a small tank.

goldfish will outgrow a small tank so be forewarned if you want to keep goldfish you will need a bigger tank or find someone to give them too. you can sell them on craigslist for a couple bucks but dont give them away -- they might become feeders.

for water in a tank i use 3 things -- a dechlorinator, stuff called stress-zyme that adds beneficial bacteria, and melafix -- its a fish tonic that works as an anti-bacterial agent if the fish gets sick or weird from the water change.

Answer 7

nooo, there can never be more than one betta or fish in a tank at a time. actually, there can but you might want to see if your betta is agressive. mine was just sorta lazy =D but you need to make sure that the breed is different and that all the fish are not agressive. they are usually content with betta pellets. i used to have one for three years but then he died. they need clean water. you will need to change the water about every two weeks or whenever the water gets just a little cloudy. you need to add betta drops to tap water or you can just use bottled water for the tank. you actually don't need a tank, just a large (one gallon is a perfect size) jug or jar. NEVER EVER starve your betta for more than two days. if you do, it will die. my betta almost died from starvation. also, this site (http://bettatalk.com/) is VERY useful!!! it will answer practically all your questions. i visited it whenever i had a question about the welfare of my betta. the operator of the site (faith) is very straightfoward and helpful. you might want to set aside about two hours and go through the whole website. she also sells bettas! (i heard they are very good) good luck and may your future betta live long!!!

Answer 8

They eat beta fish food, you can buy it in a pet store. I wouldn't put a goldfish with it since beta fish tend to become agressive toward other fish in their enviroment.

Answer 9

Look on the internet for the details on that particular fish, and it eats FISH FOOD!

Answer 10

betta's are aggressive fish, if other aggressive fish are in the tank they will pick on each other, if it is in tank with gold fish, the betta will pick on them, better to put bettas in bowls by themself.