Why do people keep their beta fish in such a small bowl? It seems cruel to me.?

Question

It seems cruel to me. The fish can't even swim around. They take them home from the pet store and keep them in the same small bowl. Pet owners should educate their customers.

Answer 1

You are right, the small cups and tiny bowls often used fr display of Bettas in shops makes a horrible home for a Betta. It is a fact that those cups and bowls were never intended to be a long term home for the Betta, just a holding place until it is sold which is usually less than a week if the store orders correctly.

It would be nice if stores would educate people buying Bettas, but that would require the stores to be educated and that's not the case in too many stores. Really, it's up to the buyer to educate themselves and too many will not do so. All you need to do is look at some of the answers you have gotten before mine to see how many people don't bother to educate themselves about Bettas.

While a Batte CAN be kept in a 1/2 gallon bowl and most breeders like myself find that to be the best way to handle large numbers of Bettas, a filtered and heated tank is certainly far better for the typical pet Betta owner.

MM

Answer 2

Half of these people dont have the slightest idea of betta keeping. It is clear that they didnt do their research because if you googled "proper betta fish care" you would get the correct answers in under 5 minutes I`m willing to bet.

Bettas are living, breathing creatures and it is their right to have a decent enclosure, a tank, not a half pint bowl. They are carnivores, meaning they do NOT eat the roots of plants, but what they are really eating is the bugs that live on the roots. They need to be fed betta food plus have it supplemented with frozen brine shrimp or bloodworms every other day. They also need a filtered and heated environment.

Answer 3

Do not let anyone tell you that bettas live fine in small bowls and cups, or that they feed off the roots of plants. They do not. They are carnivores - they will benefit from small amounts of vegetable matter, but they NEED meat. And the water in a small bowl or cup gets too dirty too quickly to be healthy. Plus, bettas are tropical fish. They need their water at least 78-82 degrees F to be healthy. Lower, and they will be stressed and more prone to disease.

If I were a breeder, here's what I'd do. I'd get a bunch of those plastic cage-like boxes that they sell with strawberries and other small fruits (see link). I'd string those together and float them at the top of a 75 gallon tank, and I'd keep my bettas in those, so that they benefit from the greater volume of water, the stable temp, but they can't get at each other.

I have floated bettas in smaller containers in my community tanks, so that they got the temperature control from the tank, and daily, I'd change out some of the water from their bowl with fresh water from the tank. That works well also.

Answer 4

it is cruel.
bettas, as all fishes in the gourami family are intelligent and curious fishes which - given a large enough tank - not hang around in their territory but like to discover the whole place, watch the bubbles in the co2 reactor, swim into all caves just to see what's there.

in a small tank they have no chance to do it.
bettas aren't as cruel as many people think they are. in fact they are much less aggressive than ram cichlids, they just defend their territory and if their tank is so small, no wonder accidents happen.

you can even keep two male bettas in a large enough tank without them killing each other and they definitely let other fishes alone, even the spike tailed paradise fishes even though they look almost like bettas.

Answer 5

In the wild, bettas have small territories.
I agree, this small bowl thing has gotten a bit ridiculous.
I'd say 10" by 10" smallest.
Bettas kept in a large tank will choose an area to stay in.
It's just because they are territorial.
Some people say they live in tiny puddles of water but that's
b.s.
They could survive in one, but that's not their natural habitat.
They live in big lakes or ponds, and stick to thier own "turf".
They don't need air bubbles in thier tank because they can breathe air instead of getting it from oxygen in the water, created by air bubbles.

Answer 6

Why do so many people think that they dont' need much room? Because none of these people did any research
Here is actually a pic where these cute and nice fish live
http://www.cultureshocktherapy.com/pic/id/rice_paddy.jpg
Would you call that a small living environment?
I don't, I think that's actually huge
And betta's can live with other fish for a fact, here is a compatibility chart if you don't believe me
http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm?cls=16&cat=1918&articleid=2200


Well done
EB

Answer 7

I think a 5 to 10 gallon tank would be good. They arn't very active fish so not much space is needed. But I'll tell you one thing..the bags that betta fish are shipped in are really sad. There is barely enough water to survive...and they cant even move.

Answer 8

good point, but you must understand why they do it.

i feel that i explain it fully on my betta site.

http://bcaquatics.com/bettahousing.aspx


Frankly, while if you only have 1-5 bettas u want to give them the most room possible, and thats fine.

But when you become a breeder you will understand. When you have 500-50000 bettas you will uderstand that you can put them all in 10 gallons.

Personallu i keep bettas in bowls, but i give them the best care. I find that it would rather have a betta in asmaller tank with the best care, than someone who gives them a large tank and doesnt know how to care for it,

I would take care anyday.

Answer 9

Betta's prefer small tanks to live in.

2N!$H

Answer 10

Beta fish are very aggressive I have owned several of them over the years. They are very aggressve to other fish and other fish like their beautiful colored fins .. looks like a fishing lure. So it is not as cruel when you think of the safety of both parties of the fish. When introducing a female Beta to the male the male will blow a bubble nest in preparation for taking care of the eggs that he squeezes out of the female he litterally squeezes her to death and takes the role on as the the mother to the babies. It is timing when to take the babies out and seperate them becsuse the male will eat them as well.