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| Betta's- also known as "Siamese Fighting Fish" |
| Female LFS bought.....I believe she is a delta |
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| My first Betta Male I had that paired up with the female to the right. He is a common Veil Tail (VT) bought at a local LFS |
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| Behavior of a Betta as I see it ----Males and females of this species must be seperated ! You cannot have 2 males in the same tank, but you can have more then 1 female in the same tank. Before breeding this pair, I had thought males were lazy and boring to watch, but thru alot of research and experimenting, I've found having the tanks next to each other, and the Betta's are able to see each other, they will exhibit a lively personality and will eat their food with gusto! They are aggressive eaters and enjoy the variety of foods I give them. I have them housed in a 5, 6 and 10 gallon tanks. I'm going to add on to this page ideas how to set up Betta tanks with the wish that those that read this will take these ideas seriously. I know many stores sell their betta's in tiny cups, giving the consumer the idea that this is an ideal set up for Betta's. The myth is that betta's do not need space and heat. That they live in puddles in the wild. In the wild, Betta's originally lived in ponds, ditches, sluggish streams and rice paddies. Nature forced this on the Betta. Those betta's had a dirty greenish brown color and fins just big enough to allow them to swim. Many years later, thru selective breeding, we now have beautiful, long finned fish So the stores sell betta jars, betta vases and betta bowls. Many people write into Badman's, Fishinthe.net and many other message boards with the sad stories of how miserable their betta's are and the downward spiral to poor health. I don't blame the people, for once I too was naive and didn't do any research. I too once had my Betta in a vase with a plant and seen what that envirornment had done to him. After watching him lose interest in life (as seen by my family and myself) I put him into a 2 gallon, filtered tank with a few plants. He began making bubble nests!! Most Betta owners will tell you that if your betta is making nests, then he is a happy, healthy Betta. For the most part, I agree with them. A couple of months after moving the Betta I felt he needed more space, so I put him in a 6 gallon hex and then bought a female Betta to put in the 2 gallon. I placed the tanks side by side and from day 1 watched 2 very beautiful Betta's interact with eachother thru their glass. It was amazing, intertaining and satisfying to say the least! With all the new and beautiful nests the male was making, I then had the idea of mating them. Not because I wanted money from the offspring, but because I wanted these 2 wonderful fish to have the chance to do what is natural for them. To breed and have a chance of parenting. After their breeding I moved the female in a 10 gallon tank and discarded the 2 gal. because in my opinion, a 2 gallon is just too small for this fish! My advise to anyone acquiring a Betta is to have the min. of a 5 gallon tank (per betta). Plant the tank! Have a cave or 2, and add a couple of snails ( applesnails of the brig species is wonderful to add) to keep them company! If you've room, have a couple of tanks side by side with another Betta so they can see eachother and flare, tease, stalk, build nests, and best of all, have something to keep them happy and interested in life!!! I have found all types of plants are accepted gladly by bettas. Even java moss thrown in the tank all balled up will give him something to play in! They love caves to poke in and out of. They amuse themselves with the snails. Some betta's are too aggressive to be with any other live fish/critter, but most appreciate the company. If you're looking for a happy Betta, these simple additions to their tanks will give you hours of enjoyment when you see them interacting in their tanks like they would in the wild. Betta's are NOT lazy fish like you see in the stores, they are very active, inquisitive fish and love to play their games. Below is a male and female I kept from the first spawning at 16wks of age. |
| Betta Splendens Origin- Thailand & Malaysia Average life span 3-4yrs Average Adult size 3" Their PH and dGH has a broad range of acceptance. The key is to slowly acclimate the Betta to your water when he/she is brought home. Recommended minimum tank size 5 Gallons and planted |
| Food: I feed my Betta's live blackworms and brine shrimp and frozen bloodworms and brine shrimp. Sometimes flake food is accepted. |