My First Fish..A Betta.. Newbie Question

C

Candy

Registered Member
Sep 27, 2004
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Hello,
My name is Candy. I am 41 years old & bought my first fish (a male betta) about 5 weeks ago. When I bought him at a Mall in Nashville TN he was in a small square glass container. The seller said to give him ONE tiny , tiny fish fish pellet a day & remove 20% of his water & replace with spring water every 10 days.
I am & always have been a creature lover!!! First of all his little home did not seem near big enough to me & one little pellet seemed not near enough food either..
First thing I did was buy him a 2 1/2 Gallon lighted airated tank & increased his pellets to 3-5 twice daily & also give him blood worms now & then as a treat!! So far he looks okay thank goodness.
But I want him who by the way his name is Conrad, to be a happy little betta. I have read on some sites that you SHOULD have an air pump in a betta's tank to airate the water...yet other sites say that betta's hate moving water. What should I do?
Also my water stays around 75 with the light bulb on the lighted top...is this warm enough? And do I need a filter for my tank or just keep the water changed & clean myself? I use spring water that you buy at Wal-Mart.
Am I doing What Is Best For Conrad???? I just love the little guy a lot!!
I really have very little idea on what to do with this my first fish experience & would GREATLY appreciate any advice. Thanks So Much!!
 
In a 2-1/2 gal. tank you could get a small filter and forget the air pump. The filter will provide enough movement for him. If you have the filter, I would change 50% of the water weekly. your feedings sound fine. In a tank that small. the light could be used for a heater(if it's incandescent). Temp 75-78 degrees. It sounds like you're doing great. Hope this helps.

Kim
 
3-5 Pellets a day is what I feed mine. I airate the tank with a small air stone. Bloodworms as a treat is a great idea, I do that also. Looks all good to me.
 
It sounds great. He must be happy with all the new room!

Bettas don't need the bubbler because they have special organs to breath from the surface, or so I've heard.

If you can fit a filter on or in the tank then I would. But it is not essential with regular water changes.

Regular partial water changes using tap water and a declorinator is the way to go.

Your feeding sounds great. I feed frozen blood worms in the morning and betta bites (flakes for the bettas in community tanks) in the afternoon.

(One thing to note, which you may have read, is most bettas only live to about 3 years and most sold for pets are already a year old, so enjoy him but know he won't last all that long by our standards.)
 
Thanks For All Your Help..And Another Question Or Two..

You guys are great to be so fast with your advice and replys. I do appreciate it very much.
of course I have a couple more questions.
What is an air stone?
Is is better to use dechorinated tap water than spring water?
Do they make a filter that is small enough for a 2 1/2 gal. tank?
Thanks in advance for your help!!!
 
Hi,

I am currently keeping one male Betta in a 10 gallon community Tank..
Because Bettas breath air from the surface of the water (If you watch him he will go to the top and open his mouth, It fun to watch :D ) I have always made sure there is plenty of airiation for the little fellow...


As regards to feeding, If you look under his 'chin' you'll see a lump, If you don't see a lump then he's not getting fed enough, but if you see a huge lump, then he's getting fed to much....

I feed my betta a couple of pellets a day, and he has stayed nice and healthy and very active, apart from his fins getting nipped by my danios :mad: So im gonna have to trade him into the LFS, or put him in a different tank...

Also I have also found that Bettas (Or any fish for that matter) should be fed a varying diet, because he can't get all the nutrients etc from one type of food can he?? Humans wouldn't survive long on pizza would they? ;) So also feed him bloodworm, which can be bought from an aquarium shop, or any other food, even prawns from a fish shop....

Hope this all helps,

Dan :-)
 
I advise getting a heater because you shouldn't have your lights on 24/7 just to keep the tank heated. Your betta need 'down time' with the lights out every night. A heater set at 78-80F would be good.
And it's good to remember that a bettas stomach is only the size of his eye. Their body size makes them easy to overfeed. I feed 3-4 pellets once a day, with treats of frozen bloodworms now and again.
Bettas are neat pets. Enjoy!
 
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