How much sleep

[Luca Brazzi]

Does a Betta REALLY need?

For crying out loud? Everytime I come into the room, the betta is catching Z's. I would think that the Africans would be much more tired... I mean they have to constantly watch out for an attack... but the Betta?

Q: Whats a Bettas favorite saying?

A: Hmmmm... Oh... thank goodness you woke me up otherwise I would have missed my nap!

See... thats what happens when you are bored, and have nothing better to do with yourself.

The Betta is bored, so it sleeps.

Maybe I should throw it in with the Africans. Think it would sleep then?

Nah.... Ill just throw in one of the remaining (Fishless Cycling Shortcut) Mollies (1 finally died and I fed 2 to the cichlids to show off in front of company)

So what do you think? Does a Betta need 8+ hours sleep a day or what?

[Slappy*McFish]

My betta used to sleep alot, the weeks before his death...he just died in his sleep one night...the old fart.

[ChilDawg]

My betta is always active, but he is a young'un. They seem to be a lot less active with a lot less room to swim, but also, as Slappy said, they are a lot less active prior to their deaths, too.

[OrionGirl]

The betta in my planted 40 is always active. In larger tanks, they tend to be more active and inquisitive. In small tanks, well, there's not much to do, you know? Age might contribute as well, but I think space is really the issue.

[ChilDawg]

You can see that their metabolisms are much different with more space just by one interesting (bipartite) fact:

Most people who take bettas to shows keep them in small containers so as to encourage the nutritional energy of food to go into growth rather than motion. Also, if you look at a betta kept in a bowl, he's pretty fat compared to those sleek hardbodies kept in larger tanks.

[Luca Brazzi]

Maybe its the tank size (2 Gal), or it could be old. It still looks good though.

[VoodooChild]

2 gallons should be fine. I think bettas are just plain lethargic if they don't have anyone to display at. I tell my customers to feed them once every 3 days. If they're looking thin then once every two days. No ones had any problems yet and my bettas were always fine. They're just lazy. Of course I would be too if I wore pants with a 30" waist but had a 50" inseam and were ultra baggy.

[Heady]

Put a mirror next to his bowl and see how much sleep he gets THEN. :D

[ChilDawg]

I agree with Heady's suggestion, but, as with any constant stimulus, your fish will become stressed by the vision of himself or he'll just get bored. Cover the mirror every other day and your betta might respond well.

I forgot that "Mo"s tank is in the middle of a 3-way vanity, so that might have something to do with his increased energy levels.

[ChilDawg]

I suppose that, should he make it through the summer (fingers crossed...I really like that fish), I'll be able to observe him to see if his alertness status drops due to not being around his mirror image...

[TomFromStLouis]

Is it just me or do you think that a betta living out its life in a vase with plant roots is just plain cruel? I understand selling them in those tiny jars - no problem with small space for retailing - but when I put my betta into the 75 gallon tank (by himself until the cycle advances some) he went nuts with energy.

Not right away of course. He spent the first day or two cowering and cautiously exploring, but here it is a week later and he body surfs the current and swims around as much as any fish that is not a danio and is obviously happy. He has even begun a bubble nest.

My conclusion is that at least this betta is not as lethargic as the confined ones are. FREE YOUR BETTA! GIVE HIM SOME SPACE! (a well decorated 2 gallon should give him some incentive to move around a bit.