any gourami can go in a betta bowl

[~*LuvMyKribs*~]

i heard all the dwarf gouramies at common pet stores are males? and that they dont let females into the market so people cant breed them?

errr
thats what i heard please spank me if im wrong

hehe

 

[Lazersniper]

I think alpha is correct in his assumption. When fish stores get their shipments of fish, sometimes they get a few fish in the same bag depending on size and what kind it is. As for bettas none are shiped in the same 'unit'. I don't think that the intention of breeders were for bettas to 'live' in these small spaces. The little 'shot glasses' were probably meant as a means of safe transportation. Due to the fact that stores can't put them all in a tank they just throw the units on display.

IT's the morons that came up with the ideas 'hey these are cool looking fish.. they would make a great desk ornament' that turned it into what it is today. Gourami just don't have the appeal that betta do to the public otherwise I'm sure they would be right up there with bettas. As was stated before there is also a size difference.

Simply put these fish weren't suppose to be put in these conditions but due to un-educated advertising/people they are.

So yes... you could put any fish into an environment it isn't suppose to be in... it's just a matter of how long/well it will live and whether or not you yourself would be able to do it.

 

[dwf73]

I dont know what the big deal is- I keep a silver arowana in a bowl on my desk at work, at around 20 degrees. No problems so far

 

[yonderway]

Originally posted by alphabetta
Wow..thanks for pickin apart my post ...:sad

Hey I didn't pick it apart. Didn't you see the smiley?

And wtf is a festae?

festae

 

[yonderway]

Originally posted by ~*LuvMyKribs*~
i heard all the dwarf gouramies at common pet stores are males? and that they dont let females into the market so people cant breed them?

The worst lies are the ones that contain an ounce of truth. Don't always believe what you're told (unless I'm telling you heheh)

In full truth, most female dwarf gouramis are nowhere near as spectacular as their male counterparts. Some LFS's used to require you to buy them in M/F pairs but customers spoke loud and clear, so LFS's started telling their suppliers they only wanted males.

So you basically can't get females because 90% of fish keepers aren't interested in breeding and there is just no money in the pet industry for offering them.

 

[greenterrorrr]

I think the reason bettas can be kept in a small bowl is that their natural habitat is small pools of water in rice paddies. "To fully understand their needs it is important to become familiar with their native habitat. Bettas originate in the shallow waters in Thailand (formerly called Siam, hence their name), Indonesia, Malaysia, Vietnam, and parts of China. They proliferate in rice paddies, shallow ponds, and even slow moving streams." (http://freshaquarium.about.com/cs/anabantids2/p/betta.htm)
Bettas are able to survive in such environments. I'm not saying you should neglect water temperature or water condition but I don't see much problem with such environments. I don't think they should be kept in an ounce of water nor do I think one male betta needs more than a gallon of water to be fine.

 

[Lazersniper]

Rice patties are huge. Usually at least a few acres to one person. Many people usually have patties in the same areas. making it much bigger. Asians main food source is rice, so the rice patties are very very large. The only thing is they are usually shallow, usually knee deep or less, but no less then mid-lower calf. So by no means are these 'small pools of water' just shallow. I am asian with family still in those areas so I do know what it's like.

 

[Lazersniper]

I"m sorry if my last post sounded like I was an azz but I didn't mean to offend anyone. For further clearification, it's not like farms that you see around here were they're dry land with some 'pools' of water due to rain or moisture. These patties are like very large shallow ponds/lakes.

 

[TKOS]

As was mentioned before any fish can survive in a bowl double its size for short periods of time.

I for one have never had a betta live over a year in anything 1 gallon or less. But my betta in his own 5 gallon planted and heated tank has been going strong for just over a year now.

And yes, while rice paddies can dry up during periods in the year, for the most part they are kind of like a big swamp with a constant water flow to them.

 

[Wippit Guud]

Hmmm... going off the labrynth area... what about mosquitofish? They breed in ditches and stuff. Or maybe small minnows? Although I think the latter would be too active to live long in a bowl.