Betta Beginner..

[pokemonmastah]

Yo Everybody!!

Here's the thing: My friend gave me a blue veiltail betta for my birthday. It's doing good so far, but I'm planning to get him a 5 gallon tank, and I wamt to put some live plants in it.. What plants do you guys recommend? It the 5 gallon tank suitable for the little guy? Anyway, more advice about bettas could also help..

Thanks to evebody who'll help!

 

[Athena]

Not sure if your gallons are based on US or UK gallons - but my male Betta is in a 6 UK gallon tank and that is plenty of space for him. The tank size is a 12inch cube. If you are thinking of getting similar then, yes, that will be fine.

Don't forget that your Betta tank will also need a heater and a filter - you can get small ones that are ideal for the smaller tank.

As for plants, I'm not sure if Bettas prefer any particular plants - I do have a small mixture of plants in mine with him. Maybe someone else on here might know whether Bettas have any preferences.

What have you been feeding him on? They love brine shrimp, bloodworms and daphnia (fresh or frozen).

What is your Betta living in at the present time?

 

[pokemonmastah]

Hi Athena! Thanks for your reply...

The 5 gallons I'm talking about is in Us Gallons by the way.. Hehe..

I'm feeding him pellets that came with the betta my friend gave me. I bet they're regular fish food pellets..

Sadly, he's in a 1 gallon aquarium right, which I think is really small for him right now...

 

[Athena]

Hi - yes, you're right - that 1 gallon tank is way too small. It's ok as a temporary measure but the sooner you can get him into a bigger tank the better (and kinder) it will be to him. I know that some places sell Bettas as a kind of ornamental thing, in a vase or glass ball etc - but that really is quite cruel to the fish. There are also tiny display tanks which, again, are not suitable as a permanent home for a Betta.

I'm glad that you are going to buy him a larger tank. He'll be so worth it. They are wonderful fish with real personalities and the more time you spend in his company the friendlier he will become and get excited when he sees you approach the tank and you should be able to hand-feed him soon enough (if the thought of handling the likes of bloodworms is a bit revolting to you, do what I do and use a pair of tweezers - but mind the tweezers don't actually go into the water as your Betta may accidentally knock his mouth on the sharp edge and hurt himself. I hold the tweezers just above the water surface and dangle the bloodworms in and he gulps them down).

Anyway, all the best - Athena

 

[tibby25731]

Haha, I started handfeeding my Baby, and it was going great... but then he got extra greedy and started biting me! I am putting my fingers nowhere near that fish now... maybe I should rename him Jaws?

 

[pokemonmastah]

Hi tibby25731!! Nice to hear about your experience.. *laughs*

Hmm.. I'd also like to ask about what kind of filtration system should I use, and if its advisable to give my little guy some tankmates.. I'm thinking like Harlequin Rasboras or maybe Corydoras?? Just a thought.. But if it isn't gonna work, then it's fine with me..

 

[Athena]

Haha, I started handfeeding my Baby, and it was going great... but then he got extra greedy and started biting me! I am putting my fingers nowhere near that fish now... maybe I should rename him Jaws?

Another reason I use tweezers! Otherwise you give them a choice of a plump finger vs skinny bloodworm and no doubt the greedy guts aims for the largest offering! I bet those fish must think it's their lucky day seeing such a huge "worm" in the tank!

 

[Athena]

Hi Pokemanmastah

To be honest, I wouldn't really chance putting anything in with your Betta. They can be so temperamental with other fish. I know there will be some who say they keep x, y or z with their Betta, but on the whole Betta's do very well on their own, especially as you are only getting a 5 gallon tank.

If you were to put any other fish in with him, what would you do if they did not get on? Would your LFS allow you to take the other fish back?

As for a filter - well, why not firstly see if you can buy a complete set up - there are 5 gallon tanks that come with all the necessaries - filter, heater, lights, hood etc. If you tell your LFS what it is you want they should be able to order one in for you if they don't have any in stock. Or you could check on Ebay - or other online aquarium stores. Shop around and see who is offering the best price before you purchase anything. If you can find one that comes with everything, that makes life all the easier and often works out cheaper that way.

Just my thoughts, anyway.

Athena

ps - just wanted to add that when you get the filter going, don't have it at full blast - turn the valve down so that the water isn't gushing from the outlet - just have it so that it's a soft trickle - reason being that Betta's are happier in calmer water with not too much noisy turbulance.

 

[pokemonmastah]

Oooh.. I see, I see.. It was just a thought.. Hehe.. But now that you cleared that up, its fine with me.. I just thought that my betta would like a tankmate, but its fine.. Hehe..

Thanks for your advice about the purchases.. I'll keep those in mind when I go around hopefully tomorrow..

 

[Zafirah]

A 1 gallon is perfectly fine for permadent basis, although the 5 gallon is indeed better, a 1 gallon is the minimum and works just fine. Their is no need to go out and buy a 5 gallon for every fish that comes in. I would personally go without a filter unless you can find one with a VERY VERY slow current. If you are willing to clean the 1 gallon 3x a week and a 5 gallon 1x a week, then their is no need for a filter.

 

[Phoenixbaby]

u can get a fluval 1 plus for a tank that size and it will be fine

also i would not add any tank mates, a tank that small just wont suffice

 

[pokemonmastah]

A 1 gallon is perfectly fine for permadent basis, although the 5 gallon is indeed better, a 1 gallon is the minimum and works just fine. Their is no need to go out and buy a 5 gallon for every fish that comes in. I would personally go without a filter unless you can find one with a VERY VERY slow current. If you are willing to clean the 1 gallon 3x a week and a 5 gallon 1x a week, then their is no need for a filter.

Hmm.. About the cleaning, would it be 100% water change or 50%?

Thanks Zafirah and Phoenixbaby!

 

[Zafirah]

If you clean it every day, do 50%, but do 100% every3 days.

 

[ReMz]

You're life would be much easier with a 5gal with a low current filter. big tank = more overall enjoyment for you and the fish. rock the 5 gallon if you can . plus changing water SUCKS

tank mates are fun in theory and everyone wants to see their betta swimming around with other fish. the truth is that they are temperamental and they dont "need" tank mates. In a small tank, you might as well forget about it. If you do choose to have tank m8s, have them in the tank prior to the betta. I only recommend suckers tho.... and by suckers i only recommend ottos due to my success. you need a larger tank for any sort of tetra etc, and i would highly advise against trying that.

Best of luck. I'm sure your betta thinks 1 gallon is ballin' right now. Get the 5 gallon and set it up nicely. You will have the happiest better ever.

 

[blue_betta]

u can get a fluval 1 plus for a tank that size and it will be fine

also i would not add any tank mates, a tank that small just wont suffice

if you use a fluval one, get a spray bar for it too, i had a fluval one a while back and if i remember correctly, it has quite a powerful flow and its flow cannot be adjusted. spray bars look good and correcly placed will dissapate the flow almost completely.

as for plants. soft and frilly are popular with betta. comboba, elodea and hygrophilia are all good. and floating plants are always nice, ricca, java moss, duckweed, water lettace, amozon frogbit. betta like things to hide in too.. a coconut shell or some small terracota plantpots are allways appreciated by them