Betta Vase

[christineluhe]

Hey since bettas are pretty small would it be wise to keep them in a vase?

I've kept my bettas in a betta tank before, they didn't seem to happy. Then this one day, I decided to put my betta in a clear vase. The bettas seem to be more lively, but is it wise to keep them in the vase?

 

[VaegaVic]

Hey since bettas are pretty small would it be wise to keep them in a vase?

I've kept my bettas in a betta tank before, they didn't seem to happy. Then this one day, I decided to put my betta in a clear vase. The bettas seem to be more lively, but is it wise to keep them in the vase?

Dear god.
No. A thousand no's.
More No's than have ever been said in the history of the world..

Bettas need a spacious tank, minimum 15L, a CYCLED filter and lots of love and attention.
I would suggest a read up on ammonia and nitrite, as that would explain why your betta was happier in clean water in the vase than the dirty water in the tank.

 

[BethK]

Simple answer............no............it's like stuffing you in a wardrobe for the rest of your life, you wouldn't like it.

 

[kingmed]

Here is my 3 gallon betta vase, it holds 2.5 gallons of water. It does not have the plants in it at this present time. I change out the water every 3 days and the female is doing great.

 

[VaegaVic]

Here is my 3 gallon betta vase, it holds 2.5 gallons of water. It does not have the plants in it at this present time. I change out the water every 3 days and the female is doing great.

Not to criticise, but it should be ideally every day that water gets changed if there's no filter.

 

[Assaye]

Bettas need:

+ Clean water that is free of ammonia and nitrites
+ Warm water that maintains a stable temperature
+ Plants and decorations that provide cover and security
+ Space to exercise
+ Space to give them a varied terriatory so they don't become bored

Most vases cannot acommodate these needs. Unfiltered vases need to have very regular 100% water changes (generally daily) and constantly being moved into new, fresh water is NOT ideal for these fish as they thrive on continuity and stability. Most vases are too small to be heated easily or safely and too small to provide the betta enough space for exercise and stimulatuion which are essential for long term health and wellbeing.

Additionally, most vases are tall and thin which is a bad combination for these fish. As they need access to surface air a tall vase gives them a longer swim to get air. Plus, a lot of the water volume is wasted in a tall vase as the bettas want length for exercise.

Some bettas do better in small spaces for two main reasons - they are used to them, as the breeder/previous owner kept them in a bowl/vase/very small tank/jar and because many larger tanks are under-decorated which leaves the fish feeling exposed and stressed.

A 20 litre tank with plenty of live or silk plants, a small heater (set to about 27C) and a gentle filter is an excellent environment for these beautiful and intelligent fish.

Why is this in the non-splendens section? Are you keeping wild bettas?

 

[OldMan47]

I am at a loss here. What does any of this have to do with non-splendens bettas?
I am well aware of the splendens keepers prejudice on many forums for large tanks, but how about smaragdina, imbellis or any of the other wild types? Do they need the same care? They are the non-splendens.

 

[Rafael Dilone]

I don't understand why people feel a strong hatred towards betta fish in bowls. I understand that its very cramped in such a space but you can maintain it healthy and happy under lets say at least a 1.5 GAL or more. As long as you have your water readings within desirable levels. I have many betta books from TFH and it remains one of my favorite fish. I dont encourage them to be kept in vases but with very strict water changes every 3 days at the least and scooping any waste/uneaten food at the end of the day you can manage. I have one female betta in a 2 gallon high vase which is almost 3 years old now and still looks great. It is very hard to maintain water quality pristine in small quantities but if u use RO water or can afford to have such a unit even better. I use RO water in all my tanks. I have a 6 year old betta in a 10 gallon planted tank running with an Aquaclear 70 at minimum flow rate of 100 GPH and filtration set at minimum flow rate develops bacteria better. I am a firm believer in all the tanks i have to have the highest filtration i can fit with minimum flow rate that does not harm my fish. That tanks i own even with a filter gets small water changes every 3 days and the betta's i have along with the other fish have a wide diet from Blood worms, tubifix worms, krill, and hikari micro pellets and wafers, etc. In conclusion i never recommend a beginner start off with a vase as it is not something they can maintain running so well since they don't have great experience with fish tanks.

 

[Assaye]

I am at a loss here. What does any of this have to do with non-splendens bettas?
I am well aware of the splendens keepers prejudice on many forums for large tanks, but how about smaragdina, imbellis or any of the other wild types? Do they need the same care? They are the non-splendens.

Well, wild bettas need the same quality of care that a ornamental splendens does. They still need clean water, space to exercise, space for suitable decor, etc. I would argue the need for them to have more space and better water conditions is greater because they are (in my limited experience) not as adaptable as ornamental splendens.

I also made the (possibly incorrect) assumption that the OP was talking about betta splendens as she did not state the species (and "betta" without an identifier usually means splendens) and she talked about a vase, which is a very uncommon way of keeping non-splendens species.

I also asked whether she was keeping splendens or another species and she's not been back to the thread to give us more info.

 

[VaegaVic]

I don't understand why people feel a strong hatred towards betta fish in bowls. I understand that its very cramped in such a space but you can maintain it healthy and happy under lets say at least a 1.5 GAL or more. As long as you have your water readings within desirable levels. I have many betta books from TFH and it remains one of my favorite fish. I dont encourage them to be kept in vases but with very strict water changes every 3 days at the least and scooping any waste/uneaten food at the end of the day you can manage. I have one female betta in a 2 gallon high vase which is almost 3 years old now and still looks great. It is very hard to maintain water quality pristine in small quantities but if u use RO water or can afford to have such a unit even better. I use RO water in all my tanks. I have a 6 year old betta in a 10 gallon planted tank running with an Aquaclear 70 at minimum flow rate of 100 GPH and filtration set at minimum flow rate develops bacteria better. I am a firm believer in all the tanks i have to have the highest filtration i can fit with minimum flow rate that does not harm my fish. That tanks i own even with a filter gets small water changes every 3 days and the betta's i have along with the other fish have a wide diet from Blood worms, tubifix worms, krill, and hikari micro pellets and wafers, etc. In conclusion i never recommend a beginner start off with a vase as it is not something they can maintain running so well since they don't have great experience with fish tanks.

We feel a strong hatred (well at least I do), because there are a lot of ignorant people out there who just feel that they can plop a fish in some water, feed it once a day and it will live forever. Bowls do not help this at all, as they are still the major driving force behind the number one cause of captive fish deaths in the world, new tank syndrome, however in an unfiltered bowl, it never gets past the ammonia stage, keeping it in a perpetual state of pure agony for fish.
That is why I hate bowls, and if companies would put fish before profit for a change, we might be able to make a difference. This is what I do in my area of England, I go to different stores and challenge them on why they sell these items. The smaller stores have no defence, often leading with "it's only a fish", at which point I normally get thrown out of the store.

To me, selling a bowl or a vase for the expressed purpose of putting fish in it is one of the worst aquatic-sins you could ever possibly do. If you do decide to put a fish in a bowl/vase without a filter, you better make #41#### sure you do at least a 95% water change every day or I will personally take that fish off you (at least in this area).

 

[Rafael Dilone]

I don't understand why people feel a strong hatred towards betta fish in bowls. I understand that its very cramped in such a space but you can maintain it healthy and happy under lets say at least a 1.5 GAL or more. As long as you have your water readings within desirable levels. I have many betta books from TFH and it remains one of my favorite fish. I dont encourage them to be kept in vases but with very strict water changes every 3 days at the least and scooping any waste/uneaten food at the end of the day you can manage. I have one female betta in a 2 gallon high vase which is almost 3 years old now and still looks great. It is very hard to maintain water quality pristine in small quantities but if u use RO water or can afford to have such a unit even better. I use RO water in all my tanks. I have a 6 year old betta in a 10 gallon planted tank running with an Aquaclear 70 at minimum flow rate of 100 GPH and filtration set at minimum flow rate develops bacteria better. I am a firm believer in all the tanks i have to have the highest filtration i can fit with minimum flow rate that does not harm my fish. That tanks i own even with a filter gets small water changes every 3 days and the betta's i have along with the other fish have a wide diet from Blood worms, tubifix worms, krill, and hikari micro pellets and wafers, etc. In conclusion i never recommend a beginner start off with a vase as it is not something they can maintain running so well since they don't have great experience with fish tanks.

We feel a strong hatred (well at least I do), because there are a lot of ignorant people out there who just feel that they can plop a fish in some water, feed it once a day and it will live forever. Bowls do not help this at all, as they are still the major driving force behind the number one cause of captive fish deaths in the world, new tank syndrome, however in an unfiltered bowl, it never gets past the ammonia stage, keeping it in a perpetual state of pure agony for fish.
That is why I hate bowls, and if companies would put fish before profit for a change, we might be able to make a difference. This is what I do in my area of England, I go to different stores and challenge them on why they sell these items. The smaller stores have no defence, often leading with "it's only a fish", at which point I normally get thrown out of the store.

To me, selling a bowl or a vase for the expressed purpose of putting fish in it is one of the worst aquatic-sins you could ever possibly do. If you do decide to put a fish in a bowl/vase without a filter, you better make #41#### sure you do at least a 95% water change every day or I will personally take that fish off you (at least in this area).

Yes i understand tons of people hate them being in bowls and i personally would never recommend a beginner getting one in a bowl since its almost impossible with no experience to have all the proper levels in that bit of water. I have 1 female in a very large tall bowl and the water changes i have to do to keep everything perfect takes up a lot of time during the week. But i use her for breeding and keep her there until she is ready to breed in the much larger tanks. But yea even here in NYC every single fish store i been to and even the one i work in has them in tiny bowls. Its ironic when you have some of the best aquarium stores in NYC like pacific, and New World have 1000s of dollars invested in RO unit pipeline tanks and all these other expensive units but cant set a few 10 gallons aside for a few betta's. The sad truths are the fish industries just don't care for betta's as they once used to. Once they gained tons of popularity in the 90s with false "truths" it all went downhill from there. At the end of the day its all about how you treat your own betta and finding great clubs like the IBC(International Betta Congress). It is very hard to get a good quality betta nowadays but that is why i breed them at home and trade/sell/giveaway them to insure there are at least quality ones in circulation among hobbyist who care.

 

[Inchworm]

Asked and answered.