Female Betta!

[BettaGirl201]

Hi everybody,

As some of you may know, I have three male Bettas. Toby, Sushi, and Harry. I've never actually owned a female my entire life. Though, when I was much younger and owned Bettas I would call the pink and purple ones "girls".

So anyways, I am getting a female today. I've already picked out a name, and the one I want. Melody shall be her name, and her body is a pinkish orange colour with red fins (I hope nobody took her since the last time I was there!). So here are my questions:

1. When I saw her in the store, she was like, really small! Are females supposed to be this small? She wasn't even the size of my pinky finger. More like my pinky toe!

2. Does the female need to be keep away from my males, if I have no intention of breeding?

3. How long do females live?

4. Do the girls require different care, or different food? I hope not!

5. Will she grow any bigger?

Thanks alot for any help. I'm a newbie to the girls Betta world.

 

[*Fishkies*]

to the betta side of things! As this is addicting because they are so pretty.

1. When I saw her in the store, she was like, really small! Are females supposed to be this small? She wasn't even the size of my pinky finger. More like my pinky toe!
Probably just a baby yet as they are not always very old when they are shipped to the pet store.

3. How long do females live?
Bettas in general usually live 3-5 years. Many things chan change this though such as diet, water condtions.

4. Do the girls require different care, or different food? I hope not!
They will eat the same thing the males do. Just because they are females doesn't mean the don't eat betta food.

5. Will she grow any bigger?
She should get bigger. As i know my fish have grown quite larger since they were first bought at the petstore. Just be sure to not overfeed her even if she is small. This will just mean she will not need as much to eat as your male bettas perhaps.

Best of luck!

 

[BettaGirl201]

to the betta side of things! As this is addicting because they are so pretty.

1. When I saw her in the store, she was like, really small! Are females supposed to be this small? She wasn't even the size of my pinky finger. More like my pinky toe!
Probably just a baby yet as they are not always very old when they are shipped to the pet store.

3. How long do females live?
Bettas in general usually live 3-5 years. Many things chan change this though such as diet, water condtions.

4. Do the girls require different care, or different food? I hope not!
They will eat the same thing the males do. Just because they are females doesn't mean the don't eat betta food.

5. Will she grow any bigger?
She should get bigger. As i know my fish have grown quite larger since they were first bought at the petstore. Just be sure to not overfeed her even if she is small. This will just mean she will not need as much to eat as your male bettas perhaps.

Best of luck!

*Fishkies*,

Thank you for your help. Sadly though, Melody is dead. Sad, yes. I was just about to go out and get her when my friend called to tell me she was jsut at the pet store to get her Betta. She was going to get a female also. Then she told me that she had to get a male, because all the females had died. I'm very upset. Poor Melody...there isn't any otehr petstore around that I know of that sells female Bettas. Oh well, I'll just have to search out a petstore that does pr wait 'till they have a new stock.

 

[FBTgirl]

Sorry about Melody. Hope you find another female soon

 

[BettaGirl201]

A fish tale.....

_______________________________________________________________________________________

Oh, no. I thought as I headed into the small room at the back of the orthidontists building. Yes, I'm getting twin blocks next week.
Sad, I know. But lets not get much into that.

I was pretty much down all that morning because my friend had told me all the female Bettas in the pet store were...you guessed it....DEAD. Yes, D.E.A.D. Dead. I was hoping to get the small whitish pinkish orangish female I saw two days ago today. But no. She was gone.

The appointment dragged on longer than expected, taking molds and such. Finally, we left. On the drive, I suddenly said, "Let's stop by ______'s pet store." My parents were a little iffy with it, but we went. When I got there, my mom was distracted with kittens. Little baby kittens that looked like our cat. But I was too excited to get my fish. My hopes were raising, and I felt a smile form on my face.

Nope. No females. Males? Yes. Females? No. I felt like crying. Because of this, I learned never to expect things that might not happen. Since I was so upset, my mom offered to take me to ________, the local pet store. It was the one with supposedly all dead females, but I decided it was worth a shot. So we went. I went in the back room, and went to the tank with Angelfish and female Bettas. My heart skipped a beat when I saw a betta swimming around. Then, my heart sank again. Nope. This Betta was dead. I looked around. I saw another dead Betta stuck in the plant. But then something caught my eye. There was a fishy hiding behind the filter. I asked the store clerk to make sure that it was a betta, and it was. There were two bettas alive, but when I saw the one hiding I knew I had to pick her. Why? It was poor little Melody I had seen the other day. She survived after all!

Now she is shyly swimming around in her tempoary bowl. It's temporary because I'm savign up money to buy her and Harry bigger tanks. Melody is shy, but very friendly. I think she dislikes flakes though...she turned her nose up at it. Picture coming soon to a post near you!

 

[*Fishkies*]

Awe i'm so glad you got her!! I'm sure she'll be much happier with you now!!!

 

[BettaGirl201]

Awe i'm so glad you got her!! I'm sure she'll be much happier with you now!!!

*Fishkies*,

As you seem to know so much about Bettas, I was wondering if you can help me with a question I have with Melody.
Melody is VERY shy, shyer then the rest of my fish. Everytime I come around her bowl, or check how she's doing, she'll quickly swim away and behind her tree. Then she just looks up at me with this uneasy/scared look in her black eyes. I came around to feed her, and when I left she came closer to the top (because I was hiding around the corner). But when she saw me she left the food alone and hid again.

Is this natural for a fish to be this shy? I know it's her first day, and she needs to get used to her surroundings but even at the pet store she was hiding. Well, even if she just is a shy fish I still love her. She'll have to get used to me!

 

[mommyof2bettas]

I think it's natural, just leave her alone in the room for the day, and maybe she'll calm down.
It may even take a week or two, but I'm sure she'll be less shy soon.