Help With Femals

[Kelso81]

After being bitten by this Betta bug and having a large empty tank I have decided to set up a sorrity (sorry spelling), I did a lot of research on here and off I went. The tank has now been running for a while with lots of plants and hidey holes. I have just rung around a few fish shops looking for some females, and have been told by one shop that they steer clear of them due to them getting a lot of bacterial infections. Now I am a bit worried as I already have three little girls, who seem happy and are eating, from one local shop and really don't want them to get sick. Where do you get your females from? I am after a green one.

 

[Jaded12]

I have a 29 gallon sorority with 11 girls and they're all as happy and healthy as can be. I've never heard of girls being prone to bacteial infections. I get my girls from alot of different places such as aquabid, petco, petsmart etc.

 

[Colin_T]

my response to the title of this thread "Help with Females"
We all need that

Good luck finding a green female, they aren't very common. Female fighters are no more prone to fungal or bacterial infections than males or any other fish. Sometimes you get a bad batch of fish and lose them all to disease but if they are healthy in the shop, they should be fine. If you are concerned put the new fish in a quarantine tank for a couple of weeks.

 

[Kelso81]

That is funny, but hey I'm female and I still need help with females! So you have no chance!
They did come from my local shop who are generally very good - so fingers crossed then.
One of them was a bit battered I noticed when I got her, but she seems to have settled in ok. They have lots of little pots which they hide in.
One thing I have noticed though is that they don't like the filter at all - I'm not to sure what to do about that.
I don't think I stand much chance of getting a green female then, as I got a yellow male a little while ago and had to travel miles. Our local shops don't really stock much in the way of rarer bettas.
I will have to post some pictures of my girls.
Thank you for your responses I will just keep an eye on them.

 

[Colin_T]

What sort of filter do you have? If it is a power filter you can aim the outlet towards the side of the tank and that will reduce the water movement in the tank. If it is an air operated filter then have lots of floating plants in the tank to prevent too much surface turbulence. If you can't get live floating plants then float some plastic plants. They will do the same thing.

 

[Bubblenester]

Bettas, or female bettas, are not well known for carrying bacterial infections... in fact I've NEVER heard that before. Maybe your LFS just got a bad batch or two. I wouldn't worry about your gals if they appear healthy.

You can try to decrease the current from the filter like Colin_T said, and I've also found that my girls just get used to it after a while. At first it really bothers them, but then they learn where the worst currents are, how to swim through them without getting swept around too much, etc. and they're fine.

I breed bettas so I just throw females in my tank as I find pretty ones in the growout tank... one of mine is also from Petco, and I have a couple that I bought off Aquabid to breed. Really I would just avoid Wal Mart (unless yours seems to take fantastic care of their bettas- I doubt that mine EVER changes the water in the cups, just lets them sit until they're sold or dead) and anywhere you go, take a close look and make sure they seem healthy.

Also, green females don't seem to me to be any rarer than other colors, so I bet you'll find one. I'd offer you one of mine but the last green one has already been claimed!

 

[Kelso81]

Thank you - your replies have put my mind at rest. All my girls are eating and seem to be getting along - they appear to all have little areas of their own. I really love them already-they really are pretty. I was also told by the same shop that all females are dull - well mine certainly aren't! I think I shall boycott them from now on.
Thank you - if you do get another green one let me know she would be very well loved - I fear that you are not in the UK though as we don't have Walmarts - only Pets at Home which I don't really like for fish either, well certainly not my local one anyway! It's sad how some places just see fish as disposable!
I will see how they go with my filter, I will get some larger floating plants to try and help, but they did come from tank with filter so they may adapt - I'll be keeping a close eye on them!