mirrors?

[tony92]

is it ok to put a mirror up to your bettas tank every once in awihle, ive heard mixed comments on that so i wasnt sure

 

[MAM]

personally, i say yes. since most people keep their bettas isolated, i feel its good stimulation for the betta to see another one and get that chance to flare. doing this constantly wouldn't be a good thing, but every now and again i see no harm.

 

[GuppyDude]

i do it for my betta once in a while to gte a lil exersise, i notice that he seems alot more helthy when he's had a good flare

( and also, u probably heard about flareing being stressful from someone talking about haveing a mirror up to the tank for an extended period of time, thats not good )

 

[BettaMania]

i usually put my betta up to a mirror everyday for like 2 mins

 

[juliethegr8t]

In the wild, male bettas do encounter others of their species, so it's obviously natural for them to flare. They get a chance to spread their fins and act the big "macho man", so I think it's good for them. Of course when the mirror is removed they think they "won" too... so it's a little esteem boost.

 

[Joepmaster]

To my personal opinion using a mirror to "train" your fishes is very good. However off course don't use this constantly...... 2x 10 minutes a day is more than enough to keep your bettas in good condition and shape.

Greetz from the Netherlands,

Joep

 

[Joby]

Tried putting a mirror up to my male Betta that I got on Thursday but he ignores it

He does however flare at us if we sit and watch him for a couple of minutes and usually if I'm wearing my lovely dark green fleecy jumper!

Does this mean he wants me to go away and leave him alone or is he flirting with me

 

[Apache]

Glad to see this thread, as I was curious about this for our boys... I will start abit of "mirroring" on occasion to keep everyone active and happy.

Funny thing, the male that's by himself, flared like nobody's business, very impressive. The other male that's in the community tank, didn't flare and actually avoided the mirror! Is it because the bachelor betta has a bubble nest and wants to defend it (although it's empty, just bubbles), and the community betta doesn't? Or are they just different personalities?

 

[SnowyzMom]

I have got to try this mirror exercising bit on Jack Sparrow. Mind you, he flares and shows off everytime I come near the tank. He associates me with food. Just like my dog, cats, horse and husband always have! It's what my mom called "cupboard love"...they're only in it for the food. Just kidding guys. Sorta. Jack seems to natural flare and show off as he swims madly all over the 5 gallon trying to get me to feed him every 5 minutes anyways. But I'm gonna try the mirror bit! Thanks for the idea.