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NotoriousBunny — Ideal Betta Setup
Published: 2012-12-10 20:06:37 +0000 UTC; Views: 2561; Favourites: 18; Downloads: 16
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Okay, so i am posting his picture so i can explain to people how to properly house your betta fish.This would be considered one of THE BEST betta homes. At least 5 gallons. This is a 6.6 gallon petco bookshelf tank. The tank you buy comes with a different light and a different filter than what i have.
Up top i used a different light so that when im working inside the tank, i don't have to take off a huge light to get in there. The fluval fluorescent light uses less energy and lasts longer.
you'll also notice i have a heater in there....BETTAS ARE FROM TROPICAL CLIMATES so please try to keep your bettas at a temperature of 78 to 80 degrees Fahrenheit. Use a thermometer too! so you know you aren't boiling your fish!
Next i used a canister nano filter on the left of the picture. I used it because it is more efficient and cheaper in the long run. If you look closely you'll see i put plants all around the water return tube (horizontal tube) and pointed it towards the back wall to keep the water flow from blowing my fish all over the place. They arent very strong swimmers lol.
So if youre thinking of buying a betta, you dont have to go as extravagant as i did but give your betta AT LEAST two gallons! they are fish too and like to swim! Many fish hobbyists consider it animal cruelty to put them is anything less.
And you vase and plant people....just no. it can be a death trap for bettas.
Decorations should not be hard plastic, use silk plants or real plants and make sure your fish wont cut his fins if he swims by it. If you rub a pair of pantyhose along it and it catches, your betta may get hurt.
Comment with questions! I just hope this helps people because your betta should LIVE FOR 5 YEARS!!
here is another helpful article you should read [link]
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Comments: 38
That's a nice-looking tank you've got there!
The bright sand goes so well with the light green plants.
Your fish looks pretty much like mine did (love that color), but his dorsal fin was almost all blue. I loved him so much ovo
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Keep spreading the word. There are less and less people keeping feeder goldfish in a tiny bowl, and I think bettas are going to be the next ones getting the homes they deserve! I work at a pet store and I get cursed at on a regular basis because I tell people that their fish won't live in the conditions they're housing them in. Seriously, if you're getting a pet, all you have to do is spend 30 seconds googling their basic care and save yourself time, money, and heartache. The worst thing is when people get one of those baseball sized vases for a betta or put feeder goldfish in a bowl for their kid and I say "that fish isn't going to live in there, do you understand that?" And they say "yeah, it's just for the kid." I'm sorry, WHAT? You are fine with an animal dying because you know your kid is going to get bored with it, and you don't care that your kid has to go through the heartbreak of seeing their pet die? I even had this one lady who had a great aquarium where she took care of all her fish, but then she had like 10 little betta bowls around her house. She said "I don't really see them as fish friends like my other ones. They're just decoration." Ugh. Sorry, rant over. :b
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oh believe me ive had the SAME conversations and i really wanted to punch them... if anything bettas have MORE personality than most fish! double check with your manager but you should be able to refuse sales when a customer expresses that they wont take care of an animal. i fucking hate people lol
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We can refuse sales, but if they put up a huge fuss we are supposed to sell them the fish but tell them there will be no warranty and blatantly state that it's because the fish is going to die. And I agree. In fact, I just found out that those little fish bowls are becoming illegal in many countries because people keep fish in them and it's considered animal cruelty! And I agree, they have more personality than any other type of fish I've owned or seen - including cichlids. I can't imagine ever having a tank without a betta. Especially when I know I'm saving them from people who are okay with them dying once they or their kids lose interest.
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Yea. I hope they do become illegal. thats a bunch of bull shit right there.
i never noticed cichlids having exceptional personalities. puffer fish too! they have big personalities!
i do the same. i try to save them and then i run out of room lmao
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Cichlids do have a lot of personality, you just have to be around them for a while before you see it. Usually if you watch them for a while you'll just see them sort of bickering the whole time, but if you get to know them, they can be quite amazing. They're also extremely intelligent. I'd still take a betta over them any day, though. I've never owned a puffer fish just because of all the maintenance - switching to salt water, giving them a constant supply of snails to file down their beak - and I've never met any that aren't horrible nippers xD But they sure do look like they have personality. They're so goofy looking xD
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wow i guess i never spent enough time with them when i worked at petco lol we had a show tank where i refused to sell fish out of and we put in this dogfaced puffer fish and we named him Modie cause he zoomed around like he had a little motor. he never bit me but we did hand feed him. he was so smart and knew when feeding time was. he'd follow you around the tank and everything! Of course i ran across other more aggressive puffers and the wolf eel we had was a dick! lol but i so wished i could have taken modie home with me!!! he was the best ^_^ and quite goofy as well!
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Ah, these were all freshwater puffers and it's so hard finding a tank to put them in when we get them at work cause they pick on other fish so bad. I ended up putting ours in a tank with some baby arowana if that tells you anything about their aggression level, heh..
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....be careful.... "freshwater" puffers arent always freshwater. theyre supposed to be brackish
www.liveaquaria.com/product/pr…
however the indian dwarf puffer needs 100% freshwater
www.liveaquaria.com/product/pr…
petco taught me that figure 8 puffers were freshwater but when i did my own research i found that to be false. and yes they are VERY aggressive lol a customer said his figure 8 took out his gar's eye!!!
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I'm thinking of getting a 10 gallon tank and a betta with some danios. I've heard that they can live together. Is this true?
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it CAN be true. It really depends on the betta. I would get the danios first and let them school for a bit. then introduce a betta. float the cup they usually come in the tank for a day or so and see how he acts towards the danios. Some bettas really are too aggressive. I have two at home, one is too aggressive to have anyone and the other is in a 10 gal with 9 neon tetras. The one in the 10 gal actually did kill a few of the original neons but eventually when they started schooling and i added more, he left them alone
here is a youtube video where i show my two betta tanks. if you want to skip ahead one minute, i get to the tanks: www.youtube.com/watch?v=0zudAG…
i hope this helps?
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I will watch the video as soon as possible. I'm in a hotel in Burns, Oregon right now and there was some fire that messed up one of their towers so the Internet is too slow to watch videos right now. Thanks for the help.
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NO problem! and feel free to request more info! Ill even make a video and post it!
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It was a great video. I'm sure I will get a 10 to 20 gallon tank at some point. I don't really want to pay a lot so I'm keeping an eye out for a good one on craigslist right now. Just depend on what kind of deal I find.
I have two parakeets already so convincing my mom to allow fish might be a bit tricky but I should be able to get her to let me get one at some point. My parakeets love to watch the fish in my grandparents 100 gallon tank that was at our house for a while because they were moving. I'm sure they would enjoy to have a tank to look at again and so would I. I just don't want another huge one like the 100 gallon one. It was a pain to keep clean not to mention I don't do to well when it comes to trying to catch 4 feeder fish in a 100 gallon aquarium. Not to mention they have this little Black Moore that is also a pain to catch. I used to have Betta fish and they were so much easier to catch.
If I ended up getting a 20 gallon tank how many danios would I be able to keep in it if I also had a Betta in the tank.
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It depends on your filtration. You have to be careful with bettas because they typically like calm water, the stronger the filter the cleaner the water but it may stress the betta. soooo i put a tall live plant in front of where the water comes out of the filter so its not like a jet in the water. I would say in a 20 gallon tank, I would try to fit 15 danios and a betta. BUTTT never put all your fish in at once!! everyone will die lol so set up your tank and pretend there are fish in there for a week or two. then put in three... yes three lol let them hang out for another week (this whole time you'd be doing 25% water changes every week but you dont need to take the fish out to do this.) sigh i might make a video for my shpeal lol
then you could add another five each week until you have the desired amount in your tank. Do your 25% water change the day before getting the new fish. Then like i said test the betta. you might even try asking the workers at the pet store to float the betta cup in their tanks just so you can see how he reacts to other fish before buying him. I know the associates there will say anything their little minds could think up to persuade you to not put a betta with other fish but if you have a smart phone you could show them the part in my video where you see carl with the neons in my tank. BUT like i said it is very hit or miss! but out of four bettas i tried putting with other fish, two worked out.
I might also make suggestions for your tank set up if i may?
get a canister filter NOT a hang on back filter. This one here www.amazon.com/Aquarium-Rapids… is what i have on my 10 gallon tank
this is my heater: www.amazon.com/Fluval-M-50-Wat…
and this is my light (it expensive but it keeps my live plants from dying) www.amazon.com/Aqueon-Aquarium…
www.youtube.com/user/tithra33/… go on this channel and watch all her videos. especially her older vids. they are sooo helpful and educational. you really should watch them. I learned all the basics i know now from her
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Thank you very much for the information. By the way both of your bettas you showed in the video were beautiful. I will see what happens with a betta and danios. My grandpa has a bunch of danios so i will try to float the betta in his tank and see how it reacts.
Doe the danios have to school in the tank they are kept in or can they be left to school in another tank and put into the tank if there is already a betta in it? I've never had any schooling fish so I don't know how it works. The only fish I've every had was this big fat gold fish who ate all my ghost shrimp, a little catfish thing, and a betta a long time ago when I was little.
The only thing I know about fish is...
fat goldfish+Ghost shrimp="Where did my ghost shrimp go?"
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oh and thanks for the watch back ^_^
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lmaoo! the only reason i say let the danios have the tank first is so that the betta doesnt establish the WHOLE tank as his domain. Its easier if hes the new comer
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Whoa! Your betta has really cool colors! It's very beautiful. But then hold on, is that a mossimo ball?! Nice touch of the mossimo ball, it looks very unique and creative.
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yea i love it him. hes the same colors as my boyfriend's black and gold motorcycle. i named him after it, firebolt :
[link]
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thanks! he is constantly exploring and swimming back and forth all the time
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That is a GREAT looking tank and I love what you wrote. It's people like you that keep me going with this hobby. People just don't realize that a betta and goldfish deserves just as much as any other fish.
Keep up the good work!
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thanks! and thanks for your encouragement! sometimes i want to give up on people lmao
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Wow! Gorgeous tank, and Firebolt is so unusual in his colouring! (Well, he looks unusual to me, I mean, I get excited when I see white Bettas) And great explaination of how to set up a tank!
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thanks!! i saw him and HAD to have him
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Haha, I know the feeling!
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Didn't know long, small tanks looked so great! Definitely makes me want to get one aswell (and a betta too! 
Great tips aswell, I see too many bettas in unheated vases.
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me (as someone who manages the aquatics dept in petco).........so many of my customers anger me lol
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I can imagine that! People are so ignorant and disrespectful when it comes to 'just a fish'.
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yeaaaaa they diminish the fish as a species because you can read emotion as well as you can with a dog or a cat
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Exactly! It's a shame, because they're actually very curious and active, and so much fun to watch.
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yea. like these goldfish ppl who shove them into one gallon bowls
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Wonderful information and tank! 👍: 0 ⏩: 1
I have 5 Betta and, while I don't own heaters (yet.
Your little guy is gorgeous! I bet he loves his NPT
Why thank you! Firebolt loves his tank lol he never stops exploring and omg the bubbles he blows!
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