I bought a Betta Fish - Any good tips for keeping them happy?

[fluffpop62]

[ QUOTE ]
Put a mirror next to the bowl for some quick entertainment.

[/ QUOTE ]

I was just going to say, whatever you do, do not buy another betta for him to be friends with.

[nickey009]

They like their water on the warm side.

Keep a lid or cover on top of the tank as they can jump out. They are incredibly durable. I found out both of these points first hand as my betta jumped from it's container and was found hours later not moving and stuck to the carpet. I put him back in the water and aside from a few fuzzies of carpet stuck to him he was fine.

I also noticed that there is a post on here for a mirror next to the tank. Do not leave the mirror up all the time as it will stress him out.

As a treat I would feed my little guy brine shrimp every now and then. He freakin' loved it.

[illeagle]

I kept a betta in a big brandy snifter that was about 3/4 gallon with marbles on the bottom until I decided not to care about him anymore. Get him something like that and your betta will be big pimpin' happy like he saw on MTV.

Get that fake plastic plant out of there. Not cool man. Get a nice big real plant that reaches up to the surface where he can anchor a bubble nest.

They can actually breathe air and prefer to do so, they don't really dig moving water so they're perfect for smallish bowls, but man, that thing you have Ghengis in is tiny. At least give him a gallon to move around in.

[TiK]

[ QUOTE ]

They can actually breathe air and prefer to do so. Really no need to change their water so much.

[/ QUOTE ]

These fish are resilient little [censored]. As long as you don't put ridiculous [censored] in the tank (e.g. alcohol, acid, poop) it'll live over a year in your small tank.

[VoraciousReader]

Since OP has a cat, I'm hoping there is already a lid on the tank.

[JasonK]

Buy a few more of them and invite over some friends for betta fighting championships.

[russellmj]

Buy distilled water for water changes and you won't need any chemicals to ward off disease. Tap water will give them ick.

Activity level varies also. I had on that I often thought was dead. He would lodge himself in the plant roots and sit there motionless. The current fish is very active. One of the best I've had.

[NJchick]

Thank you for all the posts / advice. I learned ALOT from your feedback.

Heading back to the pet store to get a 1 gallon tank (with a tight lid). I'm also going to buy some real vegetation for Gehngis to hide in.

He's doing well in his betta tank that I bought yesterday and I will use that when I change the water.

Thank you again for all your help.

[Pirelli]

[ QUOTE ]
Thank you for all the posts / advice. I learned ALOT from your feedback.

Heading back to the pet store to get a 1 gallon tank (with a tight lid). I'm also going to buy some real vegetation for Gehngis to hide in.

He's doing well in his betta tank that I bought yesterday and I will use that when I change the water.

Thank you again for all your help.

[/ QUOTE ]

Make sure the lid has holes in it. "Also, since the betta obtains oxygen from the air, the tank must not be covered with an air-tight lid and the betta must be able to easily reach the surface. (Note that some bettas enjoy leaping out of tanks, so a breathable lid is highly recommended.) If the betta has no access to air, it will suffocate"

Check out the wiki page, it has quite a bit of good info. Especially stuff like no metals in the tank etc.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siamese_Fighting_Fish

[AntonHeat]

If I have a cat, should I not get this fish?