Birthday betta

My daughter LOVES fish. She's been fascinated with them since she was a tiny two year old. She will literally beg us to take her to our local pet stores just so she can go look at the fish. Now that her fifth birthday is coming up, we figure it's about time time we did something about that, so this weekend we dropped about $55 on ordering supplies. When it all gets here, we'll take to go pick out a new friend...

http://bettafishpictures.com/images/10.jpg

He's going to have a nice cushy 5 gallon heated aquarium with lots of plants and hides. Of course, Eris is still a little young for the bigger stuff, like managing water quality and changes; those will be my job, but naming him, feeding him, and enjoying him will all be her

(Okay, I lie, I miss having a betta so I'll enjoy him too, haha.)

Congrats! I love bettas. I always take a walk through the betta section while getting dog food.

Yay! Congrats, it's good to hear he's going to be spoiled and not in a .5g unheated bowl :) you should post pics when you get ît all set up ^_^

Sure will! Yeah, the internet has made it so much easier than when I used to keep them as a kid. Had my first betta in a big glass bowl that I had to do full water changes on weekly to keep clean. Pretty sure the care books I used to check out from my library were about ten or twenty years out of date, too. Teal'c still lived a good four years that way, sassy as anything, with the biggest bubble nests ever! This guy is gonna have it pretty easy comparatively though, lol.

thats a pretty looking beta fish, i remember when i had one too, i was about 9 years old, my dad had one in a 10 gallon tank with an angel fish, a cat fish and i think the other 2 were striped danios. me and my sister named the beta Reddie cuz he was solid red n color lol they are cool fish for sure. we had them for a few years.

Got the first part in the mail today. Just the tank, looks like all the extras were shipped in a separate box and didn't show up with it. Fingers crossed they'll be here tomorrow or the next day.

Update:

https://41.media.tumblr.com/d1a54bd2...bnigo1_540.jpg
https://40.media.tumblr.com/85458022...bnigo2_540.jpg
https://36.media.tumblr.com/a0f9b5a7...bnigo3_540.jpg

She’s named him Squishy Goomba, which is great because she’s five rn and she’s gonna have to live with naming it that for years to come. These pics don’t do him justice, his iridescence is such the he looks green in some light, blue in others, and purple in yet others. A very gorgeous boy!

He's gorgeous! Thanks for the update, I like the name. It's... Creative lol

Hey whatta great start!

And such a beauty as well! :)

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Lizardlicks

He's going to have a nice cushy 5 gallon heated aquarium with lots of plants and hides.

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YES! Thank you for NOT sticking him in a little glass bowl with cold water. Betas THRIVE in heated tanks that are a bit larger (and warmer!) - the colors will just pop. Here is to hoping he does well and flourishes! :D With just one fish in a 5 gal you should be able to get away with not cycling the tank before putting the fish in, so you should be good to go :)

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Spoons

YES! Thank you for NOT sticking him in a little glass bowl with cold water. Betas THRIVE in heated tanks that are a bit larger (and warmer!) - the colors will just pop. Here is to hoping he does well and flourishes! :D With just one fish in a 5 gal you should be able to get away with not cycling the tank before putting the fish in, so you should be good to go :)

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Yeah, and the live plants should help regulate the ammonia, but I let it sit for a week empty save for sprinkling in some food anyway. Water test was clear this morning so I figured we were good. His colors were already pretty delightful in the store. His tail fin looks a little beat up, but nothing time and good water conditions can't fix.

Seeing this post made my day knowing he isn't going in a little bowl or those half gallon betta tanks.
Thumbs up for you for giving him proper care:)

He got the best care we could give him, but sadly he was still a petsmart betta and only made it about a year. I would like to find someplace else local that sells well taken care of fish, but for right now the tank stands empty.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Lizardlicks

He got the best care we could give him, but sadly he was still a petsmart betta and only made it about a year. I would like to find someplace else local that sells well taken care of fish, but for right now the tank stands empty.

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Most bettas you get are going to last about that long. They have a life span of 2-4 years and oddly enough they are sort of slow growers. They are usually about a year old when you see them for sale in the store. I'm going to have to get back into them. Your post reminded me how much I loved my fish back in the day.

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Is it strange then that I've had beta's that lasted 3-5 years in my care before? idk, he always seemed kind of a little more ragged around the edges than other fish to me. He was a fin nipper too, poor baby.

I'm half way tempted to upgrade to a larger set up and start a community tank though.

Beautiful fish!
Congrats!

Do you have a water test kit?
Is your tank cycled?

I don't keep any fish I have to heat, but I've kept two common gold fish in a 50gal water trough in our greenhouse for several years. They are relaxing to watch. I break a lot of rules with them: no electricity in there, so, no air stone, nor filter. I keep the water healthy with drip jugs from above, daily siphoning of waste off the floor, and big water changes. Obviously, bettas are different, esp. with O2 levels lower in warm water, and far less air surface area in an aquarium (much less one can get away with).

Planning for shubunkin goldfish in our 350gal stock tank this spring.

Keep an eye on water chemistry (ammonia, nitrites, nitrates - etc.) until you know the tank is cycled. KGTropicals is a video channel that gives good basic fish care, although their business is African ciclids (spell?).

Sorry, I missed your post (#11) re. water test.
Looks like you are off to a good start.

Ehehe you missed the other posts too. someone necro'd this thread from last year. Squishy Goomba made it pretty far but he is sadly no longer with us, though Eris has been asking for another betta whenever we happen into the pet store.

Most (not all) of my bettas have lived 2-4 years with me. I almost always keep them in larger tanks though. I had one that lived in a planted 10 for five years. His name was Darth Betta. I'd like to say I came up with that-- but it was my mom's idea.