# the betta thread



## clownbarb1 (Jul 11, 2010)

this is thread were you can share pictures , tips , and stories from your bettas


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## igmillichip (Feb 7, 2010)

Here's a great tip.......these are great little fish to own.

second tip....... treat them with the respect of a prized Discus fish. 

Just a few philosophical points rather than boring " how to's..." and "genetics for breeding" (well for now anyway)


ian


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## jme2049 (Jan 11, 2008)

I love my lil guy. I will try and get some pics if he'll bloody keep still for a minute. I feel he is a real character with his grump face. He loves a love bloodworm too


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## ashrussell4190 (May 24, 2010)

This is my 1st betta I only got him on tuesday. He's such a lovely boy


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## wilkinss77 (Sep 23, 2008)

i think the many other species of betta need to be promoted more- imbellis, smaragdina, etc- you just don't see them, & when you can get them, they're never big enough to sex!


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## Melonhelmet (Nov 11, 2008)

I've owned a few in my life, great little fish which sadley suffer from neglect and mistreatment due to terrible advice. If kept properly however it can be a very rewarding fish to own and I wish I still had one!


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## haunted-havoc (Aug 6, 2009)

Melonhelmet said:


> I've owned a few in my life, great little fish which sadley suffer from neglect and mistreatment due to terrible advice. If kept properly however it can be a very rewarding fish to own and I wish I still had one!


couldnt agree more. my lfs sells them in 6"x4"x4" boxes filled with ornaments, as if they dont have enough room as is. every time i see someone to buy them, and the staff bigging it up. i feel i have to interject and set them straight 9/10 they dont buy them. and on a few occasions they have bought it and a proper tank for them.

my lil fella, Ken (after the dude from street fighter, cos hes red) has a 2ft tank all to him self and he loves the space!

as beautiful as they are, they are a very underrated fish. most people dont see their personalities. and yet Ken is one of my most rewarding fish


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## igmillichip (Feb 7, 2010)

I think that respect and being an 'underrated' (maybe even seen as disposable) fish is one of the biggest problems.
That's why I put my main tips on keeping.....ie be philosophical... in my first posting here.

But how do we, as experienced keepers and fighting fish lovers, emphasise the needs? water temp, pH, food etc etc is all very well, but they are easy parameters that maybe don't hit home.

My personal feeling is in supporting the notion of "keeping towards perfection" OR put another way encourage the idea of raising 'show winning' fish.
The siamese fighting fish enthusiast societies are very well established, and the history of genetics is a one of the best documented and professionally done in captive animals. 

It is when people see a true 'show winning' fighter that suddenly.....the WOW factor kicks in. 

ian


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## daftlassieEmma (Oct 23, 2008)

i realise this thread is aimed towards_ B.splendens_ but my old _B.pugnax _pair were one of the most interesting fish i've owned behaviour wise- a "drab" fish compared to _splendens_ but still very pretty in their own right! 

i've kept siamese fighters before too and lovely as the males are i found a suitably sized tanks with females to be the most interesting to watch  husbandry wise; i've noticed more than anything else people don't seem to realise the higher temps they prefer to most fish, that and they seem to suffer the same "bowl treatment" as goldfish and get plonked in containers that are far too small even by fighter standards

looking forward to pics, i know there's a few people on here who have some real beauts


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## igmillichip (Feb 7, 2010)

I agree....there are many great Betas. And some of the other species are as spectacular as B.splendens.

I read that the other species are not too available in the UK. That's a pity.
Price ranges for other Beta species over here (Ireland) range from 10 euro for a pair to 150 euro a pair. 
10 euro a pair is a give-away price.

ian


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## wilkinss77 (Sep 23, 2008)

igmillichip said:


> I agree....there are many great Betas. And some of the other species are as spectacular as B.splendens.
> 
> I read that the other species are not too available in the UK. That's a pity.
> Price ranges for other Beta species over here (Ireland) range from 10 euro for a pair to 150 euro a pair.
> ...


what other bettas can you get over in ireland? it's weird that you can get them & we can't, or at least not in sizes that can be sold as sexed pairs. sometimes very few shops can get juvi imbellis & smaragdena, but they're stupid sizes like under 1", & unsexable, so most shops don't bother.


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## daftlassieEmma (Oct 23, 2008)

igmillichip said:


> I agree....there are many great Betas. And some of the other species are as spectacular as B.splendens.
> 
> I read that the other species are not too available in the UK. That's a pity.
> Price ranges for other Beta species over here (Ireland) range from 10 euro for a pair to 150 euro a pair.
> ...


 _pugnax_ are the only other Betta sp. i've seen in shops and that was a one off! i can't even remember how much i paid but i don't think it was much for an adult pair, and added to that the aquatics section of that shop was a tiny converted cupboard :lol2:

but then i s'pose if there isn't a great demand for them places will be less inclined to stock them


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## wilkinss77 (Sep 23, 2008)

daftlassieEmma said:


> _pugnax_ are the only other Betta sp. i've seen in shops and that was a one off! i can't even remember how much i paid but i don't think it was much for an adult pair, and added to that the aquatics section of that shop was a tiny converted cupboard :lol2:
> 
> but then i s'pose if there isn't a great demand for them places will be less inclined to stock them


but i wonder why you can get the others in ireland, but not here? btw, i've seen imbellis in wholesale tropicals in london, but they were tiny- ditto imbellis & smaragdena in fishy friends in basildon- they never got them again after that, because they didn't know they'd be that tiny!


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## igmillichip (Feb 7, 2010)

I've been trying to trawl my memory of what just one shop has had in since September of 2010 (I remember that date as I got myself a superb......and be jealous if anyone wants....a metallic black half-moon male and female)

Around September to December of 2010, one shop had the following…

_Betta macrostoma. _(oooh, not cheap...I was tempted though)
_B. albimarginata _
_B. simplex_
_B. channoides_
_B. imbellis_

And, if my memory serves me, there were some _Betta enisae ?_

I am a bit pushed to rake anymore from my memory.

I was in the same fish shop up the road only yesterday, and they had in a species that I cannot for the sake of me remember (and only 10 euro a pair)

The shop tends to do its own imports and select difference sources for different fish.
The guy who did the ordering happens to be Romanian and maybe is more keen to try to get 'something different' (possibly because he also knows that it keeps eccentrics at the door  )



I think that there was some queries on killies in shops on another thread here, and ditto....I have got myself some nice killies in the past few months from shops here.


ian


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## wilkinss77 (Sep 23, 2008)

igmillichip said:


> I've been trying to trawl my memory of what just one shop has had in since September of 2010 (I remember that date as I got myself a superb......and be jealous if anyone wants....a metallic black half-moon male and female)
> 
> Around September to December of 2010, one shop had the following…
> 
> ...


do any of your shops send fish to england? ie could i order from one?


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## igmillichip (Feb 7, 2010)

@Steve.Wilkins, I wouldn't know if they ship to the UK.....although I do know that the one does major seahorse breeding and distributes them.

We've quite a small and quite newish (compared to the UK) fish-keeping community over here (I moved here about 10 years ago), but there is a nice enthusiastic vibrancy going on.
But I'm not sure that things are big-enough for being major distribution center yet.

I'll send you a PM if that is OK with a web address of a shop that has had some nice Bettas in.

ian


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## wilkinss77 (Sep 23, 2008)

igmillichip said:


> @Steve.Wilkins, I wouldn't know if they ship to the UK.....although I do know that the one does major seahorse breeding and distributes them.
> 
> We've quite a small and quite newish (compared to the UK) fish-keeping community over here (I moved here about 10 years ago), but there is a nice enthusiastic vibrancy going on.
> But I'm not sure that things are big-enough for being major distribution center yet.
> ...


yep- cheers, that will be ace. thanks.


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## igmillichip (Feb 7, 2010)

[email protected] said:


> yep- cheers, that will be ace. thanks.


I send one, but not sure if it sent correctly (I'm quite new to this forum, and not fully in-the-know of knowing if a mail was sent or not).

ian


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## clownbarb1 (Jul 11, 2010)

just got two crown tails from my lfs only £3 one is red with a white face and the other is blue and red


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## laurenkaye (May 20, 2017)

I have a beta, Waldorf, and I have had him for about 2ish years. I feed him a little over a pinch of food every 3-4 days, and he has lived for a very long time and is till living now. I have heard people say they feed betas once a day, or even twice. The way I have done it works best for me and may be good for others. Use cation when trying it though, and approach it slowly. Waldorf is quite active despite his old age, and he always has a clean bowl. 

I have been feeding him like this for probably over a year now, so I can confirm he is safe with it. Just wondering if anyone else has tried something like this.


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