Please take it easy on me as I am a first time beta owner. I have a 6.5 gallon tank and a 25 W heater. Everything in the tank besides a seashell with a plant in it is fake. I'm feeling extreme owner guilt because I feel like I should be having More life plants and or other things.
He lives in my office as I am a special education teacher with students who wanted a class pet. I'm slowly realizing that I'm fully invested and want to be a better Betta fish owner.
Please let me know what I can do to better his life and or the right things to care for him. This is day two for him and his new tank yesterday I put tetra Aquasafe in his water.
Thank you,
Maria & (Dorito)
https://www.reddit.com/gallery/1qpevz1
Posted by LopsidedExperience84
2 Comments
https://www.reddit.com/r/bettafish/s/4DK9b8gzlW
Since he has longer fins he’ll probably feel more seure in a smaller tank; at least that’s my experience. You can get him a 5 gallon or larger (5 gallon is the minimum tank size). I have a really nice 5 gallon tank (the Top Fin® 5 Gallon Shrimp & Plant Aquarium from Petsmart) that comes with a filter and uv light and lid. It’s more of an aesthetic tank, but if you don’t care about looks and just want a suitable tank the Top Fin® Essentials Aquarium Starter Kit is for half the price (35 dollars!) and also includes a filter, uv light, and lid as well as a thermometer.
Things you NEED to buy:
-Heater…my favorite is Aqueon® Preset 50W Submersible Aquarium Heater
-Thermometer…my favorite is Imagitarium Glass Thermometer, Small
-Filter…filters included in the tank kits are fine but I like sponge filters more, just make sure the current it creates is very low since bettas find it easiest to swim in near stagnant waters.
-Plants…I highly recommend live plants as they help control the water parameters and make your betta feel more safe. Some of my favorites are anubias and dwarf hairgrass, you can do research as to which plants you like the most. If you do go the fake plant route, just make sure they’re silk so they don’t tear the betta’s fins
-Water conditioners, etc…please research the nitrogen cycle and purchase the essentials! My favorite conditioner: Seachem Prime Conditioner for Marine & Freshwater Fish. My favorite jump-starter for the nitrogen cycle: Seachem Stability Water Conditioner. If you need a fertilizer for your plants, their flourish line is really nice. You can do a fish-in cycle as long as you regularly test the waters. A good test kit is the API Freshwater Master Test Kit (it’s expensive but worth it!!)
-Decor such as driftwood and rocks for your fish to hide in
-Nutrient rich substrate for live plants…I use fluval stratum and top it off with some gravel and a small beachy area in the right corner of my tank. When you first pour the water in, it may became almost black, but if you just turn on the filter and let it run for a few hours it should clear up.
-Food…I give my betta a varied diet of San Francisco Bay Brand Frozen Brine Shrimp Cubes and Fluval Bug Bites. I did initially have some flakes but unfortunately he refuses to eat them now and just lets them sink to the bottom.
-Cleanup crew…this is optional, but I recommend snails and shrimp if you want any other animals in your five gallon. I’m unfortunately stuck with four other small bottom dwellers due to a “professional” giving me misinformation, I’m really just lucky that my betta isn’t very aggressive.
Let me know if you have any questions!!