I'm going to be buying a betta soon, I need to know what you guys think I should own and know before buying my betta. So, what kind of food, tank, do I need a filter, temperature, how often do I clean, anything I need to add to the water, accessories, half moon, veil tail, crown? Just wondering. And add if there is anything else!
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bettas!! My current is a black copper-like crown tail named Sushi.
**EDIT** This is REALLY long, so forgive me. At the very end, I made a list of important things to get/consider getting in hopes it will make this post easier to digest lol***
I'm not sure if there really is a personality difference between the various styles...I do know that crown tails are more sensitive to water quality, so you'll want to make sure you monitor pH levels. I've had a few varieties (Sushi is my first CT) and like any other animal it depends on their individual personality.
For me, I
never house bettas in anything less than 5 gallons. When I first started out (1999), I used 2.5 gallon setups. I now think 5 or above is best.
I don't use a filter, but you definitely want a submersible heater, even if you keep your place warm (please don't use a heat lamp). I can't remember if mine is a 25 or 50 watt (will have to check), but I like to keep his tank at a steady 78ºF. I think filters are very useful, as long as the current isn't strong (plants come in handy to reduce the current)...with his tank being a 5 gallon, I just do 100% water changes once a week (more on that in a bit) and "spot clean" every day.
Sushi lives in an acrylic tank/habitat. I had a 10 gallon glass aquarium that was smashed to bits (empty!!), so not only is the acrylic safer for my clumsiness, it's also much lighter for me to handle for cleaning. The "hospital tank" (I'll just say Tank 2) is the exact same thing as his regular tank (they were on sale and they're really handy to have around!).
Since I don't use a filter and I do 100% water changes, I don't cycle my tank. I also don't use gravel, stones - anything like that. The bottom of the tank is just tank. For me, it helps me monitor his poop to make sure he's healthy and helps with spot cleaning. Even though I don't cycle and just do 100% water changes, I never ever run straight from the tap into the tank. The replacement water is water that I treat with AquaSafe and is kept in Tank 2 that has sat out for a week (each tank cleaning, I fill up Tank 2 and let it sit out until the following cleaning). Some people don't think there is a problem with running straight from the tap, especially if they don't run cold, but I still worry so I prefer to do it this way.
pH levels are very important to monitor, so you'll want to get a pH testing kit. I keep his at 7.
For decorations, you'll want soft plants. I've never used real plants, so I can't give you any advice on that, but with fake plants, always go with silk or silky material. Nothing that has rough edges...their fins are
very, very delicate and can easily tear (which can lead to a whole mess of problems). When I shop for plants, I run the plant (edges and all) along my inner wrist/forearm to see how soft it is and make sure that there is no scratching whatsoever. Since I don't use gravel, I get plants that have weighted bases. I have a couple that are from my old goldfish tank that have the "bowls" to put gravel in for stability and when I use those, I just use 2 large glass stones to hold them in place. Dark hiding places are really important to have, like caves. I use a square coffee mug! He loves it because the handle of the mug gives him something to swim through and the mug itself acts as a cave. It's important to make sure that whatever you use won't roll and trap them (which is why I use my square mug rather than a typical rounded one). You can make your own decorations too, if you want. I have a couple of glass tumblers that I used aquarium sealant (good to have on hand!!) to glue those glass craft/aquarium rocks and some plants to. They're incredibly ugly, so I rarely use them...I do plan on making more, though, now that I know what I'm doing
Bettas are very, very curious so each time you clean the tank, you'll want to switch things up a bit. Give plenty of hiding places and interesting things to play with inside the tank and even to look at outside of the tank - my Aunt's betta is in love with a blue lighter that she leaves next to his new tank (that poor baby was the victim of the flower/vase/betta deathtrap) and Sushi seems to like coins, Santino (he watches Santino all day now) and a yellow bottle cap that I can't throw away because he
really enjoys looking at it.
Food is a tricky thing. Bettas are insectivores/carnivores so pelleted food, flake food - whatever you choose, make sure that the first ingredients listed are some sort of animal protein, like fish, shrimp, etc... I feed pellets over flakes because even though both can swell, in my experience, flakes swell more. Pellets are easier for me to feed as well...I feed Sushi twice a day, 2-3 pellets at a time. The amount you feed also depends on the betta and the size of the pellets/flakes. Hikari Bio-Gold used to be a good food for bettas, but they changed their ingredients and now the very first thing listed is Wheat Flour...so I wouldn't feed that. Omega One is a very good food, but also a pain in the butt to find (for me, anyway). I also feed New Life Spectrum and I order that through Amazon. The thing with NLS is that it's not a floating pellet, but because of the particular way I feed Sushi, it's not an issue for us. I pre-soak pellets and (here it comes) hand feed him. Sometimes I don't hand feed...just pre-soak and lay the food on top of the water, but he's a fan of jumping up to get the food off my finger or just nibbling while we discuss his day. A third food that I also feed is Aqueon, but it's of a much lesser quality than Omega and NLS.
Freeze-dried foods, frozen foods and live foods you MUST be careful with. Quality is everything because all 3 are prone to deadly bacteria. If you want to feed these, I would recommend that you go to an aquatics shop rather than a regular pet store. Freeze-dried foods are cheap and pet stores really like to feed these and push customers to buy them...and it's not that freeze-dried foods are terrible, but you want good quality and you want to pre-soak them before you feed them. They cause intestinal problems like constipation, so pre-soaking reduces that risk.
I don't use a light for his tank. Since it's not a typical tank, it doesn't have the hood with light fixture deal. Even when I had a "real" tank, I still didn't use the light. Again, it's my preference and situation. Where his tank is located, he's exposed to all the lights that are on in the living areas (kitchen, dining room, living room). At night, there is a rope light in the living room that I leave on and I still cover his tank with a thin, dark scarf just so he'll have total darkness. With the way our situation is, I don't think having a lamp or anything over his tank would be appropriate or necessary because of the betta's natural habitat. Plus, with a lamp (depending on the bulb and space between the lamp and tank), there is the risk of water temperature fluctuations that can compromise their immune systems. Again, it's not necessary for me, but I know betta keepers that do use hood lights and their bettas are as healthy Sushi, so it really depends on where the tank is located and how much light is already in that area.
My bettas never had tank mates, except for when I had females (different circumstances and larger tank size!!!). I know that some people have success with goldfish and bettas, but their needs are SO different so, to me, it's like housing rabbits and guinea pigs together...just not a good idea. If you feel that you want a tank mate, I would suggest you get a tank that is no smaller than 10 gallons and do a lot of research about suitable ones. Stick with short fins, plain colors, etc... nothing that will attract a feisty betta.
Things to get/consider getting:
-5 gallon tank/habitat or above (acrylic or glass)
-Submersible heater suitable for 5 gallons or above
-Filter
-Submersible thermometer (I have one suction-cupped inside his tank)
-Water quality tests, such as pH
-Water conditioner
-High quality pelleted/flaked food
-Suitable plants (real or fake - just be sure both are safe)
-Caves, tunnels, etc...
-If having bare-bottomed tank, a turkey baster is REALLY handy!
That's all I can think of at the moment. Also, this isn't important (to me) but I'm mentioning it anyway - the correct pronunciation is "bet-tuh", not "bay-tuh" although when just chatting I also say "bay-tuh" because I think it sounds...bettah (ha...joke). But when I'm speaking to a hobbyist/aquarist, I use the proper pronunciation of "bet-tuh", "bed-tuh".
