Going to College end of Aug

[Mariah]

Hi all
I am going to be going away to college by the end of Aug. What im wondering is which bettas do I take with me? I *think* bettas are allowed in residence... Anyways how do you decide which boy or girl to take?
This is my first year at college and my course is very demanding so I dont want to be over loaded with bettas... At least untill I settle myself in...
I have various tank sizes at home (split 2.5 gallons, 1 gallons and 1/2 gallons) My girls that are in the 5 gallon will be staying at home but the rest of my boys and girls are for me to figure out who comes and who stays.
Any suggestions?
Thanks

 

[Karah's_Mommy]

I would check first, as my dorms didn't allow pets of any kind, including fish. If they do allow them, I'd go first and leave them all at home while you get adjusted to college life. Once you're settled in and ready, I'd bring as many as I could fit in my room with me, I just couldn't decide!! If you are limited, I think I would bring the smaller tanks, so you leave less at home for your parents to take care. (I think you mentioned that before) So whatever lucky boys/girls are in the tanks you can take would be the ones I'd pick.

 

[Mariah]

Thanks karahs mommy It is such a hard decision deciding which boy/girl to bring...
I am going to call them tomorrow and ask if fish are allowed. If there not I guess problem solved. If they are...
And yes bringing the smaller tanks would make sense But which of the smaller tanks to bring

 

[tttnjfttt]

I went to two different colleges, and both allowed fish and other aquatic animals to be kept in the dorms. (Along with the other pets that weren't allowed, but were there anyways. Atleast one cat, a rabbit, a turtle, and a snake). But anyways, one other thing you mgiht want to consider is the amount of space you are going to have in your dorm room, as dorms are often very cramped. Is it possible to bring a few along, then once you see how much space you are going to have, go home and bring more back?

 

[Mariah]

Yes, thats what I was going to do. Just bring 1 or 2 with me (if there allowed) and see how much space I have
Ive been there and seen the rooms and they are small. Im sure I would have room for atleast 1

 

[JoLtNbolt]

Will you have a roommate? If so, do you know who your roommate is? You might want to wait and see if it's not a problem with your roommate if you have one.

 

[tttnjfttt]

You should easily have room for one or two. You will be amazed at how much stuff you can cram into that little space. I had my first betta in college, and there was always room for him somewhere... I don't see too many people throwing a fit over having a fish, it might be more of an issue when it becomes having 500 fish. I remember everyone wanting a little pet to take care of, and fish were often given alot of attention.

 

[Mariah]

Yes im going to have a roomate at college but we each have out own room. Its only the bathroom and kitchen we will have to share. So im assuming she wouldnt mind if I had a betta in my room

EDIT - I just called residence an they no pets at all are allowed in! Im sooooo mad! Like why cant a tiny little betta be allowed? Im going to settle myself in and than smuggle 1 betta in.....

 

[Alix]

well if you dont have a room mate in your room...LET THE FLOOD GATES FULL OF BETTA GLORY OPEN!!! get a water bed (clear) an put your females in it as a last minute space saver (jk jk you cant do that...or can you )

 

[Mariah]

Alix!

 

[riogal_11]

I'm starting my 4th year of college and this past year is when I started keeping bettas. We are allowed to have "small tropical fish". I think it even says that you can only have one. I have 17 bettas and a 10 gallon tropical and they are ALL going back with me!! It's a pain getting them all there, and a pain bringing them home, but I can't imagine not having them all with me. Deciding which ones to bring would take longer than actually taking them. So I just save myself the worry of leaving them with my family and drag them all along. People at school are starting to think I'm a bit crazy though but oh well!

 

[Mariah]

riogal, what college are you at? Is it in Canada?

 

[Andie]

Hey Mariah- how unfair is that? No pets at all?!?! I'm going into my third year at UPEI and we're not allowed anything but "fish in bowls or tanks". Fortunately they don't put a limit on how many fish, so in addition to my 29 gal cichlid tank, I use my 2.5 MiniBow as a reading lamp and hope to have a 10 gal sorority set up by Christmas for some female bettas.

The pet rule is a tricky one, since it's probably the most commonly broken one, at least at UPEI, and I'm sure at other universities too. I kept a guinea pig for a month in my first year, and my neighbour kept a hamster, and one girl got a kitten the week before she moved out.

My roommate was cool with me having the guinea pig, but I wouldn't have shown up with rodent in tow until I knew her better, if that makes sense. Once you meet your roommate and get to know her, you'll have a better idea about whether or not she would turn a blind eye to a fish or two in your room. Most of the first year girls over here seem to make a September trip to Pets Unlimited and empty their stock of bettas, just so they can have something to look after, so if you get a roomie like that, it should be clear sailing.

You could probably get away with keeping at least a 1 gal Kritter Keeper or maybe a 2.5 minibow, and just toss a pretty drapery over it when you leave the room, since of course your bettas won't make any mess or noise (guinea pigs, I might add, are far harder to conceal. They chew pretty draperies). Lastly, if you DO get caught, it would be very irresponsible not to have a backup plan for getting your fish home again (my guinea pig was a loaner from a lady who pitied me not having anything to cuddle. When midterms were done, Essie went right back home).

Oh, and one more thing- if you meet enough people upset about not even being allowed to have a fish, start a petition. Residence coordinators aren't total jerks, or anything. See if they'll change the rules to maybe a maximum of one ten gallon tank per person/per room, with the stipulation that it's covered at all times, or something similarly reasonable. You might be surprised at how understanding people will be, especially if they've got pets of their own.

 

[afireinside]

man, when i go to collage (hopefully in five years) i hope my fishies are gonna be allowed in, i don't know how i'll survive being away from my doggie and my guinea pig that long!

 

[Mariah]

Andie,
Thanks for the advice. I was sitting over here so mad at the thought of not being able to have at least 1 betta with me. After hearing what you have said ive clamed down abit...
I have a guinea pig to and she makes so much noise so I know thats not going to work But I know a tiny betta in a 1 gallon tank might work. When im not in my room I will have it covered with something. Would a betta mind that?
Thats also a very good idea about having a petition about pets. I will have to see if anyone else is upset at the 'no pets' rule. That really sucks