Just Rescued Two Female Bettas

[Dave Ehl]

My sister moved out a month ago, and i just found out she left some female bettas in a bowl in her room. I just put them in my empty 10g but is there anything I need to know when caring for bettas? they were in really bad conditions before. do they need heat? what do they eat? also any tips would be appreciated.

 

[Corleone]

They do need heat, since they are tropical. Never kept females, but there are flake and granule foods specifically designed for bettas that I fed my male, and he loved frozen bloodworm. I've read females are better kept in groups of 6 or so (which should work in a 10g) to disperse aggression, so once they recover you might consider getting some more.

 

[Dave Ehl]

no thanks on keeping more of them. i don't like them very much. I just didn't want them to suffer in a bowl full of stagnant, filthy water. I'll head to the lfs to see if they have betta granules later.

 

[Gilli]

why would anyone leave fish to suffer like that on purpose?

 

[OldMan47]

As others have already said, 2 is not a good number for female bettas. They will likely harass each other once they recover enough to do so. I would think a better option that would not involve new bettas would be to put one of them with your other small fish and let them just become part of the community.

 

[Dave Ehl]

maybe she didn't know any better. you'd think she'd take a lesson from me about keeping fish, but i had no idea she even had these. my 20g is already a little overcrowded. Would it help if I added half dozen neons?

 

[Mauricia]

If you don't want to get more bettas, I think the easiest and safest thing to do would be to just put a tank divider in so each girl gets 5 gallons. That's plenty of space, and bettas don't need company, plus they'll get entertainment from seeing each other through the divider. But yeah, you'll want a heater, bettas like temps of 78-80 degrees. You'll also want a filter, but make sure the current isn't too high (although females can handle a little more current than males). Bettas also like to have little caves and stuff to explore. Also, as long as you keep the water clean, I've found that bettas are tough fish that give me little trouble and have nice personalities, so you should come to like them.

 

[Amunet]

I would just divide the tank for them. You can get a needlepoint mesh from Walmart or any other hobby store for less than a dollar. It works alot better than petstore dividers b/c the holes are larger so allows better water flow. Just make sure there aren't any spaces for them to wiggle through, sides, top or bottom, b/c they definitely will.

Good for you for taking them in though! Even though you don't like them heh


As for betta food. Some bettas will eat flake, but I think most betta owners try to give their bettas small floating pellets. Hikari is a popular choice. And as was mentioned, they also love frozen bloodworm.


And before I forget..... smack your sister! Would she have left a dog or a cat to fend for itself? Shame on her for treating living creatures like that. Ones that depended on her to take care of them.

 

[Dave Ehl]

Thanks everyone for the replies and advice. I've put one of my spare heaters in the tank and I'll keep a close eye on them for aggression. They seem like good friends at the moment. If there are problems, I'll put a divider in. After all, they were both in a giant coffee cup for about 6 months. When she was moving out, she didn't want to bring her rat with her either, so she was going to put it in the trash! I said, "Are you kidding me?" And I had to convince her to give it to Petco for adoption. Crazy stuff.

 

[Amunet]

UGH! Good lord... definitely smack the heck out of her then! So uncaring and selfish.
Honestly.. some people do not deserve the right to have a pet.

 

[Dave Ehl]

I know. It seems like some people just don't understand the rules of life. Like those people that wear their Bluetooth headsets around town or people that eat chicken dinners at the movies.

 

[SharonCC]

Well, I'm not going to "insult" your sister...but I will say, Good for you, Dave, for taking care of the situation!!!

 

[shelaghfishface]

be a boring world if we were all the same, not that i agree with what your sister did, but not everyone gives a damn... good on you dave

And before I forget..... smack your sister!

very bloody grown up!!

 

[Gilli]

Dave there is no excuse for deliberate cruelty - Im glad you are not like her.

 

[tibby25731]

Nice one Dave, I hope they win you over with time And if they don't, maybe you can rehome them once they are in better condition?