small tanks

[fishheaven]

Why is it ok to keep Betta's in say 1 gallon containers, surely they are like anyother fish and deserve the space to swim around in? they cant have much swimming space in tanks that are this small!!!!

 

[xXMrBonesXx]

bettas dont really swim around (unless mine are lazy), i had one in a 32 gallon and he just sat in teh corner and look miserable, but when i put him in a 2.5 he was happier then a pig in you know what, besides its better to put them in a 1 GAl then leave them in those tiny cups

 

[fishheaven]

I totally agree cups seem a bit unfair, anyway 2.5 gallons is far better than 1!!!

 

[rollntider]

1 gallon is the minimum most of use recomend.....

 

[wrs]

its really not mean or unfair at all. bettas just float around and not really swim that much. And bigger tanks can shorten their lives. so smaller ones are much better.

 

[rollntider]

And bigger tanks can shorten their lives.

how so?

 

[betazigzag]

really? bettas don't swim much?? mine is in a 5 gallon and all he does is swim, check stuff out, blows bubbles, and every time we come into the room he swims to the front and does a dance that really seems to say feed me. He's curious about any activity around him, following it in his tank. He definately is active. When he was in a 2 1/2 gallon one he didn't swim quite as much as he does now. I'd really rather put mine in at least a 2 1/2 gallon container, I wouldn't want to live in a closet

 

[GuppyDude]

in the wild, bettas live in fairly shallow puddels and or rice pattys, they don't take well to large bodies of water at all

 

[rollntider]

in the wild, bettas live in fairly shallow puddels and or rice pattys, they don't take well to large bodies of water at all

have you seen these rice paddies? they are pretty big size....and there is constant water flowing and they are pretty big.... http/www.bettadreams.com/ricepaddies.html

looks bigger than a gallon to me

 

[tekknocolor]

I have two of my bettas in each their own 1 gallon tank. They appear to love it and don't seem depressed or sad at all. In all actuality they have plenty of room to swim, but don't very often. Well, considering one of my bettas has SBD he can't swim very much or well and sits in his little hammock all day, but is active enough to swim through his little rock formation like it's an obstacle. My other betta that's in the other 1 gallon is extremely happy with his tank, loves to explore it. I actually tried putting him in the 10 gallon, but he looked entirely too depressed and didn't swim much at all. I think it depends on the fish and their sense of security in their environments.

Also:

Because they have an air breathing organ in their heads Bettas can be kept in small amounts of water. The oxygen they get from the water through their gills will be supplimented by oxygen from the air above the water as they "breathe." However it should be noted that a Betta in a small amount of water can quickly be overcome by toxins produced by waste products from the fish itself and decomposing food in the container. Therefore regular water changes are necessary. If a Betta is kept in a pint or less of water one-third of the water should be changed daily and 100% of the water should be changed once per week. If a quart container is used the water change can be done every third day plus the weekly 100% change. For maximum toxin removal the bottom one third of the water and all solid waste in the container should be removed. This is where the solid wastes and most of the toxins will accumulate. A turkey baster or siphon tube will allow effecient access to that area of the container. A half gallon container would require a 100% water change every week. For containers over one half gallon the water change should still be made every week unless some sort of filtration is used. Click jar maintenance for more information. -- http/www.bettas-jimsonnier.com/basiccare.htm

 

[mwm]

Mines is happy in my 5g i think

 

[wrs]

i read it on the forum about the live parts.

 

[jacblades]

i probably would put a betta (by himself) in anything bigger than a 10 or 15.
but up until that size, the bigger-the better!

 

[chatterbox]

i say not 2 big of an tank is good.but not 2 small of an tank.an gallon is pretty good up 2 9gallons/cause then it get up 2 an whace of space

 

[Logitech]

My betta used to swim back and forth from one side of the tank to the other, this was when he was in my 40 gallon. Then I moved him into my 5 gallon, and he felt at home instantly. He made a bubble nest and he was about to spawn.