Wikipedia's Article: 10 Gallon Minimum?!?

[Rediahs]

http/en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siamese_fight...In_the_aquarium

There is a guy there trying to suggest that bettas need 10 GALLONS (!!!!!!) minimum! Wow, I guess pretty much every thai breeder is breeding sickly fish... :\ Check out the talk page, the history, and that guy's user page...

I need help... this is misinformation. To suggest that bettas need a giant tank all to themselves is crazy. I'm sure the betta would enjoy that much space, but what fish wouldn't want more room? 1 gallon is typically thought of as the "minimum" size - but this guy's trying to inflate this to 10 gallons, saying any betta kept in 1 gallon gets sickly!



Any other wiki-sters can help sort this out?

He also says to keep a collection of females you can keep 4 or 5 in 20 gallons

 

[Betta_Lovex3]

All my bettas are in one gallons and they're doing perfectly fine. They're all happy, swimming, etc..
I'm sure a betta would LOVE a 10 gallon, but I don't think it's required for ONE fish.

 

[RandomWiktor]

I honestly find it refreshing to see someone suggesting a tank large enough for a betta to get exersize and be well enriched. Not to mention the benefits of filtration, stable temperature, and gradual ammonia build-up in a tank of that size. So I'm not going to complain, as the general public is more likely to keep cramming them in vases anyways.
However, it is true that the minimum for the species is not 10g by a long shot; even by the inch per gallon rule, 2.5g would be the minimum, not 10. In fact, I think 10 would be a tad too big for something like an OHM, which would probably exhaust itself to death trying to swim with those stupidly large fins. I personally do not keep in less than 5g myself, but I won't deny that bettas can be in good physical health in tanks 1 gallon or larger.

 

[bUcky]

this might be a good thing, its better that the pet store recomendation to put them in a cup. it might get some people thinking away from the little shotglass betta keepers.

 

[Rediahs]

Well, after some fuss, I've gotten the article corrected for now - it's got a 2 gallon minimum size, which I think is reasonable.

I did find it nice that somebody cares about the fish enough to consider 10 gallons to be the minimum, but it doesn't change the fact that it's WRONG. 10 gallons is great, but bettas only NEED a gallon or two..

 

[OohFeeshy]

The thing is with the 10g is that the author intended the betta to share with other fish, which I don't agree with.

 

[tank212]

It also might be scaring some new commers to the hobby that don't have the money or space for that size of a tank.

 

[Rediahs]

It also might be scaring some new commers to the hobby that don't have the money or space for that size of a tank.

That's exactly what I thought. Hell.. when I started out I was surprised - I thought 1 gallon was huge! If someone had told me "you need a 10 gallon tank to keep a betta" I would probably never have gotten one.

 

[Kowalski]

I have a 10 gallon for my Betta, he LOVES it. Always swimming around, then hanging out a bit, swimming some more. So I don't think he'll die from being tired, haha, but that is odd he/she suggested 10 gallons at the minimum. Hell, I only got 10 gallons with hopes of eventually adding a few more fish in there.

 

[MegTheFish]

He also says to keep a collection of females you can keep 4 or 5 in 20 gallons

Which is perfectly fine. You can add more, but, 4 is the minimum (to spread out aggression).

 

[Rediahs]

He also says to keep a collection of females you can keep 4 or 5 in 20 gallons

Which is perfectly fine. You can add more, but, 4 is the minimum (to spread out aggression).

What I meant by that is, 10 gallons is the minimum for such a thing, not 20. 20's fine, but 10 is sufficient as well.

 

[soritan]

Well, www.firsttankguide.com suggests a 10g minimum, so either it's the same person, or someone influenced by this person.

I think a lot of people forget, tha wikipedia is open source. Anyone can submit an article, it's not proofread by an editorial staff and whatnot, generally speaking (depends on the wiki, but most aren't proofed).

Heck, if you wanted, you could write up an article made up of nothing but inaccurate information, "Bettas are made of cheescakes and relish. They must always be kept in pairs. I know. I've kept bettas for over 20 years."

*edit: i know you know this, OP, but I'm just saying. If people are only researching by going to wiki, they are not being very through about it.

 

[Rediahs]

Well, www.firsttankguide.com suggests a 10g minimum, so either it's the same person, or someone influenced by this person.

I think a lot of people forget, tha wikipedia is open source. Anyone can submit an article, it's not proofread by an editorial staff and whatnot, generally speaking (depends on the wiki, but most aren't proofed).

Heck, if you wanted, you could write up an article made up of nothing but inaccurate information, "Bettas are made of cheescakes and relish. They must always be kept in pairs. I know. I've kept bettas for over 20 years."

It would quickly be edited and removed.

Wikipedia is better about these things than you'd think. There are a whole bunch of people who spend tons of time trying to improve wikipedia. There are people that call themselves the cleanup crew, and scan the newest entries, particularly by anonymous users, and check them for vandalism. There is also an IRC chat, which I forget the location of, that has a bot scanning new entries and announces questionable edits to the chat, wherefrom people click the link and check it over for questionable content.

It's a lot deeper than "anyone can edit it, so all the information is not credible". There are thousands, and perhaps millions of people who maintain it.

 

[Lynz781]

Well I would agree with the person who wrote the article as I do not like to see bettas in cramped little tanks. I don't agree that all they need is a gallon or two. There shouldn't be a limit to what a fish needs. The bigger space, the better.

 

[greyko]

I think my betta is in a 4 gallon tank, and, i'd love to have him in a bigger one. He cruises around, hides in leaves and things, it'd be nice if he had more room to move, and if i had more room for more plants. 10 gallon seems like it would be ideal, if not bare minimum.