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General Care & Feeding of Bettas
(The care of females is provided at the bottom of this page)
The Betta's longevity is well known as they can live 3-5 years - or more - with the proper care and feeding. They are also known to be one of the easiest fish to care for which make them ideal choices for children, office workers, and those with busy lives. Aside from their obvious beauty, the ease of care is what has made them so very popular in recent years. Another positive aspect of owning a Betta would be that their equipment needs are less than that of a standard tropical fish. As they are top breathers (taking breaths of our air), aeration is not needed. Likewise, it is unnecessary to have an under gravel filter. Neither would harm the Betta though; you can safely put a male into a tank that already has the filter system in place & running. You may actually find that the installation of an under gravel system will cut down on floating debris. That said, we use ugf’s in virtually all of our tanks.
Tanks and Water Changes
Tank sizes, as well as decorative choices, are up to the owner. While we do not recommend making a permanent home out of a one-quart canning jar, he could safely live in one. We do recommend giving him at least 1 gallon of water to live out his life in. Whichever is chosen, please remember to leave at least 1 inch of air space at the top so that your Betta will not drown. Feeding Females
Females, unlike their male counterparts, are community fish. This means that females can be housed together without difficulty and although they “flare” and occasionally nip like the boys, they are generally harmless. A rare female will need to be removed from this communal setting when aggression is in her make-up, however. This is not seen in the vast population and we always pre-screen our females being shipped to breeders and hobbyists.
Some people choose to house a male with other non-aggressive tropical fish in a large, established tank. This is just fine. The one thing that must be remembered is that the males must never have free access to one another These males are highly territorial and they will fight each other until one - or both - are killed. Females are not to be housed with the male either, but can be housed with other females. There are rare exceptions to the male/female rule but this is not a practice for beginners. The lengthy explanation on introducing both genders for spawning is covered on our separate Spawning Pictorial Page.
Now, while a male should never touch another male, they seem to enjoy being housed next to each other. Nothing perks a Betta up like having "competition" next door! If you do not have another live fish, consider providing him with a mirror so that he believes that he has a neighbour. These are social fish which clearly thrive with companionship. The ultimate proof of this claim is that some Bettas will mourn the death of a long time buddy for up to a week after the loss!
If housed alone, his dechlorinated water should be heated to somewhere between 78 & 80 degrees. Please bear in mind that Bettas were bred to endure the heat of shallow waters and prefer to stay warmer than many tropical varieties. You should also have a tank top in place since males can jump high enough to actually leave their home. Whatever type of top is used, we gently provide the reminder to leave at least 1 inch of fresh air at the top so that he may breathe.
Ideally, water changes should be done every few days, especially if you have crown tails. Those tail types are prone to unsightly fin curling if left in dirty water. When performing a change under normal conditions, take out no more than 25%-33% of their water and replace it with aged/neutralized water of the same temperature. In between water changes, you will want to take out food, fish, and plant waste since this will lead to high nitrate-induced scale burning. Actually, you should find that a fish stays healthier with a bit of old tank water as it contains beneficial bacteria for chemical conversion. New, crystal-clean water will depress or even kill him. This type of “deep cleaning” is usually only done in the presence of disease.
Contrary to the popular myth that these fish need not be fed – or are fed very little – but exists on plant matter instead, Bettas are carnivores who need to eat on a regular basis. Some breeders strongly recommend feeding 6 days a week with one day of fasting while others feed every day of the week. Our Bettas are on the 6-day schedule and are maintained on a high protein, bi-daily diet to keep them in top condition at all times. Betta pellets, such as Hikari Bio Gold are acceptable for part of their daily fare. Only provide what can be consumed in 3-5 minutes and, since each fish’s appetite differs, this will be a learning process. When fed in the other half of the day, we recommend giving any of the following meat-based items in either live or frozen form: bloodworm, microworm, baby brine shrimp, mosquitoes, gnats, or plain, unseasoned hamburger (cooked or raw) broken into bite sized pieces. Just be absolutely certain that if you are providing live worms that you offer only tiny amounts since studies suggest a connection between heavy live worm consumption and swim bladder disease. Most of ours do not even like worms and seem to prefer the insects or burger! Finally, we suggest that you consider adding a small catfish, such as a Cory, to his tank. Not only will he be an interesting buddy – your curious male will check out the cat at very close range – but this fastidious little "vacuum with fins" will help to remove the food for you!
Dietary needs are the same for females as males. High protein is required for keeping the stock in top condition all year round and we strongly recommend bi-daily feedings. We urge you to continue this regimen (or one similar) to maintain both the health and fertility of your female Betta, too. A gal in top condition will likely be able to spawn every two weeks, not that you would necessarily want to take advantage of this. As always, feed only what she can eat in 3-5 minutes and be certain to remove uneaten food daily. Once again, consider adding in a Cory catfish to aid in removing fallen food as they will do their part to keep the tank's nitrogen cycle in check. Our final reminder is to perform water changes every few days, especially if raising crown tails.
RELAX, ENJOY & HAVE FUN!!!
Last updated: 24 April 2002
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