1. Betta fish are lazy and don’t do much.
A healthy betta is an active betta. Bettas constantly explore their surrounding and spend most of their day swimming all around their aquarium. They often respond to their owners by begging for food and wiggling their tails too. If your betta just lays around not doing much, perform the standard water tests checking the ammonia, nitrite, nitrate and pH levels. Make sure the aquarium water is warm enough for your betta. Water that is too cool will slow the cold-blooded bettas’ metabolism down making him more sluggish.
2. Betta tanks don’t need heaters.
Whether or not you need a heater depends on the ambient air temperature of the room and the likelihood of temperature fluctuations. Bettas are tropical fish and need a warm, stable water temperature of about 78 F (25.5 C). A couple degrees warmer or cooler is fine as long as it is stable. Large fluctuations in temperature can be stressful for fish, which don’t have the ability to regulate their own temperature.
3. You should feed your betta as much as he can eat in 3 minutes.
You can often find this statement in the directions on a package of standard fish food; however, betta fish if given the chance will eat 3 Big Macs, a double side of fries, a chocolate shake and an apple pie in 3 minutes if you give them the chance. Bettas are easy to overfeed and the result is usually a bloated abdomen. The stomach of a betta is about as big as one of his eyeballs. Feed your betta an eyeball-size amount of food one to two times daily. For an adult male betta, that is about 3 or 4 small pellets or bloodworms. Observe your betta for a healthy weight. Bettas constantly overfed will look fat throughout their entire body and underfed bettas will look too thin.
4. Live and frozen fish foods are too rich for daily feeding.
What does this even mean? Too rich? It’s not chocolate cake. In fact, live and frozen fish foods are closer to a betta’s natural diet than factory made pellets or flake food. There are pros and cons to both but there is no evidence that frozen or live fish foods need to be fed sparingly. As long as you offer your betta a variety of live and frozen foods to ensure a balanced diet, these foods can be fed every day if you want.
5. Keeping a betta in a small container makes it feel safe.
Have you ever asked a betta what makes it feel safe? I guarantee it won’t answer you. This myth comes from a misunderstood idea of their natural environment in the rice patties, rivers and shallow streams of Asia. Bettas have a natural adaptation that allow it to breathe in shallow, low-oxygenated water. This does not mean that it’s natural environment consists of just a few cups of water. Many of these shallow areas spread on for miles. They are also a complete ecosystem capable of breaking down fish waste as it is being produced. Keeping a betta in too small of a container puts him at risk for toxic poisoning from his own waste. I have yet to find a container large enough to frighten my betta, but when I do I will certainly let you all know.
6. Bettas don’t need filtered tanks.
Bettas don’t have any special powers that make them impervious to toxins from decaying organic matter (fish waste, food, plant matter, etc.) They are really no different from any other fish in this matter. To be honest, with their thin fragile fins, I think they are more susceptible to environmental stressors than many commonly kept tropical fish. Whether or not you decide to install a filter depends on how you want to handle your maintenance routine. Unfiltered, uncycled tanks will need more water changes and water testing then filtered and cycled tanks.
7. Bettas can’t be kept with other fish because they will fight to the death.
Male bettas shouldn’t be kept with other male bettas because they will fight to the death… well, not the death… but they will fight to the missing scales, open wounds, inflamed gills and stress-induced secondary infection. It doesn’t sound as dramatic as “fight to the death” but ultimately it can end the same way. This doesn’t mean that bettas can’t be kept with fish of other species though. Many bettas can do well with other small tropical species of a gentle nature. Female bettas can often be kept with other females or with other species of compatible fish. Research each species before establishing a community tank.
Hello – I am a novice betta owner and I have a question for you. I was cleaning my betta’s fish tank yesterday and he jumped out of the net when I was transferring him to his temporary home. He landed on the floor and seemed no worse for wear when I got him into his temporary house. When his tank was all clean and ready for him again, he jumped out AGAIN when I wanted to put him in it! Now his right eye is HUGE. It looks like popeye (cloudy/puffy/enlarged), and I’m wondering if I should treat him like he’s got that. But if it’s just the fish equivalent of a black eye I don’t want to treat him unnecessarily. Can you give me any suggestions on what I should do? Thank you, Christie!
Concerned betta owner…
He could have a black eye depends I would take mine to a store like I got mine at so maybe petstore or something maybe they can help you my friend did that and her fish survived the falls she fell 38 times over and over again
My betta has black eyes though his health is good , my betta behaves a little sluggish
When you need to net him again, place your hand over the top of the net it is better that he hit your hand than end up in the floor. He could end up with a bacterial infection from being on the floor. My mother bred and raised guppies and when she let me help her as a teenager, she made me put my hand over the opening of the net when netting one of her fish. I really don’t like netting because I feel that it can damage the fish. I have heard that after an ordeal of being netted that people usually treat the tank their betta lives in with a product called stress coat. That might be something to check into. I’ve also found that by calling the manufacturers of stuff, like API or Tetra, I am able to obtain all kinds of helpful information.
The very same thing just happened to me. My betta fish jumped out of the net while I was cleaning the tank and it landed hard on the floor twice before I could get her back in her tank. She does not seem OK at the moment. I got so attached to her. It would be horrible if she will not survive.
Why not transfer your betta in a cup of water instead of a net. Most betas are purchased in a cup (which is why I got mine to get him out of the cruel cup). But I use the cup to transfer him when needed. It’s easy to just put it in the tank and move him toward a corner and in he goes. I put the lid on. When I put him back in his tank I float the cup and then remove the lid. By the way, my betta now live in a 10 gal tank with plants and “furniture”. He prefers to lounge near the surface of the tank so I arrange the furniture and plants so that he has areas to lounge up near the surface.
In my experience, the “keeping bettas with other fish” thing is somewhat subjective. I have had bettas which did well with other fish, and others who were absolute terrors. I think a great factor to consider is the size of the tank, and what are commonly accepted “compatible species”. So it basically resolves to two things: bigger tank is better (as usual), and worst case scenerio, have a backup plan/tank.
A seperate 10 gal tank setup at “a very popular retailer” (starts with “W” and ends with “mart”) can start for as little as $50, and I believe this is a small price to pay for the possibility that your betta will not get along with other fish in the case that the betta needs to be permanantly seperated from the main tank. If not, then you’ve got yourself a nice auxilary tank for breeding, plants, quarantine, etc…
Great points Anon. I completely agree.
I need help. What can I do to save my betta?
it’s early spring here and the house temperature ranges from 20-22 and i just got my male fighting fish. He moves only when i wave my hand in front of him, but other than that he just sits on the bottom. I had a mirror to keep him amused but he started attacking the glass so i took it away and now he won’t move or eat. I put two pellets in this morning and my friend put 2 in yesterday. I am worried as he hasn’t touched any of his food and he very rarely moves. What is going on?
I posted this on my facebook since so many people are buying bettas and don’t know how they’re suppose to take care of them. I rescued my from my niece because he was so sick I couldn’t let him go on living like that. She doesn’t mind. She’s into fashion now.
I like to think of bettas as the “puffy kings” of the aquarium; as long as his subjects don’t out shine him (longer or fancier fins, larger size, or brighter colors), he won’t put them in the dungeon (chase them and terrorize them until they hide in a rock cave or log) or execute them. it’s just my creative way of deciding what kinds of fish to put in my community tank with my betta.
My mama has recently won a new betta in some sort of contest about a week ago. She’d been keeping him in a jar until I got home and got the both of us to the store to purchase a real fish bowl, more food, and other supplies. However, he doesn’t seem to be eating much, and after a full day I see much more food at the bottom than I think I should. He’s not bloated, but I can’t tell the difference between a normal and an underfed betta. If he isn’t eating, should I take him to the vet?
to Avery…fish don’t eat much he is not a shark… as written in the passage above, the betta stomach is about the size of his little eye. So, dont over feed him… your worry should be if your Betta is not making any little bubbles in his tank, the bubble cloud is a sign of happiness and healthiness.
Thank you Ladii but I need advice. Do you think my betta will die if it is really cold. I am trying to heat the bowl up
My betta is so fat wat should I do
Your betta may be bloated. Fast him for at least a day, or until his belly shrinks to normal size.
In the future, only feed your betta once a day. If you use dry food, soak it in his tank water before giving it to him (otherwise it can swell up in his stomach), and try to use food that is mostly fish (not a lot of wheat or filler).
Note: if your betta is having trouble swimming/staying upright, the bloating may have caused a swim bladder problem, so you should look up how to fix that too.
I cant find the fish food for my male betta fish, is there ANY THING else that i can feed him (like lettuce or other common household foods) in the meantime?
Feed your Betta, Mysis, Daphnia, and Blood worms; you can find them in your local pet store and it’s inexpensive and it’s as close to the food they will get in their natural habitat. Also I like to give my Betta, live fish (game) but really small baby fish from the nursery of other tropical fish… He’ll love it!!!
I have not heard of feeding your betta lettuce but he will use it as a comfortable bed like sitting, some time betta like to rest close to the surface of the water; when they do rest. Bettas are very active fish.
It won’t hurt your betta to not eat for a day or two, so the following advice only applies if you can’t get him pet store food within a couple of days.
The main ingredient of good betta food is fish, so you may be able to feed him a tiny bit of fish or shrimp (preferably without seasoning or fancy sauces). Bettas also like cooked peas.
None of this will replace pet store food indefinitely, but if you’re in a pinch I hope it helps.
Okay, so the other day I came home and I saw that my male beta fish has escaped and slip through his divider to the other male betas home. At first I was very scarred hoping nothing will happen. But it turns out they are very friendly to each other and don’t even care. Both stay somewhere else and look calm. I know this is dangerous but is it possible they are okay with each other? Please answer back quickly cause if its not I would like to know right away!!!
Hello I need help! I am totally stressing about my Betta Cristie !! Okay so I just got my betta (male) and I think the water that I put in his bowl is too cold because he is sinking to the bottom! I know this sounds ridiculous but I wrapped the bowl in a hat and sat it in front of the heater in my room because I don’t have one for his bowl. I am freaking, he has gill activity, and is still sinking, now when I leave him be and come to check on him, he is up at the surface or in the middle of the water, then he rushes back down, just a little bit. It is very strange and I need major help!!!!!
is this Behavior abnormal is he makeing bubles at the top of the tank.
Bubbles at the top of a bettas tank do net mean anything is wrong with your betta. It just shows that he is ready for a mate and is sort of an instinct
My betta fish is about 5 years old. He is male and he is not a plakat, but yet he is still small. He is about an inch and a quarter long including his tail. Is this normal? He does not have fin rot.
I am not sure how old my betta is but she is all red beautiful I have had her for about 6 months and she usually does her bubble nest around the end of the month my husband brought home 4 tetras a starburst and a small catfish she seemed to really enjoy there company but now I notice her laying in her rock more she is eating still but just like laying around and she hasn’t made a nest is a couple weeks please help me
@Karly, I would recommend checking the following disease and treatment guide to see if your betta has an illness:
https://nippyfish.net/complete-guide-to-betta-fish-diseases-and-treatment-with-pictures/
my bettas are both males but they dont fight at all i have to other ones and they get all rounded up when there in there seperate tanks i have 17 total bettas but mt two yellow ones just seem to be best friends they swim around beside eachother and dont seem to worry about anything and there just as happy as they can be im thinking of getting like 5 more bettas i think im obsessed.!!!!!!!
My Betta Fish doesn’t leave bubbles at the top of the tank anymore, and he sits at the very top (which is a sign of low oxygen in the water), usually behind the filter. I have a 10 gallon tank that used to be a divided tank that separated him from another betta (who died of old age rip). I have a filter, and a moss ball, and I just finally got a water heater. He also has a lump on his side that looks like swim bladder disease, but he doesn’t go on his side, he can swim down easy, and everything is fine except for the lump, no bubbles, and staying near the filter. I don’t know what’s going on man. I love this boy and I feel like a bad mom because I’ve tried everything and I can’t figure it out.
We are new betta owners, we have a female in a 10 litre tank with a bristlenose catfish (new addition today)..
The betta has been hyper active, swimming along the glass up and down the tank.
We have two different types of live plants in the tank as well.
We increased the oxygen in the tank by moving the filter closer to the surface as the bristlenose was staying up near the top of the tank. It’s now moved to the bottom.
Is the betta suppose to be so active? She has no tears in her fins and no white spots.
Hi! I am a little concerned about my Betta. I don’t want to over react but I also have never paid as much attention to any other betta I have had so I don’t know if he is acting “normal”. He seems lazy, hiding constantly, laying at the bottom of the tank, hiding behind his heater. He eats and sometimes swims but most of the time he is stationary. I feed omega one betta buffet pellets, I think I was over feeding so I cut down to 3 pellets a day and that help him swim normally again. I think a ph test of the water is next. I use neutral regulator ph 7.0 in the water. Does anyone else have a “lazy” betta? 2.5 gal tank.
My betta fish, Martin, is active in the morning. In the late afternoon, he slows down quite a bit and will sleep or rest on heater from dusk till the next morning. The temperature of the tank is a constant 78.7 – 78.9. I know this because I have bought three heaters and two thermometers. I am wondering if it gets too cold from him later in the day or is this just normal behavior?
@Karen, Is this happening after you feed your fish. Your Betta may be getting bloated/really full after eatting. This can cause them to become tired. Some de-skinned peas after he eats might help with this and he maybe more active if this was the issue.