Getting a betta fish! 🐠

[astrid]

Hey everyone!

I recently realized I am also very interested in fish! Surprise- I love pretty little living things and so bettas are right on point. I would like to have fancy goldfish, but my word they are cost prohibitive at this point in my life!

I have a 5-gallon tank, and I am getting ready to add some marimo moss balls, and then to start cycling the tank to get it ready for my new little family member.

Here is a picture of my tank setup!


I won't be needing a heater until this damn heat wave is over, but I have one coming in the mail anyway! I am so excited!

[wintergirl]

Bettas are very cool. My son has one that has traveled with him though-out the USA on nursing assignments. Goldfish tend to be messier, you can't go wrong with the betta.

[astrid]

Originally Posted by wintergirl

Bettas are very cool. My son has one that has traveled with him though-out the USA on nursing assignments. Goldfish tend to be messier, you can't go wrong with the betta.

Hah, my mom's a nurse, too! Cursed me with the inability to not gross people out while they're eating, though, haha!

If I had goldfish, I would want 5-6, which would require something like an 90-120 gallon tank, not to mention they can cost $50 a pop or more, and all the accessories, and then aquascaping ... yeesh! I'm gonna need that adult money before I do that!!

...just 2-3 more years until a masters ....

[Leafmite]

Bettas are great fish, each with their own personality.

[wintergirl]

Lol Astrid. My mom is a nurse, both my sisters and I are nurses, and my son is a psych nurse. My daughter is a rural mail carrier

[pipsxlch]

It looks great! Maybe give him a little floating plant to get up and rest in, they love that. You'll be happy with him, they're fairly easy fish and can have a surprising amount of personality.
As a goldfish fancier, they are among the more difficult fish to keep properly... and I've bred discus, apistos, various Africans... BIG tanks (for 5-6 I'd look at 120-150 gallons minimum) with even BIGGER filters, and lots of water changing which hey at least your plants would love. Watch the aquascaping- they are prone to choking on gravel as they root for leftovers(so bare bottom or very fine gravel is best), they love to eat plants so tough leaved or rapidly reproducing ones are best, and watch the edges that they aren't sharp enough to cut clumsy malformed poor guys or with holes they can get caught in. In return, you'll get big happy aqua puppies that wriggle happily when they see you and bring a smile to your face. Hint- shelled frozen peas fed by hand, soon they'll be all over you

[astrid]

Originally Posted by pipsxlch

It looks great! Maybe give him a little floating plant to get up and rest in, they love that. You'll be happy with him, they're fairly easy fish and can have a surprising amount of personality.
As a goldfish fancier, they are among the more difficult fish to keep properly... and I've bred discus, apistos, various Africans... BIG tanks (for 5-6 I'd look at 120-150 gallons minimum) with even BIGGER filters, and lots of water changing which hey at least your plants would love. Watch the aquascaping- they are prone to choking on gravel as they root for leftovers(so bare bottom or very fine gravel is best), they love to eat plants so tough leaved or rapidly reproducing ones are best, and watch the edges that they aren't sharp enough to cut clumsy malformed poor guys or with holes they can get caught in. In return, you'll get big happy aqua puppies that wriggle happily when they see you and bring a smile to your face. Hint- shelled frozen peas fed by hand, soon they'll be all over you

AQUA PUPPIES!!!


I could just die that is too precious!!
My fancy (big) goldfish tank is a newly found desire, and is not going to come along for several years for me. I have some time to do research! Being a student of chemistry, understanding the importance of water quality and being able to analyze it will be a total breeze for me!

Thanks so much for the advice- I'll add that to my repertoire of knowledge and be sure to apply it someday. For now, my little starter betta is like that first phal ... a gateway fish!!

I find myself so bummed that the 5gal tank won't fit a little school of cloud minnows, and that the neon tetras and bettas are not good playmates, but one fish is plenty for me.

This will be my first pet that I am getting for myself, so it is quite an occasion for me

[Optimist]

I have a big 75 gallon that I am turning into a fishtank/orchid world thing. I have 4 female bettas then a list of a bunch of other fish in 2 tanks now. Female bettas are actually quite nice together. They are not as colorful as males, but they have great personalities. Down the road I want to get some wild bettas. They have never been bred as fighting fish so you can keep multiple males and females together. Much bigger fish though, about 6 inches long.

[astrid]

Originally Posted by Optimist

I have a big 75 gallon that I am turning into a fishtank/orchid world thing. I have 4 female bettas then a list of a bunch of other fish in 2 tanks now. Female bettas are actually quite nice together. They are not as colorful as males, but they have great personalities. Down the road I want to get some wild bettas. They have never been bred as fighting fish so you can keep multiple males and females together. Much bigger fish though, about 6 inches long.

Wow really??
I read that the fancy bettas were bred first for aggression, then they switched it up for looks, but never remedied the aggressive tendencies.

Six inch wild betta- wow that sounds cool! I'm after a male betta for the beautiful fins, so multiple ladyfish are out of the question for me. I was bummed out to find that the rosetail bettas actually have issues with their tails, so I will settle for a healthier half moon betta or something similar.

Care to share any pictures of your fish?
I'd love to see!

[wintergirl]

I used to have two males and a couple female bettas in a 40 gallon long tank. They picked their own areas in the tank and did not fight. I had other fish in there too. I think if you have enough area they get along fine.