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Keylaleigh



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 PostPosted: Thu Apr 10, 2014 12:19 pm Reply with quote        
When I have the money, I am considering getting a divided betta tank and two fish to go with it. Possibly a snail too.

I know this is a weird place to ask, but has anyone else had bettas or other fish? I started with two goldfish about four years ago, and loved them dearly until they both passed of old age. The tank was much too large for me to care for alone, so now I'm trying a fish that's more used to something smaller.

So, any fish stories and tips here on Mido?

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neomattlac



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 PostPosted: Thu Apr 10, 2014 4:59 pm Reply with quote        
I've had beta fish before, but they were expensive and died quickly (wasn't an issue with the fish, but rather the algae eater). I didn't think it was worth replacing them.
We do have fancy fantail goldfish right now. One has been with us for a little over a year, and the other one only a few months. I had standard goldfish before the beta fish, and they lived for 4 years, before my parents accidently poisoned the fish (didn't rinse out the tank well enough after cleaning it). Oddly enough, I won those from a spring festival, and they grew from 1/2" to about 3 1/2"+ (well, two did. One died shortly after I got it).
Honestly, I have no idea how these fish are still alive since we forget to feed them more often than we remember.

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Keylaleigh



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 PostPosted: Thu Apr 10, 2014 9:37 pm Reply with quote        
I've honestly found the best way to clean a tank is with Baking Soda. It gets everything out real nicely without the threat of poisoning the fish.

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neomattlac



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 PostPosted: Sat Apr 12, 2014 2:44 am Reply with quote        
Well, too late now, nor was I doing the cleaning. I was off getting my first degree.
I loved the beta fish, but they were super picky anyways.

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fickle



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 PostPosted: Sun Apr 13, 2014 2:13 pm Reply with quote        
ive owned a few beta fishes before, theyre so beautiful. mine didnt last for long :C i actually researched on the internet and everything i thought was right is actually wrong. betta fishes arent used to small spaces, people who care for bettas, collect them, or breed them recommend to place them in a 2 gallon tank at least. they actually like room, the ones put in small tanks dont live as long as ones that are put in plenty of room. one gallon is too small.

their natural environment is almost still water so those pretty fins could break or get caught on filters that suck too fast. theres a specific filter thats safe for tanks with betta fishes. theyre suppose to be slower and dump water back into the tank different than those waterfall type ones. i forget the speed that was recommended but it would be easy to find all the knowledge i found via google search.

they are "pickey," they live in clean environments. since the water isnt moving so much, theres more of a chance for algae and bad germs to make colonies and make them sick, they could get fin rot too. if you ever see any holes or anything odd with the fins, it's probably fin rot. you shouldnt worry about your pretty fishes getting fin rot if the water is changed frequently. about once a week, depends on the size of the tank, the smaller they are, the more frequently you have to clean it. to keep my tank clean, i purchased real aquatic plants, not the fake plastic ones, and a fresh water snail. only one cos they reproduce like crazy. i think i bought an apple snail. apple snails dont have a long lifespan but theyre relatively cheap. oh, and my plant was an argentine sword plant, it did well in room temperature, indirect sunlight. i bought one package that had three little plants in it. i put them in clear shot glasses so i wouldnt root them by taking them out when i cleaned the tank. it keeps the water clear and the snails clean the sides of the tank, they eat anything that grows on it. all of these and a filter means you dont have to clean the tank often.

make sure nothing is topping the surface of the water, betta fishes actually breathe air occasionally. i dont really remember the reason why theyre able to do this, i actually didnt know if the people were serious lol! then i saw my fishes going up to the surface and getting a big gulp of air. they also hang out on the surface of the water. male betta fishes make bubble nests for the ladies, you have to break it if it gets too big that it's covering much of the surface. if theyre hanging out on the bottom, something is wrong, theyre probably sick, who knows, but it's not right. try changing the water or leaving a couple pieces of food.

they dont eat that much, once a day is enough and i would be surprised if it eats more than 5 pieces of food. this might take a little experimenting though. sort of feel it out, if you give them 5 and they didnt eat it all, give them a little less next time. if you give them 5 and a few hours later theyre asking for more food, try and give them a couple more pieces. i knew when mine were hungry when they swam vigorously across the glass of the tank, back and forth. it's really cute, and for such small brains theyre pretty attentive. i saw a video on yt of a betta fish who was trained to go through a hoop for a piece of food. so cute! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ViVXMM0zsQ (also, notice the betta fish is in a big tank with still water, and a slow filter)

despite popular belief, betta fishes can be put in tanks with other fishes. i would suggest running a search for "betta fish compatible tank mates" or something like that if youre interested. the more fish you put in, the larger the tank has to be.

when you clean your tank, dont dump all the water out of it, always leave some of the old water in the tank. leave roughly 1/4 of the water. betta fishes require a healthy colony of germs to be healthy, germs that clean the water and the fish itself. keeps the fish squeaky clean! tap water is a big NO NO, i used filtered water. put the fish in another tank while youre cleaning it. i'd also use the holding tank to put the water i wont dump out too if it's large enough. wait for the temperature to be the same in both tanks before putting them back, when you bring them home too. a big temperature change could come as a big shock to their little fishy bodies.

i think it's great that you'd use baking soda to clean the tank, i think it's safe too. it scratches plastic. glass is better, healthier, for fishy tanks anyways :P i used vinegar, gets slimey stuff off well and washes off completely.

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Saygen40



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 PostPosted: Mon Apr 14, 2014 5:04 pm Reply with quote        
+2 for the Baking Soda and Vinegar idea. Didn't even think of that.

I have had four beta fish over the years: Koh-I-Noor, Gwen, Pillow, and Sespira. All died rather awful fishy deaths - I am a horrible owner.

Koh-I-Noor lived in a split tank, so when his neighbor goldfish died and I didn't change the water quick enough, he bit the bullet.

Gwen became sick from something soon after I cleaned her tank, so I think the culprit was left over soap. :/

Pillow lived for 2 years on a diet of 2 pebbles a week. I was in the midst of heavy science classes too, and didn't change the water nearly often as I should have. He was a trooper. He finally died when I went home for Thanksgiving break and accidentally left his tank next to the window. That break we happened to have a 5 day snow storm. ^^;

Sespira passed away a month ago from unknown causes.

Beta fish come to me to die. ^^;

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lexi luthor
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 PostPosted: Mon Apr 14, 2014 8:05 pm Reply with quote        
Beta fish normally don't have really long lifespans anyways -pats-

Me and my boyfriend just bought a 37 gallon tank, we want glo-fish aaaand, this is our first time with fish so we are like completely stupid and don't know much lmao.

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Saygen40



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 PostPosted: Tue Apr 15, 2014 3:38 pm Reply with quote        
True. I at least provide them with a pretty tank.

Are glow fish those really little tropical fish? The ones that require the salt water tanks?

I've always wanted to get one of those huge tanks and decorate it with Star Wars themes - make sci fi universe with neon fish or something.

On a separate note, there's this:

http://www.spritestitch.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/mario-fish-tank-e1338746330202.jpg

Hell yes.

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fickle



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 PostPosted: Thu Apr 17, 2014 12:25 pm Reply with quote        
betta fishes live for 2-5 years on average, they can live more than 5 years. it depends on the care. i think the most important things are to change the water when it needs to be changed, food, and plenty of space, and you've pretty much guaranteed a long lifespan for the betta fish.

saygen, that would be such an awesome fish tank! though, i'm not into star wars, i'm envisioning the tank and i think itll look cool. then you can name the fish after star wars characters lol.

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Saygen40



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 PostPosted: Thu Apr 17, 2014 2:02 pm Reply with quote        
Haha, right? I could play on the names a little.

Luke Seawalker

Princess Puffer

Darth Water

Then all the ugly fish I'd just call Jar Jar's, and they can roam around together in their own little Jar Jar Binks tribe - annoying all the other fish.

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fickle



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 PostPosted: Fri Apr 18, 2014 12:38 pm Reply with quote        
OMG thats so cute. >.<

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Katsuya



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 PostPosted: Wed Jul 02, 2014 3:08 pm Reply with quote        
Mm, I have a betta... we called them Siamese fighters here. He's a glamorous boy... His body's silver and he has dark red fins edged with black. He shares a tank quite peacefully with ten male guppies, two little corydoras and two kuhli loaches. I love the kuhlis. They're like stripy snakes.
KaceyCat



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 PostPosted: Wed Jul 02, 2014 8:25 pm Reply with quote        
I used to have guppies...They bred like rabbits and soon overfilled the 6-gallon tank we'd put them in. I also had 2 algae eaters. One died, the other ate it, and got a taste for fish. It started hunting down the live guppies, and they learned from it and started hunting each other. The cannibalism was so bad it went from 30 fish (Told you, they breed like nuts!) to 6 fish within a few days. That was the end of us owning fish. We stick to various mammals and reptiles now. Dad draws the line at birds.
Saygen40



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 PostPosted: Thu Jul 03, 2014 1:36 am Reply with quote        
Oh dear god, Tank of Thrones! D:

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Weiss



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 PostPosted: Fri Sep 12, 2014 11:24 am Reply with quote        
I remember when I was younger - a little girl, my Father had some gold fish, they were the type with big eyes and they looked funny, I forgot the name.
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