Saving a Betta fish from a cramped plastic cup at the pet store is a noble move, but only as long as you can provide a better environment for it. This isn't difficult, it's just a matter of getting a hold of the right information. Too many rumors and misconceptions float around in regards to "what's right" and people get caught up in what they've heard and end up killing their pets. Below I've compiled a few starter tips for you and pointed you towards several professional resources that helped saved my fish's life time and time again.
Temperature: Temperature is a subjective topic in the Betta care world, various "caring for betta fish" websites will give you different answers. Any temperature between 76 and 84 degrees Fahrenheit is suitable for every day life from a Betta's point of view, the main thing is to be consistent. Once your heater settles and can keep your tank water at one temperature in the acceptable range, try your best to keep it there, rapid temperature fluctuations can be harmful or even deadly to a Betta fish.
Tank Size and Feeding: These are both somewhat short answer items so I've combined them into one section. A Betta's tank size should be 5 to 10 gallons, larger is OK, smaller is not. Betta's do not live in little tiny ponds as rumored on various Betta forums on the internet. They live in vast expanses of wetlands (BIG puddles) and as such should not be confined to a little 1 gallon bowl. This misconception gets spread because so many Betta owners have no idea what a rice paddie really is, and just consider their Betta's natural habitat to be a shallow, muddy puddle. This is easily disproved by the fact that the Bettas living in large tanks with clean water are nearly always those that live longer.
As far as food goes, I highly recommend pellets for two reasons. They are well balanced and contains everything your fish needs in it's diet, and also that they are roughly the same size as one another. What does this mean? It means that you will be able to more easily ration your Betta's food. Two pellets twice per day (two in the morning and two at night) is plenty!
Live foods are great for snacks, but as far as an every day meal these foods (such as brine worms and blood worms) tends to be very high in protein and fats, but no other nutrients.
Most deadly Betta mistakes occur without the owner even knowing what's going on. To give your pet the best life possible put some effort into learning how to take care of betta a fish and collecting information. When my fish was inexplicably taking a turn for the worse I found my salvation in Betta Care Made Easy, a professional care guide downloadable online. You owe it to your pet to spend time learning. I've reviewed the two resources that I found most helpful in caring for my Betta on my blogsite at http://www.how-to-take-care-of-a-betta-fish.info Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=T_L_Gallamore |
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