New owner

[jmurph]

Hi,
My daughter bought herself a Betta fish (Fred) that she just loves and is taking great care of. He has a great personality and has really perked up. She wanted him to have a bigger "house" so for Christmas we got her a 1-gallon tank. She wants Fred to have a friend but I'm unsure what a Betta is compatible with and if anything else should be added to a tank that size. We've been told many different things at the pet store as far as what they are and are not compatible with so I'm confused...

Thanks in Advance for any help!

[crowntail lover]

Hello and Welcom to the forum.

You wont be able to add any tankmates in with him if he is housed in a 1g.. Its way too small..You could look into having tankmates in a 5g+ tank.
I have a few questions...How many days a week do you do water changes? Are you using water conditionar? And is there a heater in the tank/bowl? And what are you feeding the Betta?

[jmurph]

I was thinking it was probably too small... even for like a snail though?? We change the water and clean the tank and all its contents once a week. Yes we use water conditioner. It's just in a little bowl right now so we are actually using a heating pad to keep him warm and it's working wonders. He's so much happier than he was the 1st couple of days. She feeds him the beta pellets and blood worms.

[crowntail lover]

You will need to do water changes atleast 5 times a week. And I would recommend buying a heater for the bowl.. But other than that..you seem to be taking good care of him! :]

[Oldfishlady]

In a 1g unfilter tank with one adult Betta-water quality can be maintained with twice weekly water changes-1-50% and 1-100% provided that uneaten food is removed and the Betta is not over fed...maintain water temp in the 76-80F range and make sure to keep the water temp within a couple of degrees between new and old water especially with the 100% water change to prevent any temp related problems and use a good dechlorinater with any new water added to the fish if on city water supply.....

As far as tank mates-shrimp or snails will work, however, this can very with the Betta personality...some are more tolerant than others and if you add shrimp I would start with ghost shrimp just in case he eats them (they are cheaper) and provide some good hiding places for them and if successful leaving some of the uneaten food would be okay since they will eat it up...same with snails......

Is this a really young daughter and you will be providing the care?....if so....neat...get them started young in the hobby and hopefully both you and your daughter will grow and get more fish and tanks...laffs.....wish my son liked the hobby....lol....

At anytime the Betta has any behavior changes-make a water change to rule water quality out as the cause....

Love to see some pics.....

[jmurph]

Yes she's 7 and doing an amazing job. I thought I would have to do more than I actually have, everytime I ask her if she has fed him or anything.. it's already done.
Thank you guys so much for your input. Had I not thought to look into the compatibility issue, we would have just listened to the guy at the pet store and put a female in there with him and things could have been disasterous for the girl fishy and heartbreaking for my daughter.

[shinybetta]

Originally Posted by jmurph

Yes she's 7 and doing an amazing job. I thought I would have to do more than I actually have, everytime I ask her if she has fed him or anything.. it's already done.
Thank you guys so much for your input. Had I not thought to look into the compatibility issue, we would have just listened to the guy at the pet store and put a female in there with him and things could have been disasterous for the girl fishy and heartbreaking for my daughter.

Yah, he could of killed her. Glad you posted first. Most pet stores now nothing about bettas.

[dramaqueen]

Hello and welcome to the forum.

[fredythefish]

Hi! My betta's name is Fred too! Why not a 2 gallon tank? It's not that much more expensive...