So i've always had female bettas. Not sure why, I think I just felt called to them because, generally, people prefer males and they get forgotten. So many people have seen my females and asked me why it's so small, what's wrong with it, etc. They don't even realize that female bettas exist.
I just got my first male betta. I ended up with an extra 2.5 gallon tank, so I decided to get a male and build him a beautiful home. He has black sand, a big cave, some silk flowers to hide in, as well as live java fern and some wisteria. He has a mini heater that so far doesn't really seem to be doing a great job (so that might get upgraded if it doesn't kick in) so his water is around 74 degrees. I'm not filtering it because I odn't have a filter small enough and it's such a small tank that I don't mind doing a lot of water changes.
I'm not sure what kind of behavior to expect from him in the first few days. I got him yesterday afternoon, so it's been about 24 hours that he's been in his new home. He doesn't really seem to be eating yet, and he'll mostly hide in his cave or stay very still somewhere in the tank. He's still pretty skiddish when I get close to him. I did discover when I got home from work today that he's already made quite a bit of progress on a bubble nest, which surprised me because I've never had males so I've never dealt with bubble nests before. Is this normal? It seems pretty quick to have started one. I'm taking it as a sign that he actually is quite happy in his new home, and isn't eating because he's still adjusting?
I'm mostly just looking for some reassurance that his behavior is on the good side of adjustment and I shouldn't worry.
Thanks!
I just got my first male betta. I ended up with an extra 2.5 gallon tank, so I decided to get a male and build him a beautiful home. He has black sand, a big cave, some silk flowers to hide in, as well as live java fern and some wisteria. He has a mini heater that so far doesn't really seem to be doing a great job (so that might get upgraded if it doesn't kick in) so his water is around 74 degrees. I'm not filtering it because I odn't have a filter small enough and it's such a small tank that I don't mind doing a lot of water changes.
I'm not sure what kind of behavior to expect from him in the first few days. I got him yesterday afternoon, so it's been about 24 hours that he's been in his new home. He doesn't really seem to be eating yet, and he'll mostly hide in his cave or stay very still somewhere in the tank. He's still pretty skiddish when I get close to him. I did discover when I got home from work today that he's already made quite a bit of progress on a bubble nest, which surprised me because I've never had males so I've never dealt with bubble nests before. Is this normal? It seems pretty quick to have started one. I'm taking it as a sign that he actually is quite happy in his new home, and isn't eating because he's still adjusting?
I'm mostly just looking for some reassurance that his behavior is on the good side of adjustment and I shouldn't worry.
Thanks!