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Aussie Betta's

10K views 292 replies 36 participants last post by  Polkadot 
#1 ·
Well hi :wave: Calling all Australians to respond!

Firstly my name's Sarah and i'm from Sydney and i have 4 boys, Waldorf, Statler, Cookie and Chef.

I thought i'd see if we can get a little Aussie group together (not to segregate ourselves but for that added support)

I know we don't have some meds available in Australia and our products differ slightly, i also know some plants are illegal over here. Well that and we don't have evil walmart lol

Sooooo i thought if we have an Aussie thread its be a little more specific for us and our boys!!

I'll start it off by asking what we can use instead of Maracyn II? not that i need it at the moment but i would like to have an emergency kit ready and stocked if anything ever happens to my boys and have read very mixed reviews.

For example i have Primafix, Bettafix and Melafix at home (all small bottles just in case and have never been used) and then i have read they damage the labyrinth organ??? I also have an API freshwater testing kit, AQ salt, Epsom salt, hospital 1 gal tanks and the boys all have their own cup for water changes, i will be buying separate siphons to keep all boys free from contamination and apart from that i think i'm pretty well set, all have their own 2.5 gal tanks, their own heaters, hammocks etc and have just learnt about the importance of climatising them (not just temperature) with water changes and FINALLY after 2 months i have 4 very very happy boys.

Any ways, i would love to hear from all my fellow Aussies and hear your stories of pet store's closer to home.
 
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#3 ·
Oh i didn't think about having things sent over.... i thought maybe they were illegal in Aus for some reason otherwise why wouldn't we have it? or maybe there's an equivalent product we can get here and save you from bring it over?? i really have no idea, Thank you for the idea! I'm just unsure about customs but i'll definitely look into it. =)
 
#5 ·
I really don't know, i'm only 2 months into my Fish keeping life, more experienced members may have a better idea.
 
#6 ·
Hehe Aus and Bomba(cant rememer full user name :S) are Aussie who I see around a lot. They can probably help you out a lot. Where abouts in Sydney are you? We have goldfish at our house. We kind of just leave them outside in a large ceramic pot all year round. We lose a couple of unfortunate ones to kookaburras every year :p.
 
#7 ·
Yes Bombalurina, batmantha, Littlebettafish, Aus and Pasqua are all i know so far. I'm about 45 mins west from the city of Sydney (give or take traffic) (seeing as this is a forum i'm not sure bout giving specific suburbs lol) My parents back onto bushland so they get rainbow lorikeets and Kookaburras all year round. So pretty.
 
#9 ·
haha close.... but i know all those areas very very well haha
 
#10 ·
Don't try and bring medications into Australia. A lot of what you can get overseas contains ingredients that are banned for over the counter sale and only available by a vet prescription.

I use Big L (pig and poultry) for internal parasites, and the Waterlife brand of medications (protozin, myxazin etc.) to treat other problems. Otherwise I think you need to go to your vet or possibly a larger LFS to get anything else.

I've used melafix and pimafix before and while they didn't kill or even adversely harm my bettas, they did nothing to slow infection or speed up healing either.

I'm down in Melbourne, so a bit far from everyone else. The betta scene seems to be better up in QLD and even NSW than it is here.
 
#15 ·
Aquadisiac without a doubt for Betta's! I'm yet to see a store take better care of their Betta's than there.

Hurstville Aquarium (hurstville) or City pet and Aquarium (Blacktown) for accessories and Tanks. Heaters are $20 for adjustable (25w aqua one) or $30 non adjustable (10w marina) and they are the best i can find so far. and i've been visiting aquariums and fish stores every weekend for the last 2 months, calling around, getting prices... best i can find so far.

You may find bits and pieces cheaper at either Petbarn or Petcare2000 but they are general pet stores and although they have live fish take atrocious care of them, as in they are in those round shallow plastic "take away" food containers and don't get water changes.

I definitely recommend Hurstville and Blacktown for supplies and Aquadisiac for Betta's.
 
#12 ·
Hi LBF, Thanks heaps for the meds advice, i figured it'd be illegal like many of the surface plants so thanks for confirming.

So far we have VIC, NT and NSW, i'm not sure about QLD yet. I've found a FANTASTIC store in SYD (Aquadisiac - Surry Hills Sydney) that has the most diverse range of Betta's and takes pride and care of them all, it's a bit far from home but well worth the trip.

Next time i take my pup to the vet i'll ask about fish meds as well. I've been to at least 10 different aquarium and pet stores and haven't seen much (unless it's all hidden behind the counter) so i appreciate the direction :-D
 
#16 ·
hmm i'm yet to visit those ones, They're on the list for next weekend as i'm away this long weekend. Thanks so much :-D
 
#18 ·
Well Hurstville and Blacktown are right next to the stations, I saw 2 DTVT's a few H/moons and a few Giants at Blacktown last night actually. i gotta pay off the Credit card before i buy any more.... sigh.
 
#20 ·
Melbourne's northern suburbs here!

I think part of the reason the betta 'scene' is more active up north is that it's so darned cold down here!.. I hate winter.. lugging a betta to a show in the cold doesn't sound too appealing.

The other week I had a new bed delivered, the company was late coming, it was evening and I had my tank lights on. The couple (family business) who arrived with the bed immediately stepped toward Cleo's tank, lol - "Oh, we had bettas, we miss them!" and then we talked for about half an hour about our fish.. they decided they were going to get another.. then remembered we were meant to be doing business!

Was funny, but made me wish there was an informal sort of betta-lover's group (that I could get to, with no car!) for discussions/swaps/ etc. It was so nice to chat away with people who truly loved their fish.

Great to see so many Aussies here, and yes, good to have those alternate medications.. I've used Myxazin & Protozin.. Protozin kills ich dead, amazing stuff. I'm yet to find the pig&poultry treatment, but sooner or later I'm sure I'll come across it and stock up.

http://aquagreen.com.au is a great place to get native plants, fish and inverts. I emailed Dave there (they're in NT I believe..) re low-light plants, and he was really nice, gave a recommended list and a good price. He has a really good reputation, as well. for sales/shipping and the like. When I do my NPT later this year (pending a house move..), I want to make it a native tank and I've been after a place to get long-armed shrimp for ages, so that was all super helpful.
 
#23 ·
Ammonia sink?? I don't have any live plants, I didn't think I could with barely any natural light or my 9L tank (man it's good to speak metric hahaha) perhaps there's an option after all???

HI AUS!!!!! Lovely for you to join us, I'm excited about this thread!!!!
 
#22 ·
Brissie girl here! I've only got the one fish so far and am still trying to figure everything out so some tips from Aussie locals would really help!

There's an aquarium store reasonably close to my place, Aquarama, that is where I got Tully from. I went there the other day to see if they had any plants for my new tank and they were quite expensive I think, but I don't really know where else to go. The betta cups also seemed very dirty... Which was very disappointing. I'd love to get another fish but want to get it from somewhere they look after the fish!!
 
#25 ·
I like the look of java fern. I'm still considering putting it in the betta tank, it always looks nice when I see it in the shops but then they always do :)
 
#26 ·
aokashi - it'd be cool if we get a plant ID on that floating weed - State laws also restrict some plants.. it'd be best to check before I hassle you for some of that! I'd be happy to send you some $ by paypal to cover postage, if it's all a-okay. That lotus is stunning, by the way! We had them wild on our duck pond when I was a kid, white ones.. they were considered a pest. :lol: But I loved them.

Nice to be here, Sarah! I'm excited about it, too. I'm hoping a few more Melbourne folks hop in. It'd be great to know some more locals. And susswasstertang (freshwater 'seaweed') also tolerates low light. Mine's going nuts in the dingiest corners of Cleo's (possibly slighty over-planted atm) tank. Just tie it gently in a bunch so it doesn't break up all over the tank.. Java moss has been proven to lower ammonia levels by a bit, best stuff ever for low light.. You might consider a few small LED lamps if you wanted plants though.. I use the ones that came with my Dymax tanks, 6500K LED, they screw-clamp to the sump section at the back. You can get strips as well.. I'm finding them good for small tanks, the plants are thriving. Cost about $12-15.

Welcome, amynuss! Nice to meet you. My best advice as a fellow noob is: don't panic! lol. It all seems very overwhelming at first.. If you buy plants from the LFS/pet store, be aware that quite a few are not actually aquatic plants.. they'll eventually die and rot, submerged. Good ones for betta tanks (worth the hideous cost of shop prices) are java moss and wisteria. Depends on your set-up, as to which plants will suit.. whether you have lights/natural light/temps/etc. Maybe there's some people local to you on here who could post a few..
 
#29 ·
Thank you, Phanta is my first, I was looking around and saw him, my giant purplish boy and couldn't help myself, I had to buy him :)
 
#28 ·
I'll try to ID it when I get back to the Aussielands. My mom got it up near New Castle somewhere, there apparently is a place that specializes in water lily and ponds up there. I think we also have some other weeds growing, i'll see what we have in there when I get back in a week or so.
 
#31 ·
Awesome. It's native down here, too, so should be okay.

While researching that, I found this list of prohibited plants - it gives a list of States per plant, which might be handy when shipping/sharing plants:

http://www.hypervision.com.au/aquarium/topics/plants/prohibited.htm

Interesting that it produces nitrogen.. I haven't found any problems cited for aquarium vs pond use.. so aokashi, PM me your paypal details when you're ready, I'll send you some monies for shipping and my addy. Thank you, this will probably go very well in my larger NPT when it's ready.. so pretty, too! :)

And here's aquagreen's catalogue, the pinnata is listed there, too:
http://www.aquagreen.com.au/catalog.html
 
#32 ·
Dave is great. I get all my natives (plants and fish) off him and am waiting until he gets back from his latest trip so I can get some get some more stock for my latest set-up.

Azolla can be annoying in a tank setting as if it dies off it leaves a huge mess all over your glass. It is apparently a great fertiliser so any excess goes great chucked on the garden.

Amynuss if you are in Brissy have you ever dropped into Jodi-Lea's shop in Annerley? She supplies show-quality bettas and I'm jealous of anyone who lives within driving distance of her store.
 
#33 ·
LBF, I've not heard of Jodi-Lea's store! I live on the northside of Brisbane without a licence, but might be able to convince my partner to drive me..! Does she sell just bettas or other fish/plants/aquarium stuff? The website is down at the moment :p

Aus, I just bought a Blue Planet 20L tank that comes with a light in the hood. I've been recommended by someone else on the forum to get low light plants. Am I better off buying them from my LPS/LFS or from that aquagreen online store? I'm going to my LPS today to pick up some sand and a gravel vac. I'm going to try and set up an Egyptian theme in my tank. Where do you guys usually buy tank decorations and ornaments from? Can they just be from Crazy Clarks or do I need to buy stuff specifically intended for fish tanks?
 
#34 · (Edited)
Hi amynuss. Re the ornaments, the research I've done suggests being careful with what you put in the tank - some pottery glazes and non-aquarium ornament paints contain lead, zinc, all kinds of heavy metals and stuff that can leach out into water and some plastics/paints release toxins when heated even a little bit. Basically, anything classed as 'food grade' is okay, as well as stuff sold specifically for tanks. I haven't seen much in the way of Egyptian ornaments.. BUT I did this...

.. search on Google here..


.. and found a stack of awesome tank ornaments on ebay! So maybe there's a pile of stuff there you might like that's safe for fishies.

I'm not huge on ornaments.. I like natural-looking tanks, but the ones I have bought have been from LFS. Now I want an Egyptian urn.:cool:

Just try to choose ones that look smooth not rough or jagged, to prevent fin rips.

As for plants.. I hate buying from my LFS.. they keep fish in with the plants now, so goodness knows what's all over them. If you buy from LFS/LPS, quarantine the plants for a week or so, just in case of ich or something hanging onto it, and check them for tiny snails - I've had more than one hitch-hiker...

Aquagreen's not anywhere cheaper, on the whole, with shipping considered but you can be sure of truly aquatic and not semi-aquatic plants, and have the option of native plants as well. Plus, supporting a good, ethical fish person. =P

ETA: oh, and do let us know how the tank works out, I've not heard of Blue Planet..

And cheers, LBF, for the azolla tip.
 
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