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I need info

3K views 33 replies 12 participants last post by  MrVampire181 
#1 ·
I have 1 male Betta and 1 female Betta in a 1-gallon tank (no divider). They seem to get along fine, but I'm worried that the male might hurt her while I am not in the room. I am not trying to breed them in any way. They are together all day and night. I feed them Betta Bits (no special breeding food). Today, the male was chasing the female around. Is this a sign of aggresion? I need to know if I need to seperate them or keep them together.:question:
 
#3 ·
NEVER KEEP A MALE AND A FEMALE TOGETHER!Sorry but so many people do and it's not good as betta slave said.males live alone or in divided tanks and females live alone or in a sorrority tank with other females.Separate them and do NOT keep males and females together even if they "get along fine".
 
#4 ·
Agreed w/ Naturegirl... I don't mean to come across as rude, but this happens much too often. They may seem fine one day, but the next day you could wake up to find one dead, and/or one injured.

Yes, as NG243 has said, males can be kept in seperate or divided tanks, and female in sororities- 10 gallons and up, 4 or more females (some people say six.)
 
#6 ·
You'll come to find that the people who work at petsmart are idiots. They read a couple books on how Petsmart thinks fish should be cared for and then go to work. If I were you I would report that employee because he/she went against Petsmart recommendation on that one.

Never keep male and female bettas together. They may seem fine now but I guarantee you in time you'll end up with a dead fish.

Also.. 1 gallon is not big enough for even 1 betta, let alone two. Separate them and try to get them each into a 2 gallon or larger tank.
 
#8 ·
You have to separate them if you can't afford two new tanks at least get one so that they can be separated.If your parents don't belive you or won't let you, show them this thread and what everyone is saying.People at petsmart told me a betta was still alive once when it was in gross water and upside down and not moving.They tried to tell me thats how they "sleep" and that if I took him home he would be perfectly healthy:shock:.That shows how much people at petsmart know about bettas.My petsmart is not the worst about the care but the fish was in the back for a long time and was obiously forgotten about.I am sorry the person at petsmart mis led you but they were WRONG! Go back to the store and have your parents complain.....But what ever you do do not keep them together one will die eventually(probably the female) and it super stressful on the fish.
 
#9 ·
Get a plastic bin.. you can get them cheap from the dollar store or wal-mart and they are usually a few gallons. They make great tanks.

You can also get a gallon sized pickle jar and use it as a tank. Find a way to separate them now because otherwise they are going to get hurt. Tell your parents to google betta care and they'll see that these fish can not be kept together.
 
#11 ·
Get a plastic bin.. you can get them cheap from the dollar store or wal-mart and they are usually a few gallons. They make great tanks.
This is what I did for one of mine he is in a 2 gallon jar I got from wal-mart for 9 dollars in the kitchen section;-).
 
#10 ·
I'm in sixth grade, too! (well, i will be starting seventh grade in one week) anyway, yeah, you need to separate them NOW!! i had the same problem with not being able to afford a real tank, but i use the small size critter carrier things that you can buy online or a petco or petsmart for about 6 dollars. they hold about a half gallon of water (with gravel) for now, just seperate them and put one in a cup or something until you can buy a new bowl
 
#12 ·
Look on Kijiji or Craigslist for cheap tanks as well... sometimes you'll find free aquariums. I'm two years older than you are (not much of a difference) and I can afford tanks- They're not that expensive if you know where to look.

And yeah, don't believe the employees at pet stores. They don't know what the heck they're talking about...
 
#34 ·
I'm your age then :)

I'm 13 and in 8th grade starting next week and I save every penny I get to buy my betta stuff, I've even got about $75 to buy another setup!
I'm your age too lol.

Anyway:

Never keep them together. Males and females are only put together for breeding. They will tear eachother up. Humph wise betta breeder has spoken JK. But seriously I've been breeding these fish since I was in 5th grade (I'm now in 8th) so I've seen exactly what these guys can do to each other.

I'm glad you got them seperated. Here's what I do I pretend not to know anything about them and then ask questions at petstores the second they tell me something I wrong I tell them I breed these fish and correct them down to the last little detail.....hehe.

Try informing them about bettas since they are an extrmemely abused fish because people have no idea what they're talking about.
 
#19 ·
You won't have to worry about separating them for much longer as one will soon kill the other and the one that did not die may be injured and stressed and die too.

By your post if you are in 6th grade and your fish die-I don't think you are ready to be a responsible fish owner and maybe need to try again when you are older

or

you are a

Troll.........
 
#22 ·
You not a bad fish owner cause you are concerned and trying to do something about it you were mis informed and you parents like most belive the stupid adults at petstore over the kids that know what they are talking about, but one probably both are going to get injured and very stressed and one maybe both will die if they stay together much longer.
 
#25 ·
I'm sorry to say but your fish are not going to live very long in that set up.

Like I said 1 gallon is too small for 1 fish, let alone two. Without proper room to move around your fish are going to get extremely bored and stressed out. Also with this set up you will have to completely change the water every single day. If you don't, harmful waste products will build up in your tank and will eventually cause your fish to die slow and painful deaths. You also need a heater because bettas are tropical fish and must be kept at constant temperatures of 76-82*F year round, with out that they will have compromised immune systems and will eventually catch disease.

The next time your parents want to get you a pet I would make them seriously consider the care needs of that animal and do research before getting the animal. There is no such thing as a cheap pet and there is no fish on this planet that will be happy in 1/2 gallon of water.
 
#30 ·
I'm sorry to say but your fish are not going to live very long in that set up.

Like I said 1 gallon is too small for 1 fish, let alone two. Without proper room to move around your fish are going to get extremely bored and stressed out. Also with this set up you will have to completely change the water every single day. If you don't, harmful waste products will build up in your tank and will eventually cause your fish to die slow and painful deaths. You also need a heater because bettas are tropical fish and must be kept at constant temperatures of 76-82*F year round, with out that they will have compromised immune systems and will eventually catch disease.

The next time your parents want to get you a pet I would make them seriously consider the care needs of that animal and do research before getting the animal. There is no such thing as a cheap pet and there is no fish on this planet that will be happy in 1/2 gallon of water.
Exactally! once your fish die, I would suggest not getting any other pets until you have enough money and the proper environment for them.Fish are alot of work I used to not know anything about bettas only had two before I knew nothing the first one lived in a .5 gallon "betta kit" I did not know any better I thought that it what they were supossed to live in.We learn by trying so keep trying to be a good fish owner redeem yourself and get them the proper environments.If these guys surrvive save up and keep getting them more stuff I am only 17 and my fish are all separated and in nice environments.The key to parents is just keep trying keep showing them things that bettas need to live seprately and eventually they will come around, hey my mom now has two females(separated) and she is going to do a sorrority tank soon.good luck with your bettas your going to need it.
 
#28 · (Edited)
Agreed with Alex09- I'm not trying to come across as rude, but, as with every pet, you should have done your research before you purchased your bettas.

And yes, a divided one gal will NOT be big enough for the two of them. That's a half gal for both of them. Imagine living in a space that small. They need at least 2 gallons or higher.

If you get an allowance, save up. If not, do some extra work around the house or stuff like that to earn money. That will help you with buying bigger homes for your bettas.
 
#29 ·
When I got my red VT the lady at Petsmart told me I should get a "girlfriend" for him... however I knew this wasn't healthy, so I told her no. You should've kinda read the simplest guide on bettas first; at my Petsmart they have a betta care sheet (although its largely false, it does say males must be kept alone) right next to the bettas.
 
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