Post pictures of decorations that may harm your betta..

[MSG]

Since most bettas have long flowy fins, they have a tendency to get themselves snagged on things when they swim by...

Also in their natural environment, bettas are hunters. They NEED to explore their environment to locate various insects and microorganisms. Any caves/houses/logs you provide for them, they'll generally will take an interest in & investigate. I find this sort of behavior fun to watch, but also disconcerting when I hear stories of how they end up injured or worse missing/trapped.

Since I just experienced the problem with one of my fish, I thought everyone else who's new to bettas might be able to benefit.

Here's a few accessories I've encountered that I determined weren't safe. (Keep in mind these decorations may work fine for other fish though.)

• The first row was an ornament that his previous owner used to decorate his oversized wine glass. Notice how the paint was flaking off? Not a good sign. After I tested his water, I gave away the rest.

• The 2nd row is just ornaments that I had sharp edges or the paint used on the ornament flaked off... I was planning to give the castle away, but I broke it by accident when I was tossing plastic drink containers into the recycling bin. The plastic plants were just hideous and had a ton of defects in addition to being sharp.

• The last row is the plastic lock rock kit from Penn Plax that one of the girls wedged themselves into. They make some of the worst decorations I've seen but most people buy their products because they're cheaper than most.

Top fin is the another brand that manufactures a lot of AQ decor that I've found to be problematic.

• Feel free to post PHOTOS or LINKS to any other decorations that you've had issues with.

[Silverfang]

This piece... not so much dangerous, but it floats... shame, it was smooth and soft. http://www.petsmart.com/product/inde...932&lmdn=Theme

And one to add to the list of top fin failures. Chipping/flaking paint. Shame, Shelly rather enjoyed it. http://www.petsmart.com/product/inde...ductId=3093700

[MSG]

Thanks for the links. I wouldn't buy those decorations based on the way they looked. The plastic stacked rocks look too fake. I would rather attempt to construct that with river rocks & silicone. Couldn't be that hard, right?

Earlier today, I took a stroll through the reptile section, they had a lot of decorations that I liked, but noticed on some they mentioned there was a antimicrobial paint used on the decoration, I'm going to call the company on the tag sometime this week, to make sure.

[Sceven]

I was pretty upset about the Imortal statue myself. I had it for 3 months before it started flaking off. I thought I was in the clear. Its small enough I might try to repair it and just have it on the outside of Roschach's tank.

[labloverl]

This is a great idea for a thread. I'd also love to see plants that other's found harmful to betta fins.

[mkayum]

Plastic plants are likely to rip/torn the fins.

Just watch out for any sharp edges from driftwoods. I would suggest anyone to inspect it carefully and feel it. It must be smooth and does not have any sharp edges. It can be added to the betta's tank. It's used for betta to hide or used for plants to anchor itself on the driftwood. I did that and one of the petco's employee thought I was strange because I was very picky about finding the best driftwood. lol. I found a big and better driftwood for a low price. lol.


EDIT:

Watch out for terra clay pots. They have the drainage holes and it must be filled with aquarium silicone or anything that are safe for aquarium to prevent the curious betta from coming in it and get stuck.

I'm sure that someone will post the picture of the clay pots just to show the example.


This is a wonderful thread! Very helpful!