Introduction

[Bettacouple]

It was a day like any other!

The wife and I were at Walmart buying some necessities and wandering around when we came to the fish aisle. We don't have any pets and have talked about it for awhile, when it came to us... why not a fish? The tanks had a plethora of options but there were some fish in little containers off by themselves. My wife (referred to from here on as 'Lashelle') named them Betta Fish (probably from the sign >.>) and said that they were combative little things and not well-kept in the same tank with the others.

Being entirely novice to owning and caring for a fish I went and got a tank, a small one at 1.5 Gallons. We got some aqua gems and little fake plants along with a couple of types of food that loudly proclaimed were "perfect for your Betta fish!" and picked out one of the solo fish. There was a dark azure one with long and beautiful fins that we selected. Since he couldn't be housed with other fish, we decided to name him "The Highlander" (in that there can be only one).

On getting home we set up the tank and searched the internet on how to take care of him and found this website. We read through many of the articles (and are still doing so) and found just a wealth of useful information and a surprising sense of community.

We're excited to have our new Betta Fish 'The Highlander' and glad to be part of the community, and will be learning as we go.

~Michael & Lashelle

[Bettanewbie60]

Originally Posted by Bettacouple

It was a day like any other!

The wife and I were at Walmart buying some necessities and wandering around when we came to the fish aisle. We don't have any pets and have talked about it for awhile, when it came to us... why not a fish? The tanks had a plethora of options but there were some fish in little containers off by themselves. My wife (referred to from here on as 'Lashelle') named them Betta Fish (probably from the sign >.>) and said that they were combative little things and not well-kept in the same tank with the others.

Being entirely novice to owning and caring for a fish I went and got a tank, a small one at 1.5 Gallons. We got some aqua gems and little fake plants along with a couple of types of food that loudly proclaimed were "perfect for your Betta fish!" and picked out one of the solo fish. There was a dark azure one with long and beautiful fins that we selected. Since he couldn't be housed with other fish, we decided to name him "The Highlander" (in that there can be only one).

On getting home we set up the tank and searched the internet on how to take care of him and found this website. We read through many of the articles (and are still doing so) and found just a wealth of useful information and a surprising sense of community.

We're excited to have our new Betta Fish 'The Highlander' and glad to be part of the community, and will be learning as we go.

~Michael & Lashelle

Welcome to the forum and the wonderful/addictive world of betta keeping!

[Romad]

Hello to both of you and welcome to the forum

1.5 gallons is a good starting tank - just remember to do frequent water changes and use a good water conditioner like Seachem Prime or API Stress Coat.

I see 2.5 gallon mini-bow tanks on Craigslist all day long. You can have a 25w submersible heater in these with no problems and still pleny of room for your fishy friends to swim around in.

We all started out with "one" betta and as I'm sure you're finding out, they can be addictive. Good luck with your new boy and ask anything you need along the way.

[Bettacouple]

So, we went to a pet store to get some extra stuff for him. One thing lead to another and we have a ten gallon tank with a deluxe filtration system, heater and a sticky-thing for gauging temperature. After seeing how many people introduced snails as a measure of companionship that was what we were hoping to get, but the pet shop employee told us to wait a month or so for algae to build up so the snail would have something to eat.

The Betta Fish IS quite addictive and we're enjoying it immensely.

~Lashelle

[Hershey]

Originally Posted by Bettacouple

So, we went to a pet store to get some extra stuff for him. One thing lead to another and we have a ten gallon tank with a deluxe filtration system, heater and a sticky-thing for gauging temperature. After seeing how many people introduced snails as a measure of companionship that was what we were hoping to get, but the pet shop employee told us to wait a month or so for algae to build up so the snail would have something to eat.

The Betta Fish IS quite addictive and we're enjoying it immensely.

~Lashelle

You don't have to wait (unless you want to) Just buy algae wafers or use fresh veggies like lettuce. My betta has no interest in the wafers, so you may not have to worry about yours devouring it.

[Oldfishlady]

Welcome to the forum and to the wonderful world of Betta keeping....

Enjoy your stay.....

Be sure and post questions in the proper section for best response.....

[eaturbyfill]

Hello and welcome to the forum!

[dramaqueen]

Hello and welcome to the forum.

[Maddybelle]

Welcome! Beware the Betta Fever! I started out with one, then two, now 6 adults and a spawn of babies! LOL, I'm the crazy snail lady, so if you want to know about snails/want to get some well bred ones, just PM me. I feed mine guinea pig pellets and veggie pellets - my bettas actually love to eat the veggie pellets, too. 0_o

[indjo]

Hello to both of you, welcome to the forum.