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Oh Dear...

2K views 47 replies 15 participants last post by  AyalaCookiejar 
#1 ·
So, quick background story... I currently live with my aunt and we both have Betta tanks. Mine is a 5 gallon waiting to be cycled (so no fish for me just yet) and hers is a 1/2 gallon with a blue VT. I'm fairly certain that she feels that he is 'just a fish' and doesn't need a whole lot of space. I was also the only one to notice when he got fin rot, but luckily, I was able to convince her what it was and he was treated successfully.

She just returned from visiting family, and my cousin has had a Betta for years. (Which I didn't know.) Apparently, he is kept in a bowl and she says she hardly ever changes the water. So, now my aunt is even more convinced that fish don't need fancy things and that her .5 gallon cube is enough.

So, why has that Betta survived for so long? I feel really terrible for him.
 
#3 ·
Isn't that just so frustrating? You can do everything right but they still die.

As a kid I kept a betta in pretty poor condition and it lived over six months. Another that I kept in a goldfish bowl (this was before the internet and good resources!) and he lived a year and a half but was full grown when he was gifted to me.
 
#4 ·
lol I went through a similar issue with mum..my niece had her betta for 4 years in a .5 bowl with minimal water changes. You could tell the fish wasnt happy but he did survive...only helped to convince mum all I do to help my betta thrive is a waste of time and money...crazy aye?
 
#5 · (Edited)
Sometimes it just depends on the fish, they are all different. Some can handle being put into small spaces and some just can't. But a .5 gallon... That is like torture! How would he have room to swim? My parents ALWAYS tell me they are just fish. And I am just like yeah, And I am JUST your kid and the fish make me happy so hush. And they roll their eyes when I tell them all the christmas money I got is going to go to my new spawning tank and new Bettas. And I am just like... You gave me that $180 and I will do what I please with it.


All-in-all, convince her to get you a bigger tank, as your Betta IS not going to be happy in that tiny tank. Won't even be a good place to hide. It could actually end up really really stressed out in that tiny environment. All my Bettas have their own 2.5 gallon and it still feels small to me sometimes.
 
#6 ·
Whenever people say that I always think of this analogy:

Let's say you kept someone in a port-a-potty for about 6 months, feeding them, but not cleaning it. They'd probably survive, but they wouldn't really be living.

Even if the fish only lives for a week, taking proper care shows that the owner cares and wants them to have the best. Anyone that says "it'll be fine" or "it's just a fish" when being told how to care properly have, IMO, failed as pet owners and hobbyists.
 
#7 ·
Whenever people say that I always think of this analogy:

Let's say you kept someone in a port-a-potty for about 6 months, feeding them, but not cleaning it. They'd probably survive, but they wouldn't really be living.

Even if the fish only lives for a week, taking proper care shows that the owner cares and wants them to have the best. Anyone that says "it'll be fine" or "it's just a fish" when being told how to care properly have, IMO, failed as pet owners and hobbyists.
I could not agree with you more.
 
#8 ·
Anyone who doesn't have the time, space or money for any other animal should not own a fish. You don't have to buy food and cat litter all the time like dogs and cats, but the amount of money you need initially for a fish is usually more than most people for some reason are willing to spend. About $50 is all you really need to get a decent sized tank and heater and some food, conditioner and a few decorations. I spend that much in a few weeks on my dog and two cats. After that, all you really need is maybe spend a few extra bucks on your water bill. Or just only flush the toilet every other time you use it and you'll make up for it, haha, (or hand wash dishes instead of using the dishwasher, wash bigger loads of laundry, etc...) It baffles me that people can be so cheap with a fish when it's really a one time expense.
 
#16 ·
This! I started out with a $27 5g kit. Then I had to buy rocks, decorations and a heater, which bumped it up to around $50.

Then I decided that I wanted a larger tank so I could have more than one betta, so I found a 10g kit for $39 on sale at Petco. Then I had to buy the rocks, plants and a better heater. Then I got ANOTHER 10g on sale because I wanted more bettas. Yeah. All in all, I've probably spent over $150 on the homes for six fish. And honestly, if I had space, I would probably get more. It's amazing how addictive it is!
 
#12 ·
I think it has to do with the hardiness of the fish itself, the cold water slowing down its metabolism and a case where in tanks where the water is not often changed the pH drops and most of the ammonia becomes locked into the less toxic form of ammonium.

I think the fish eventually becomes 'accustomed' to these less than ideal conditions (which is what is called 'old tank syndrome'), and so can manage to survive in them. However, when you see the bettas that people have kept for years in unheated and filthy bowls they are generally pretty poorly to look at.

Also no one ever mentions the bettas they have owned that have died after only a short time in these kind of set-ups. If someone wants to prove a point they generally cherry pick the information they provide so that it supports their argument. It would sort of be like me saying the best way to keep a cat is outside, and using our cat who is 14 years old as an example. Yet I fail to mention out of the six cats we have owned, one was hit by a car, the other had her back broken by a dog and the third just vanished one day (please note all our cats except one live strictly inside now, even the 14 year old much as he hates it).

Also usually when people mention the bettas that have died it is usually the store's fault and the fish was sick when they got it. Of course it has nothing to do with the toxic soup it was forced to swim around in.
 
#14 ·
perhaps you can keep an eye out for a suitable alternative ,and give it as a gift. hobby stores have some great and interesting choices. 2+ gallon vases and jars.even big glass cookie jars. i used to work in a restaurant and would use the economy sized pickle/olive jars in a pinch. if you ask around at restaurants someone may have one for free. if cost is an issue.
 
#18 ·
Unfortunately, some people JUST DON'T CARE. Trying to convince them otherwise is about as productive as banging your head against a brick wall. Willful ignorance is how I describe it. These people know they are wrong but it is easier for them to be wrong than it is to go out and take the time to do things properly.

If you purchased a fully-fitted out 10 gallon tank the betta would still probably be as neglected as it is now. Then it would just become an issue of something like 'not enough water changes being done'.

It's a sad fact of life and unfortunately, fish don't even have the sympathy draw that other pets such as cats and dogs do.
 
#22 ·
exactly, disapointed in myself to say so, but for a while Cheng lived in bad conditions (for those of you that saw the thread when I first started out, you know what I'm talking about). She's lived seven years now, sadly sick with dropsy, but she's lived so long, even through those bad conditions.
 
#24 ·
I was thinking about it earlier today and i thinks its a lot of reasons
1 bettas are hardy and have been bred hardy
2 they have nonplants, other, fish, decorations, and sometimes gravel. And why i say this is everytime you put a new fish, plant decoration or anything the more at risk your fish gets that the other fish or plant had been contaminated with disease.
3 this one is a total guess but fish in tiny bowls are trying to stay alive they dont want to die there putting all there energy into living.spoiled bettas have a great life so there swimming aroundhaving fun and it just is easier for themto get sick there used to safe spoiled tanks like show bettas.
 
#26 ·
Carter 2.5 Putting more energy into living would make them more vulnerable. Many of the badly cared for fish have ammonia damage that means the only way they breath is in air. Carter was one of those fish in a bad tank. I got him a bigger tank. He is very lucky he shows no ammonia damage. The only time he bubblenests is when sick. I think the massive buble nesting in bowls is for many Betta a bad sign.
 
#30 ·
For the ten gallon? I could get a ten gallon kit at my walmart for $30, but of course it doesn't come with a filter and also comes with a bunch of useless tropical flakes and tetra water conditioner, so a heater and filter would be another $40 then add in the gravel and the decor and whatever else... It gets expensive regardless, lol, unless you get lucky and have a lot of used items given to you.

I was given a free ten gallon and four gallon tank, both with hoods, but I still had to purchase the filters, heaters, and all decor.
 
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