Hello

[Otterfun]

I am new to betta fish ownership.

My boss gave Fred, a red VT, to me for Christmas. He came in a 16oz fish bowl half filled with glass marbles and Hikari pellets that will last a long long time or until it gets moldy, whichever comes first.

I then read that they need space from this column. So I carelessly got him a 1-gal tank.



This is Fred in a 1-gal corner tank, cold & miserable (76F). Then he got fin rot, all in a matter of 2 weeks. Thanks to this bb and internet, I am able to better take care of him. He has a personality already and we "bonded". But I am not as BFF as Fred is with Moses, the Marimo Moss. So life is good, but I am not so sure if my wallet would agree

Then I read some more and found out that 1-gal is too small, so I upgraded him to a 2.5 Mini Bow AND a 50W adjustable heater that he loves.

Right now, I am thinking of preparing a 5-gal NPT as I'd like to have some natural plants for him. As for the retired tanks, my blessed church nieces may be getting them in NPT condition for their fishes, that is if I get this right...

[veggiegirl]

Hey there and welcome to the forum!!!! Wow you have a pretty nice boss buying you a betta for christmas!!!! I am glad that you got Fred a bigger tank, I am sure he will be much healthier and happier especially now that he has a heater.

Afraid I only have silk plants so can't really give you any advice on planted tanks...... but I have always thought that they look really nice. The Hikari food is a really good brand so I am sure Fred will love it and it will keep him healthy it is what I feed all of my bettas.

It is also a good I idea to get a filter for Freds tank, bettas require good water quality in order to remain healthy. A big part of this is perfoming regular water changes however a filter is another important factor in keeping them healthy. It does not need to be a fancy expensive filter to do a good job. I use a simple corner/box filter as they seem to suit a bettas needs. Bettas are not the strongest swimmers so they do not like a filter that will create a too strong current in the water. I like box filters because you can adjust how strong they are.

[Oldfishlady]

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

Nice to meet you...

Be sure and post questions in the proper section for best response. We have a lot of members ready and willing to help anyway they can.

Enjoy your stay....Look forward to hearing about all your Betta adventures along with pics....