I saw the saddest thing today

[kimt]

I went to our local big box store for groceries today and swung by the pet stuff to check out the bettas and tanks and stuff. I've got one betta and I want another. I always check out tanks and stuff looking for the best price. I saw a tiny tank labeled for bettas. It was about a half gallon size and it was divided so you could put two bettas in it The worst part was the directions on the box said you only needed to change out 1/3 of the water 2-3 times a month! It made me sad because some person who doesn't know any better is going to buy that tank and plunk two more bettas into it and let them spend their days in a tiny dirty tank.

[kyle89]

Yeah just like them fancy cube tanks. All about the money for the companies :(

[jadaBlu]

You should find a short caresheet that can be photo copied and leave several copys at the store with a link to this website. Another idea for people if people really wanted to help they could print business cards with brief care tips and a link for this website on it and leave them in pet stores by the bettas. They can be printed on a home printer or Vista print offers free or inexpensive business cards.

[Picasso84]

I'm not sure u should write down this web site, b/c it might cause some legal issues for this forum (not sure what exactly/specifically, but u should ask the mods before u write down this web site) I like the idea of care sheets, because I've seen the same type of tanks in other stores, and I think it's just terrible to think about all those bettas suffering unnecessarily... I do believe in spreading the word on how to care for this species properly, I just wouldn't want to cause problems for a site that is as wonderful as this is :)

I could be wrong about the liability, but just in case, if it were me, I would wanna ask someone who might know before I did anything... ya know? :)

[AyalaCookiejar]

The inadequate tanks sold at pet stores are a common topic here. I'm not sure why there would be any legal trouble?

If anything, I think the companies that make the products should be in legal trouble for putting out false information on proper care.

[Polkadot]

It makes me angry/sad seeing those tiny cubes for sale too.Like you said,people who don't realise would believe the myth that Bettas like tiny spaces & would think they are doing the right thing.I saw some for sale just today when I was shopping in the pet section at Big W.I feel like writing on the boxes something like 'Please don't buy these they are cruel.' The Pet store where I buy my fishies also sell those little glass jar things (which I wish they didn't) and they sometimes have sales where you get a free Betta when you buy one.I just hope that if anyone does buy those that they will want to learn more about their little Betta friend & would hopefully find a great site like this one and realise they should upgrade to a proper sized tank.Some good news though is that I noticed recently at our Pet store that they are now stocking a 10 litre aquarium (with filter & heater) called a Betta Kingdom.So fingers crossed they will start to completely phase out the tiny cubes.

[AyalaCookiejar]

I think people like the idea of thinking bettas like tiny spaces. Even when I was five, I thought a half gallon or smaller was too small. But people also like the idea of a decoration pet, and thinking that they are very simple.

[kyle89]

We originally bought a 1 gallon minibow but i bought the tetra 5 gallon led kit at Walmart for 2 dollars less than the minibow and squishy loves the space. A standardized betta care sheet should be at every store.

[juju]

Unfortunately that's how it is with a lot of pets. When I had a rabbit, I was shocked to discover that a lot of foods sold for them contained corn...which can block their entire GI tract and kill them. It makes me really sad that people have been doing things like this for so long and getting away with it. And not even the pet store employees know anything about proper care, so the only place for pet owners to learn are websites like this one. I agree with JadaBlu about the care sheets- maybe even giving them to prospective betta owners would be helpful.

[kimt]

I've seen care sheets at a couple of stores but they seem to have some misinformation on them as well. Like that it is okay to put a betta in a cube and only change the water a few times a month.

I saw an even sadder thing today. Two dead bettas at walmart. I know it happens but it's the first time I have seen it. I actually gasped and said "For shame!" when I saw them. The worker heard me (it's the first time I've even seen anyone working the pet area) and tells me not to worry, they write off the dead fish and they aren't in any pain. I said, "Of course they aren't in pain NOW, they're dead!" Then he told my son they went to fishy heaven and I could have punched him.