no more bubble nests?

[cyrina116]

My male betta has stopped making bubble nests. is that normal? i've had him about 7 months now, and he used to make a bubble nest every few days. Now he's stopped all together. He's still very active and swims around his tank like normal, just no bubbles.

Do the guys go through "middle age" and stop making bubbles at some point?

[JMeenen]

He is fine..He will probebly make another at some point..Don't worry

[stephenmontero]

i am sure he is fine he's just taking a break

[Meatpuppet]

i wouldnt worry much if he's acting normal

[Neo]

maybe he found some other hobby, i would worry either

[okiemavis]

I agree with all the above posts, if he's still acting happy, eating, etc he's just fine. Also, in his little jar at the fish store he was exposed to lots of other bettas, both male and female. He probably has forgotten some of his breeding instincts since he's been away from other bettas for so long. Not that this is a bad thing, bettas aren't meant to constantly be exposed to each other in the wild. But I wouldn't be surprised if you put a mirror up to his tank for a few minutes (not something to do often, it can become stressful!) he would start building bubble nests again. Don't take any of this as solid fact, but it's just me and my experience talking here.

[bettaboy]

Where did you buy the betta? If the answer is a pet store, or a store in general... your betta is old. Probably was 12 months old at time of purchase, so is 19 months now. Bettas live for 2 - 3 years, and are not sexually active or physically active in the later part of their lives. They also blow bubble nests to mark the territory. In the wild, old bettas will loose their territories when challenged by younger males, because younger males are full of testosterone and life. Older males are just.... boring. They don't make good pets, breeders, or anything, really...

[okiemavis]

I've heard the 2-3 year lifespan, but I also know of many people that keep bettas for 4-5 years, it really depends on how well looked after they are. I know bettababy has spoken of keeping many fish for as long as 5 years.

I disagree that older bettas are boring, perhaps they are slower moving than their younger counterparts, but they are still interesting, beautiful and peaceful fish. It certainly seems wrong to take a fish in and commit to care for, only to loose appreciation for it as it goes through the expected cycle of life.