New about betta care....please help :)

[intyel94]

Hi everyone,
I am very new in any fish care, so please help with the information...

We bought our 1st fish today in petco. Yesterday we set up 1 gallon aquarium.....and today I brought it home. It's crown-tail betta male.
My 7 y old daughter named it "Ivan II" :):).
It looks absolutely happy and active, always playing, going up & down in the tank, since we put it in the tank it's tail and fins became really beautiful :)

Because we know very little about fish my questions:

- How many times per day (or week) should I feed it?
Yesterday at petco they said 3 times a week, but today they told..3 times a day, so I am confused....
I gave 2 round tiny pieces of Betta Bio-Gold tonight.
Ivan ate them, but 2nd piece ate kind of slow like he is not hungry :)

- What food is best (and most important for me) where shoud I get it?
On FAQ I ve read that live food (as worms, etc) better than fish-food
from the store... What food do you feed your bettas?

- When we install the aquarium, we also put 3 tall fake plants.
They are tall and he can hide between them, but he has quite outgoing
tamper ...:) so he is not often hides..:)
What live plants are better for bettas?

- Should I turn off the light in the aquarium when I go to sleep or it needs
to be on when it's night and dark?

Please help with my questions, , sorry if they are stupid...We are very new about pets (fishes)...

Thank you for help...

[dramaqueen]

Hello and welcome to the forum. Most people feed their bettas 2-3 pellets twice a day. Don't be surprised if he doesn't eat much at first. This happens a lot with new fish. Hikari betta bio gold is a good brand. That's what I feed mine. I also feed mine freeze dried foods like daphnia, bloodworms and brine shrimp. I feed these foods once a week. Freeze dried food needs to be rehydrated to prevent digestive problems. You can also get these foods in frozen form. Java moss and water sprite are two good live plants. Someone else will have to tell you more about plants since I don't know much about them.I would turn the lights off at night. Fish need the day/night cycle just like we do. I hope this helps.

[dr2b]

I would not doing live plants in a 1 gallon tank since it will have constantly changing water parameters from frequent water changes. However, with that said Cryptocoryne wendtii is a very hardy plant along with Java moss and Water sprite. I'm so glad your new boy is eating for you so soon - I've always had so many problems making them eat when I first get them. I feed mine Hikari Bio-Gold also and he loves it. Dramaqueen covered everything for you though! :)

[BettaxFishxCrazy]

I agree with both DQ and dr2b. I would get him a 2 or 2.5G if you can, that's the ideal tank size for them. You need to clean the 1G two to three times a week 100% (meaning taking the fish and plants out). You can also take the rocks on the bottom out, but I leave them in and just sift through it with my hands.

[Zenandra]

Welcome!! Do you have a heater for him? Bettas need water temps of 76-82 degrees to remain healthy and active. Bio-gold is a great brand! I feed my bettas a mix of betta bio-gold and topfin color enhancing betta pellets. Along with occasional snacks of thawed frozen bloodworms, brine shrimp and daphnia.

[kelly528]

Originally Posted by intyel94

Hi everyone,
I am very new in any fish care, so please help with the information...

We bought our 1st fish today in petco. Yesterday we set up 1 gallon aquarium.....and today I brought it home. It's crown-tail betta male.
My 7 y old daughter named it "Ivan II" :):).
It looks absolutely happy and active, always playing, going up & down in the tank, since we put it in the tank it's tail and fins became really beautiful :)

Because we know very little about fish my questions:

- How many times per day (or week) should I feed it?
Yesterday at petco they said 3 times a week, but today they told..3 times a day, so I am confused....

Although bettas can last for weeks without food (which is a good reason never to pollute your tank with those horrid vacation-feeders) daily feedings are routine in fishkeeping. A good guideline is that a betta's stomach is roughly the size of their eye. 2-3 pellets should suffice while he is smaller but when he gets bigger or if you upgrade the tank and give him room to exercise you may want to feed him 4-5 per day.

I gave 2 round tiny pieces of Betta Bio-Gold tonight.
Ivan ate them, but 2nd piece ate kind of slow like he is not hungry :)

- What food is best (and most important for me) where shoud I get it?
On FAQ I ve read that live food (as worms, etc) better than fish-food
from the store... What food do you feed your bettas?

You are feeding him the best food lol! Other good dietary supplement include live and frozen foods. You can buy frozen from Hikari (the manufacturers of Bio-Gold) in blister packs if you are not keen on live. In my opinion the only difference between the two is that wiggly food is better for tempting fry or picky fish to eat. I suggest you try out Hikari Frozen Bloodworms, Tubifex Worms and Daphnia a few times per week. Krill is also a good source of carotenoids, which promote healthy, vibrant scales.

- When we install the aquarium, we also put 3 tall fake plants.
They are tall and he can hide between them, but he has quite outgoing
tamper ...:) so he is not often hides..:)
What live plants are better for bettas?

Good call-- bettas are very fond of plants, being found naturally in flooded fields. If you want to try live plants, only go for very low-light varieties. Anything medium or high requires intense flourescent lighting and sometimes a pressurized CO2 device. Java moss, java fern, anubias species and cryptocoryne species are all foolproof.

- Should I turn off the light in the aquarium when I go to sleep or it needs
to be on when it's night and dark?

Honestly unless you are growing higher maintenance plants I would only leave the lights on for viewing. Bettas are dark-water fish and appreciate their shade. The maximum amount of light recommended for aquariums is 8 hours, but for bettas I never use more than 6 hours of light, even with plants.

Also, as dr2b said water parameters are very volatile in 1g tanks and this is good for neither bettas nor plants. My sincerest recommendation is that you take the 1g back to the store and pick up a 2.5 or preferably 5g tank instead. In larger volumes of water dissolved fish waste such as ammonia and nitrite are more dilute and therefore require less maintenance. In a 1g you would need to change the water every 1-2 days to keep the ammonia below toxic levels wheras in a 5g you can easily get away with cleaning it once a week. In fact, many hobbyists (including myself) enjoy small tanks because of the challenge they provide! But I definitely would not recommend smaller tanks for the beginner!

[intyel94]

Originally Posted by Zenandra

Welcome!! Do you have a heater for him? Bettas need water temps of 76-82 degrees to remain healthy and active. Bio-gold is a great brand! I feed my bettas a mix of betta bio-gold and topfin color enhancing betta pellets. Along with occasional snacks of thawed frozen bloodworms, brine shrimp and daphnia.

Thank you guys all for answers,

Zenandra, Can I once in a while... buy frozen shrimp at safeway and give a little tiny piece to him or I must buy special frozen food @ hikari?

Or can I buy brine shrimp @ local petco?

Thank you....

[kelly528]

Originally Posted by intyel94

Thank you guys all for answers,

Zenandra, Can I once in a while... buy frozen shrimp at safeway and give a little tiny piece to him or I must buy special frozen food @ hikari?

Or can I buy brine shrimp @ local petco?

Thank you....

You can feed him chopped prawn, mussel, etc as long as you are positive it has no additives, dyes, preservatives, etc. You should be able to buy any kind of frozen at your local fish store. Even a $6 pack will last you for months.

[dramaqueen]

I think I'd go with the frozen food from the petstore to be on the safe side.

[kelly528]

Yeah not all bettas go for prawns anyways... not icky enough :D