bettas sold in jars - is it cruel?

[tanker]

I've read the thread about the size tanks for bettas, and that they can survive in small water areas for a time. They sell them in small jars which seems to me to be way too small a size for the fish to be comfortable. Do you think that it's a cruel practice? (If it is, I don't want to buy one and foster the practice.) Thanks for any opinions.

[BettaxFishxCrazy]

IMO yes it is cruel, but tons of pet stores keep them in the small cups and vases and I doubt it'll change. We can't tell them how to run their business, but we can speak to the managers and e-mail people and give them tips. A lot of people on here have complained about things like dirty water in the cups, dead fish left on the counters, only a couple inches of water in the cups etc. I personally like getting fish who don't look so good and after I put them in a much bigger tank, I can tell they're in heaven. They look at me like they're saying "thank you".

I got Jasper at Walmart and he looked so sick and unhappy. Not even a day had passed and he colored up almost immediately. I knew that he was going to die if I didn't save him. I hope you don't mind, I'm going to show you pictures of him when I got him and a couple days later. He's my little special boy.lol

[kelly528]

Yeah its not the greatest practice. I can understand that where they are sold in great volume it is not always feasible to have a separate tank per betta, but what REALLY bugs me is that they never even clean the cups.

Fortunately Australia and the UK in particular seem to have it together for the most part with regards to ethical sale of bettas and I have no doubts that there is a pet store local to you who keeps bettas in a drip-system tank.

[doggyhog]

I think if they'd keep the water clean and got little bit bigger cups, it'd be fine. It's not permanent housing.

[dramaqueen]

I agree. If the cups were a decent size and if they were kept clean then it wouldn't be so bad.

[Narnian]

We say it isn't "permanent housing", but unfortunately a large percentage of these fish live in these small containers for weeks on end....possibly months (if they survive that long and don't die first). It's so sad to see. :(

[1fish2fish]

I agree with DH.. it is the most economical way for the stores to keep the fish. Breeders keep fish Jarred.. albiet in bigger jars. As long as the water quality was better cared for and the cups were slightly bigger I would have no problem with it.

As for the comment above.. that isn't a size issue.. that is a issue of buying more than they can sell in a suitable amount of time.

Unless a store was setup with a drip system specifically designed for bettas there is no other way for large commercial stores to sell them. Now my LFS that keeps bettas in tiny tiny cups and only has like 7 at a time could definitely set something up but they choose not to... that is different.

[kelly528]

I overheard a dad (2 boys in tow, both with bettas) asking the cashier at petsmart if they could keep the bettas in the cups they came in

[1fish2fish]

Thats sad. I looked at the petsmart caresheet and it was horrible. I'd planned on starting a thread about it. It said it was ok to keep one betta in 1 liter (quart) tank :(

[dramaqueen]

My Petsmart changes the water in those cups twice a week, or so the girl told me.