I was at petco again on my lunch from work and I am kind of confused on some bettas. I saw some really radical colored ones. (One was pink, red, and blue, with white tips on the fins) but he was kind of small, and his fins were not very long. Does this mean he's just young? He was a halfmoon. I saw quite a few that are really pretty colored, but their fins are not long, they aren't thin or torn up, or rotting, just kinda short like a plakat's almost, will they ever grow out?
I settled on one that had a red body with a lighter blue glaze, and white/red fins (delta tail) and he was very energetic/healthy looking, but his fins are kinda short like he's either young, or they've just not grown in... Any advice?
I shouldn't say I "settled" on one yet, I just decided I want to go back and get him, but I don't know if he is going to fill out and be a full finned healthy boy :)
Okay, big list.
Make sure the betta has no sores, cuts, or any signs of illness on the body- no cloudy eyes, no white cottony patches, no ich, nothing.
Make sure the betta flares at a betta neighbour or if you put a mirror up to him/her. (I got Spiri, and he didn't flare, but once he settled into his tank he did.) If he/she doesn't flare, no big deal- pet store bettas, i find, generally don't flare, and once the betta settles in to the new tank, he/she will.
Make sure the betta is not twitching or trying to scratch gills or any other part of the body on the cup or in the tank, unless you want to treat your betta for parasites. (That is a lot of work, I've learned through Spiri!)
Make sure the betta is active and not listless- this can sometimes indicate illness. (Another example- when I found Spiri, he was laying on his side at the bottom. As I've mentioned before, they perk up when they're in nice, clean, warm water.)
Yes, the bettas you saw were most likely young- younger bettas have smaller fins, which grow as they age.
Last edited by Betta Slave; 06-14-2010 at 05:52 PM.
Thank You Betta Slave! I think I might get my second betta tomorrow. I want to hit petco, and then the tropical petstore. I'll let you know how it goes. :D
No problem :)
Cool! Can't wait to see what happens! :D
I will probably get a fishie this week too. Found a tank at a garage sale... and tanks never go empty for more than a week around here. XD
I read an interesting article about picking out breeding bettas, as well as pet bettas. It said to pick the smaller finned bettas that haven't really "blossomed" into full fledged fancy looking bettas because they are more active, have a healthier sex drive, and you can raise them to have healthy fins and look very nice. I guess it gives a sense of accomplishment seeing the full fledged handsom betta you essentially helped create?
That makes me want to get the really unique looking one thats kinda tiny, I swore it was a female at first :D we'll have to see. My tropical fish store only has really full fledged handsome ones, but I guess that means they are probably old...
No, not necessarily. Pretty much all of the bettas (except for that young one) I've gotten were... middle-aged, you'd say... I've found their fins still grow, and they still gain some more color- after all, they HAVE been in those dreadful little cups for most of their lives.
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