@JewelQueen, Akumu says thank you for the compliment! I love the contrast of the violet against the red (although his body should turn blue one he gets older, right? Due to the the Red Loss Factor?). I really enjoy the motion of his crown-tail fins in the water, he seems to move a little differently from Yume.

So in the great divided tank experiment, I am thus far happy with the divider itself, as it does not appear flimsy (Boyfriend says it was a huge pain in the but to put together though).

Every few minutes the boys spot each other and flare, and then after about 10-30 seconds Yume will retreat behind his plant and Akumu will follow suit. Akumu is definitely the more aggressive of the two, he spends more time flared and will sometimes charge the screen. But Yume will also sneak around the side of his plant and taunt Akumu. He is also furiously blowing a bubblenest. Such sass.

The stimulation is probably good for them, but I really hope its not stressing them TOO much. Boyfriend is happy with the arrangement, but I would still like to see Yume in his own tank. Even now that he's sharing with Akumu, he will still come up the side of the tank and wriggle happily when Mom calls him. He really is an extraordinarily sweet fish. :)

Akumu is still stand-offish, but I'm hopeful as he does not startle as much as he used to.

So on our next trip to Petsmart we will definitely pick up one of the food brands you mentioned, JewelQueen, as well as the water conditioner and thermometer. I will order the heater online so both the boys have an ideal set-up while they are sharing.

I will start accumulating the same stuff for Yume's tank over the next month to spread out the wallet pain. Oh these fish, they give me such an aching wallet! :D

Yaay! Your fish are going to be so happy! Not your wallet though. I think so far I've spent at least... what... $300-400 on one fish? Not sure, I've lost count. I haven't really read into the Red Loss Factor thing, so I can't say. Them flaring at each other is good, it will be their "exercise" but if they do it TOO much (more than they are now, as in like almost always at the divider or something) then yeah, maybe we'll need to go back to separate tanks again. It will give them a lot of stress if they do it too much like you said, yes, but so long as they're not at it for really long or really constantly I think it's OK. Don't worry about it for now, I don't think you have an issue with it.

Did you make Nick make it by himself? haha, yes, from what I hear they are quite hard to put together (at least a good strong one!). I'm glad to hear that it's not too flimsy, but if I were you I'd still watch it like a hawk. People have had issues with seemingly functional dividers before, and ended up losing a fish as a result. Sometimes they do work, but then they get bendy, fish attack them and wear them down, etc, depends on what you used to make it. Be very careful about this, don't judge a divider by its cover!

If in case one of them gets over to the side of the other's, you'll want to remove one (Akumu will be most likely to attack) ASAP via cup and probably keep him in the 1.5g until you fix the divider. This is the worst-case scenario, I hope I'm not scaring you or anything but I always think it's good to be prepared.

Overall it sounds like you have a good plan going on there! And you don't have to write out JewelQueen, it's a pain in the butt to type. I'm just plain old Jewel.

Jewel it is then. :)
I will be watching this divider thing carefully, it would be awful to lose one by the hand (or fin as the case may be) of the other. I see what you're saying and I'm sure they could bend it out of shape enough to get around it if they are persistant.

Unfortunately, as of this morning they seem to be becoming more intent on each other, rather than less. They were face to face against the mesh for what seemed like forever, Yume flippantly blowing bubbles and Akumu looking like an enraged red and purple storm cloud.

Yume will be in his own tank by the end of the week. This is starting to worry me, so that paycheck cannot come soon enough. But who knows, maybe they will have made peace through the mesh by the time I get home today. I never really know what to expect from these crazy babies.

But I did get the Omega One food for both bettas and the guppies and feel infinitely better about feeding it. Also will try out the Seachem Prime when the next water change comes around. Looking for ward to new heater too. :)

So far it all sounds good, definitely keep a eye on that divider until that paycheck's in your hands. :) I also agree that it's a good idea to get them into separate tanks ASAP if they haven't calmed down yet.

So the boys are separated at last! Hooray! It got the the point where every time I turned around they were facing off against the mesh. Yume's inflammatory bubble nest covered about a fourth of the tank. It's nice to see them relaxed, exploring, and able to be themselves again.

Yume's final home. I'm in love with broad-leafed plants we picked out from the tropical fish store. Yume has been enjoying hiding in them all evening.

Attached Images

File Type: jpg

20150123_202212.jpg (72.4 KB, 23 views)

Yume making faces at me from behind the leaves. That boy...

Attached Images

File Type: jpg

20150123_210309.jpg (62.7 KB, 22 views)

Akumu gets his tank back. After I rearranged all of his plants, he promptly went over the side previously inhabited by Yume and went to sleep.

I want to get him some broadleaf plants like Yume has, they are more fun to hide in, easier to plant, and their leaves don't get everywhere and in the filter!

Maybe one day, he'll realize what his rock hidies are for... But I'm not holding out hope. Will probably end up getting him something more like Yume's pagoda.

Attached Images

File Type: jpg

20150123_202237.jpg (68.2 KB, 22 views)

Oh! Wow, you are really into this betta business!
Just came to mind and I'm gonna ask- have you tested the pagoda and the hidey-holes for paint smells, etc? If they're not plastic or something, I think you boil them or at least put them in really hot water, and see if anything comes off, smell, color, etc... no paint = no poison = happy fish. Just a last thought.

Jewel the pagoda is plastic and I'm not sure what the rock hidies are made of- they have a texture like concrete, but are less heavy. I wash everything really well with a scrubby sponge and hot water before I put it in their tanks. I didn't notice anything flaking off, but will take another look at these hidies.

Thank you, I do try to do the best for my boys. Waiting on those heaters from Amazon (the heaters I have now are only 10 watts- was still advertised by Petco as being suitable for a 5 gallon tank, folks- but I've heard it said on here they should be 25 watts so that's really a must), and will take a trip to get some better plants and a tank ornament for Akumu. Yume's tank is putting his to shame in terms of decor right now.

Akumu blew a bubble nest for the first time. It is not nearly as extensive or organized as the ones Yume is capable of, but my boy is happy and showing it. Nick thinks Akumu is feeling smug because we removed Yume, and in his mind that must mean he won the dispute! :)

Hopefully Yume will start blowing his bubble nests again too, it seems he's still too enraptured with exploring his new tank. He's a champ at it, and I'd like to get some good pictures of his "magnum opus". I'm sure he'd make a great father... In fact I saw a little white female with gorgeous blue eyes at Petco and was tempted to try. But I don't want to open that can of worms! My house would be absolutely filled with bettas in no time D:

Plus, I don't know Yume's genetic background or even how desirable his form is. Akumu I would never breed by reason of his beak. :( Aren't pet store bettas usually too old to successfully breed anyway? I wonder how old Yume and Akumu actually are... They are about the same size... These are the things I think about at work and school, folks. I think we can safely say I'm obsessed. :)