I love female bettas! Whoever says they're ugly and colourless has never seen a tank full of fat, sassy lady bettas <3

 

THIS!

 

I will admit that I was once one of those people who thought females were dull and boring (please don't kill me). Then I picked up a little red/blue traditionally colored gal from Walmart who tried to eat me when I picked up her cup and have been a convert ever since - she's now one the most personable betta I have the pleasure of caring for. lol There may or may not be thoughts of a sorority in my future...

It just seems like a lot of pet store females, at least the ones I've seen, aren't as colorful as the males and are less active. They'd probably color right up and start acting like the females we know and love if put in clean, warm water with more room, but the average person doesn't seem to see that.
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I will agree with you there. The ones I picked for my sorority were all active and pretty colorful, but MAN are they gorgeous now that they're in a big warm tank! My first female was a drab purple color when I was younger, and I will admit she was nothing special, but I also didn't properly house her - she lived in an unheated bowl. Regardless, she was feisty, and killed my male (I was young and tried to breed them and it was a disaster, don't judge, lol).

I talked to a woman at Petsmart last night who was just raving about females and how gorgeous they were...you don't hear that very often, probably because most bettas aren't properly cared for while at the store. It's too bad, because they really are little gems.


By the way, I think starting a sorority was one of the best ideas I've had. I love it, and my girls have only been in the tank since Sunday!

 

I have some females with coloration like the first picture, and I don't think they're boring at all! That picture looks like an immature female as well, which is going to look more drab. Actually, females were duller than males up until recent breeding efforts brought forth more color.

However, the looks of females are good whichever way (IMO), but their personalities are the real reason to keep them. They're spunky, fiesty, and just generally fun. Also, females are in most need of rescue - I found my first betta ever, a female, shoved in the back of a shelf at petsmart.

Maybe there is something wrong with me...I am fascinated by my girls with stripes. They are young, so it's interesting to see how their colors change over time, if they change at all. The real draw, whatever color they are, is the personality and intelligence of betta fish, male or female.

 

Females with wild type colouring (like the one in the first picture) do tend to look very drab and 'ugly' when they are washed out and stress striped like that. Unfortunately, in most stores I've been to, females are kept altogether in bare, cramped sorority tanks where they are usually extremely stressed and usually have big chunks taken out of their fins.

I actually prefer female bettas over males. Unfortunately, males seem to usually be the ones that are preferred by stores and sellers here, and most of the females are fairly ordinary in comparison.

This was my sorority full of imported and locally bred females. You cannot tell me that they are boring or ugly!

I once

 

This was my sorority full of imported and locally bred females. You cannot tell me that they are boring or ugly!

They're adorable!

Also, it seems like 90% or more of females at the local Petcos and Petsmarts are rust-colored cambodians. I have nothing against cambodians, but they're not everyone's cup of tea - especially if youre looking for variety. Has anyone else seen something like this?
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They're goregous!

 

Petsmart has crap for females. Like you said, cambodians or ones that have so much fin rot you can't tell what color they are. There was a really cool chocolate or mustard gas female there last week, but she basically had no fins and I don't have room to do a rescue otherwise I would have saved her...I bet she's still there. I did get a really nice dark blue one with red fins there though, all my other girls came from Petco. I've seen some very nice ones at Petco, but still A LOT of cambodians! I tried to get a variety for my tank, all different colors, and ended up with two of the same color anyway...they looked slightly different in their cups, but ended up exactly the same, lol. I have photos of all of them in my sorority album, except I don't think I have a solo shot of the girl from Petsmart.

LittleBettaFish, your sorority girls are gorgeous! I especially love that little blue and white marble! I have actually only seen one sorority tank in a LFS around here, and all 6 of the girls were deep purple...I'm thinking they must have been from the same spawn. 3 of my girls came home a bit washed out with stress stripes, but those are gone and they've really brightened up after only 5 days in my tank.

 

Two HUGE fins up! I love female bettas! I DID buy a Cambodian girl from Petsmart; she differs in that her fins are a lovely purple w/white rays. She's getting some black spots, so she's not exactly a Cambodian any more.
I just posted a thread about finding some slightly more exotic-looking girls for my sorority. Males are all the rage. What few advertised females there are cost $$$, and are either paired w/ a male, or intended as single breeding stock. I don't want to be a breeder, just have cute fish! LBF, WHERE did you get those gorgeous girls?!
Female bettas: the Rodney Dangerfeilds of the Betta world- we don't get no respect- no respect at all...

 

Female bettas: the Rodney Dangerfeilds of the Betta world- we don't get no respect- no respect at all...

LOL yes!!!!

 

Are they kidding? female bettas are gorgeous! just look at Winter, I got her at petsmart last July. (follow the link in my siggy for a pic)

 

She is gorgeous! She kind of looks like a purple version of my Olivia!

 

Maybe becuase wild females are very dull in color?

 

There are pretty Bettas and ugly Bettas. But Ugly is not set in stone.

 

When a Betta girl is stressed (I can't imagine NOT being stressed in those cups) they are often striped and greenish. My 1st baby girl was washed-out, but I saw some purple in that fish- now, stress stripes are gone, she has purple fins, and and irredescent blue/purple body- she looks like the male VT's w/o the fins!

 

Plus females can live in Sorities.

 

3 of my girls had stress stripes when I got them. They disappeared rather quickly when put in my sorority and are so bright and colorful now! I was actually playing around with the idea of adding another type of colorful fish (ie: platies, neons) to my tank but I really don't think it's necessary now, the girls hang out all over and really brighten things up!

 

I think I will add a shoal of albino coreys. They zoom around the bottom and are a riot- my cat (actual cat, not a fish) will enjoy watching them. He can only really see high-contrast fish. My colorful girls can disappear into the background.

 

They aren't ugly. They just look a bit discolored due to the poor care they get at the petstores.

I remember(before the females were placed in their cups) that petco once had them in one of those display tanks and they were really pretty. Now that I joined this forum and see how lovely these ladies can be, I really want a sorority of my own, but alas, I don't have a 10+gal tank. Maybe some day...

 

Per my entry above

 

My female is a little dull in color until you shine a flashlight on her (see avatar picture) or she thinks she sees a male (like the day she saw me in my bright blue and purple jacket). But boy is she feisty!! Much more so than my male. I wouldn't trade her for the world!

 

Shop around! I found a 20 gallon full kit for $65 at one Petco, only to find a 29 gallon for a few dollars more at another Petco! They gladly made the switch for me. If you lurk in the stores, you might find a bargain; the opposite of the web. Individual managers in stores are often in the position to discount merchandise. If they see a repeat customer, they'll want to work with you. The stores off the beaten track are the best. I'm currently playing 3 local Petcos against each other. I tell each the fish manager what the other store has; what I want (more exotic females). I'll see who delivers! I also got $25 in $5 coupons, 3 from one store, 2 from another. If you buy a tank, you get $5 coupons (if you're a "PALS card member).

 

Awesome! I'll keep that in mind! Unfortunately the problem is that I'm currently living in a dorm and can't have tanks larger than 10 gals (plus moving in/out would be a pain) but I will definitely keep your advice

 

I like female bettas there just like males but with shorter fins. And you can put them all together unlike males. Although i like males just as much. Also i'vegot a female right now and i like her she's much more active than my last guy although thats probably becuase she's a plakat and in a good tank instead of a vase.

 

I personally like the females better. I have one in particular that is proof they aren't all dull. she was a pale fleshy color with fin rot when I got her. I thought she was going to die. She got ten gallons pretty much to herself before I started my sorority and she is now a bright orange monster. She is in my photo albums. She is my oldest female, Patty. My whole sorority is colorful girls. Bright reds, pale yellows with blue irid, Wild color...

 

I live in a small apartment. My landlord hasn't discovered the tank... yet. I will have to move eventually, too, but I got the tank to make it seem less like a broom closet and more like home.

 

Wait, the landlord dosent allow you to have fish? Why not

 

My guess it's the same reason that many dorms have a limit on tank sizes - it's the landlord's property and s/he sets the rules. If a tank breaks or leaks, there could be a lot of water damage. Regular partial water changes can take up a lot of water and will thusly increase the water bill, and the electricity used to heat, filter, etc. a tank increases that bill as well. The sheer weight of a tank can cause issues as well - given that a tank can easily weigh around 10lbs per gallon with substrate and decorations, even a relitively small tank could damage furnature or even damage the floor if it isn't designed to hold that much weight.

 

I didn't ask if I could have fish, so I don't know! I live in a basement in-law apt., so if I spill 29 gallons, it will soak thru the carpet into cement. His kitchen, though, has flooded my bedroom & kitchen w/ spilled water from his leaky pipes, causing me major inconveniece. I feel entitled. I have a cat; I would think fish would be no prob., but who knows with him... he does pay all utilities.

 

OMG I should not have done this- but I saw 2 female cts @ Petsmart- one indigo blue, and the other aquamarine blue/green!!!!! Yep, I brought them home... what gorgeous fish!!!

 

what pet stores are you going to? at the petco and petsmart in my town, we've found everything from cambodian crowntails to orange veiltails to a purple MG halfsun plakat!