How to Care for a Betta Fish

Content

• Betta fish tank
• Betta fish care
• Other Essential Betta Fish Care
• How to Feed Betta Fish
• How do you know if Betta fish is male or female?

O betta fish it is also known as the Siamese fighting fish and is a very popular pet for its colors and appearance. They are relatively easy to maintain although you should pay attention to some precautions to keep you even healthier.

The Siamese fighting fish easily adapts to different environments and leaves us fascinated every day with its fantastic shapes and movements. if you want to know how to care for a betta fish Continue reading this PeritoAnimal article.

Betta fish tank

to do the best Betta fish tank you should provide your pet with several elements inside the aquarium, use original resources to make it unique:

• sand or gravel: those with a smooth and fine texture are preferable so as not to harm the Betta fish's fins. In addition, it must have a minimum thickness of at least 2 centimeters.
• Plants: you should always use the ones that are natural to avoid hurting the pet's tail. We recommend dense elodea, duckweed or bamboo. Consult in specific stores to see the options, you will be surprised at how beautiful it can be.
• Rocks: you should try to minimize the use of rocks and other elements that could be harmful to the Betta fish's fins. With two or three elements of this type will suffice, you will find all sorts of elements for sale, from small pirate ships to dragons or images.
• Lighting: a trick to make the environment of our aquarium more beautiful is to include LED lighting elements for aquariums, available in specialized stores. Use a blue, green or lilac tone to highlight the decor or color of your Betta fish and make it look great.
• Hiding places: especially if you use lighting or if you have several specimens of Betta fish, it is essential that you create hiding places of all kinds inside the aquarium. You can bury small containers, make a nest with plants, stems, castles, coconuts, logs, etc.

It is important that you regularly observe your Betta fish to make sure that it is physically well and that it has not suffered damage to its body due to the elements in the aquarium or other fish.

If you intend to adopt a Betta fish and you want to provide an environment identical to what it would have in the natural state, you must take into account some requirements to make an aquarium for Betta fish even better. For that, check out the following section.

Betta fish care

First, you should know that Betta fish comes from Thailand and lives in shallow waters such as rice paddies. They come out with a certain regularity to remove the air, for that reason, it will not be necessary to use a filter or a thermostat. The size of the aquarium will depend on the amount of fish you want to have.

• Only one specimen (male or female): in this case it will be enough to have a 20 liter aquarium and set up.
• Incubators: are specific spaces for breeding Betta fish. They are small and small in size, so their use is exclusive to breeding seasons.
• several females: you can try to gather several females in the same aquarium although there must be at least three to establish a hierarchy. Although it is less likely than in the case of males, the females may attack each other, in this case you should have an extra aquarium to be able to separate them. To improve the chances of living together, you can adopt at the same time different females (sisters) who have lived together since they were little. Use an aquarium of at least 30 or 40 liters.
• One male and three females: in this case, be careful with the aggression that the females may have on each other. Follow the advice we mentioned in the previous point. Use a 40 liter tank to avoid attacks, as well as make different hiding places in the tank in case you need to hide.
• Betta's aquarium or betta bowl: are specific environments for breeding Betta fish. They are small in size, so their use is exclusive during the breeding season.
• Betta fish community: Remember that Betta fish or Siamese fighting fish are aggressive by nature, for this reason, and unless you have a 100 liter tank full of hiding places, we do not recommend creating a community.
• Community of different fish: you should find out about the different types of cold water fish before gathering them to prevent attacks and attacks. It is important that the aquarium has a capacity of at least 100 liters and that it has several hiding places. Pearl gouramis are a good option.

Other Essential Betta Fish Care

• It is important that the aquarium is covered at its top as they tend to jump;
• Try to use water without chlorine or salt, it is advisable to use filtered water;
• You should renew the water every 7 days and change only half of it, so changing the medium is less radical;
• The temperature should be between 22ºC and 32ºC. If you do not live in a region with these temperatures, it is recommended to buy an air freshener.

How to Feed Betta Fish

In its natural state, the Betta fish feed on small insects that live among plants or at the bottom of rivers and, although it is a fish omnivore, Betta fish prefer to feed as if they were a carnivore. Mosquito larvae, zooplankton and various insects are its weakness.

However, if you are thinking of adopting a copy, it is important to know how to feed a Betta fish:

• Scales: this food is available at any specialized store and contributes daily to ensure adequate nutrition, however, it should not be the mainstay of food.
• Crustaceans and insects: you should offer a varied amount of animal foods, you can also buy them in specialty stores, either live or frozen. May include mosquito larvae, tubiflex worm, grindal, etc.
• Assorted vegetables: to further enrich the betta fish feed you can make small sprigs of assorted vegetables or bet on zooplankton.
• Betta fish food: some people prefer to make a baby food by mixing plant and animal foods. For this you must include 60% of animal feed and 40% of scales and assorted vegetables.

As mentioned before, it is important to observe the behavior and physical condition of your Betta fish on a daily basis to ensure its health status. A well-kept Betta fish can live up to 5 years, an unthinkable value in nature.

How do you know if Betta fish is male or female?

Now that you know how to care for a Betta fish, you're likely to wonder "how to tell if the Betta fish is male or female?". The answer is simple as there are some visible features that differentiate females from males. For example:

• Males, in general, have dorsal and ventral fins and longer tails than females;
• females have more opaque colors compared to male colors;
• Male specimens are usually larger than females;
• Females have a white dot, known as the ovipositor tube, located in the lower part of the body.

Finally decided to adopt a new partner? Check out our suggested Betta fish names.