Betta Fish Care : Finally a picture
August 26, 2007 at 5:03 pm 2 comments
So today while I was taking care of my betta fish I realized that I am not getting my camera back any time soon. So I took out the trusty old cell phone with its one meg camera so I could get something up finally. This in my betta fish in his tank just swimming by. He got a change of water today and a clean tank. He seems to do very well with the whole cleaning process and getting transferred back into a little cup. I do feed him after the cleaning and transfer so maybe he knows that he will eat after the clean. If you have a picture of you betta feel free to post it up for anyone to see. If people start to post pictures I will try to get a whole section going or something interesting. I am open to all ideas.
Learning about betta fish care one day at a time.
Entry filed under: My Betta Pictures. Tags: .
1.
Bianni | August 28, 2007 at 4:43 am
Hi, you have a very pretty crowntail betta. Betta Splendens (beautiful warrior) is the latin name for bettas of many varieties. The breed has more commonly been called Siamese Fighting Fish, as they are native to Thailand, but they are bred in Japan and China as well as other parts of Asia today, which is why they are sometimes called Japanese or Chinese fighting fish as well.
You don’t have to change all of his water at one time, you know. It’s less stressful on the fish if you do a smaller water change, like 30-50%. That way you don’t have to move the fish out of his tank. Just make sure to take the water from the bottom of the tank and suck up the debris and waste from the bottom with a gravel vacuum or siphon or a turkey baster. Also, if you change less water at a time, you don’t change the chemical composition of the water as much (PH, dissolved minerals, etc.) All of those small changes cause a fish stress and stress impairs a fish’s immune system, which is how diseases creep in. Do you have water conditioner for the water you use for water changes? If so, you don’t really need to let it sit for 24 hours. Letting the water sit for 24 hours is a low tech way of letting the chlorine evaporate from tap water. However, many water companies today use chloramine which doesn’t evaporate out of tap water no matter how long you let it sit. You can contact your local water company to find out which they use, but really, a good water conditioner is safer as it will also bind up the heavy metals which are often present in tap water and well water, too. Most standard water conditioners are cheap and readily available and will neutralize both chlorine and chloramine. Letting it sit to make it room temperature is a good idea, but if you’re ever in a hurry, you can microwave some water and mix the hot and cold to get the right temp, or just try to get your tap water the right temp and then mix in the conditioner.
Also, do you know about the whole nitrogen cycle in aquariums? NTS (New Tank Syndrome) is usually avoided with betta keepers because they are kept in such small tanks and are often kept alone (phew!), but being aware of the nitrogen cycle and knowing the levels of ammonia, nitrite and nitrate in your tank will help keep your fish healthy and happy.
Here are some links you might find helpful and informative.
http://freshaquarium.about.com/cs/biologicalcycle/a/nitrogencycle.htm
http://freshaquarium.about.com/cs/anabantids2/p/betta.htm
http://www.bettysplendens.com/articles/home.imp
I just thought I would point these out to you as you mentioned being new to betta care and doing research. I have two bettas (I don’t have a pic of the one I have at work yet) and they are great fish! I have been keeping and breeding guppies for a lot longer, so have some background in freshwater fish keeping. Feel free to email me if you have any comments or questions. I love to talk fish.
2. Betta Fish Care : Bianni Little Betta « My Betta Fish Care Weblog | September 4, 2007 at 12:31 am
[...] She gave some great tips for taking care of my betta. Check it out here. http://mybettafishcare.wordpress.com/2007/08/26/betta-fish-care-finally-a-picture/ [...]