# Here's our new Betta!



## hlsiefken (Jan 23, 2014)

Here's the new Betta we got that I mentioned in the thread about our new girl.

Our 4yo has named him Clifford:


It's a shame that those colors only show under a flash! This is more of what we see when we look at him:


Pirate ship and moss ball:




I had some really great pics of him in his cup before we got him acclimated and whatnot, but I didn't realize that my memory card was not in my camera, so they are actually ON my camera and I can't find the dang cord to connect my camera to the computer! Lol!


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## Aether (Nov 18, 2013)

Aww! Clifford the Big Red Fish! xD Love his tank!!


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## TheSmellyHedgie (Sep 26, 2013)

Really cool tank and I love that shade of red  Gorgeous!


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## Latrine (Mar 4, 2014)

Aw, I love the name!!
We've always had a Betta or two, they are so beautiful and fun to watch!!


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## Draenog (Feb 27, 2012)

Cute fish. But how small is that tank? It looks tiny? :-| You know they need at least a 60 cm (23.6 inch) aquarium?


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## Tongue_Flicker (Jun 11, 2013)

How come you could take nice pictures of your betta? Lol.. i always end up with weird dark colors or super bright overexposures due to the cam flash @[email protected]


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## hlsiefken (Jan 23, 2014)

I don't know the measurements.. It's a half moon 2.5 gal tank.. A huge upgrade from the cup at the pet store. I've had Bettas before, and they've always done well and are hardy fish.

Tongue Flicker- I guess I got lucky with my pics.. Lol! I took some on my phone which didn't turn out so good!


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## eicg (Sep 27, 2013)

What type of Betta is it it kind of looks like a halfmoon plakat. is it a male or female because you say him and her, so i am curious. And I love how you set up the tank. Where did you get it.


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## hlsiefken (Jan 23, 2014)

Thank you!! It's a male half moon male. The girl I mentioned in the beginning post is me talking about the thread of our new girl hedgehog- in which I referenced this fish. I got everything, including the Betta at PetsMart except for the glass marbles on the bottom- they are from The Dollar Tree.


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## eicg (Sep 27, 2013)

Wow, that's awesome he is so pretty. i just started breeding Betta and I love how they all have different personality and there colors are so unique. i hope you have a fun time with your Betta.


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## eicg (Sep 27, 2013)

There's just one thing it is that i am not so sure it a half moon male.

half moon yellow male









halfmoon plakat male 









neither of these pics are mine I am using them as examples pleas do not report me I am not claiming these are mine.


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## hlsiefken (Jan 23, 2014)

Thank you!


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## eicg (Sep 27, 2013)

Also so you know half moons typically cost more than a halfmoon plakat. So if it is a halfmoon plakat and they sold it to you as a half moon you may have payed more.


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## Draenog (Feb 27, 2012)

hlsiefken said:


> I don't know the measurements.. It's a half moon 2.5 gal tank.. A huge upgrade from the cup at the pet store. I've had Bettas before, and they've always done well and are hardy fish.
> 
> Tongue Flicker- I guess I got lucky with my pics.. Lol! I took some on my phone which didn't turn out so good!


Definitely too small. 10 gallon would be better. And it's an upgrade but that doesn't mean it's good. And because it's a 'hardy fish' it doesn't deserve proper housing? I'm pretty sure my hedgehog would survive in a 23 x 15 inch cage but that doesn't mean it's a good one.
It's really sad that pet stores still sell bettas and goldfish bowls/tanks that are way tiny and give people the wrong information. 
It's the same with hedgehogs (and most other animals), selling bad hedgehog food etc.

It seems to be normal in the US to keep bettas in such tiny tanks but it's just really sad. :-|


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## hlsiefken (Jan 23, 2014)

Thanks for the info. I'll look into upgrading his tank soon.


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## Lilysmommy (Jan 7, 2009)

If you have a Petco near you, I know they do dollar-per-gallon sales occasionally on their fish tanks! I got my last betta a 10-gallon tank during one of those sales, with a little bit more to get the lid for it. Bettas also do a lot better with warm water (75-80* if I remember right? But might be good to check), and with a 10-gal, you can get a small water heater. My betta, Poseidon, was a bit shy in his tank at first and stuck in one corner, but after a week or two, he was all over the place and super active.  This is one of the few pictures I have of him - http://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash4/431135_10150610346678655_653377460_n.jpg He was camera shy & would zoom behind a plant as soon as I came near the tank with a camera. :lol:


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## hlsiefken (Jan 23, 2014)

Aww.. Beautiful fish!

I actually have some 10 gals sitting around from having reptiles but I'm not sure if any of them are water tight.. I need to check and see if any are! It's quite possible because most of them we bought used from a local fish and reptile store that used to be in our hometown. I'll just need to get more things to fill it up and a water heater and filter that will be able to handle that size! I think I saw some 10gals at the Walmart here for $15 or so, maybe $20.. But I hate our Walmart and there always seems to be aquariums on our local Craigslist. But we do have a couple of PetCo stores around.


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## Altearithe (Jan 13, 2014)

If they're not water tight, I hear that some places sell aquarium safe solvent cement and silicone cream that you could use to make them water tight. But I think it's probably easier to just get a new one. XD 

I currently have a 5 gallon for my girl due to space constraints, but I do recommend the Fluval/Aquaclear 20 gallon power filter. You can adjust the flow to fit your betta's needs. My girl doesn't care what the flow is luckily, but my late betta boy was batted around like mad if I didn't use this filter (he was a halfmoon). Edit: Forgot to mention that the filter ranges from 5 gallons to 20 gallons. XD;

As for heater, I've got the Aqueon 9" heater I think. It's for 5-20 gallons and hasn't failed me yet so I recommend it. :3 (Mine's set at 80, but the thermometer reads 82. Either way, Lumina seems to not care that it's a tad warm.)


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## Altearithe (Jan 13, 2014)

I forgot to add this in my post earlier, but I remembered reading something about betta tails and tank sizes on bettafish.com that Oldfishlady wrote up and thought fellow betta lovers would love to read a bit about it.. 
It makes an interesting read about tank sizes for bettas and how it's up to the hobbyist to adjust to the betta's needs as needed if possible. :3

http://www.bettafish.com/showthread.php?t=78317


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## Draenog (Feb 27, 2012)

Long story short: and again humans managed to breed a species purely for their own entertainment, without any regards for the animal. Breeding fish with such large fins they can't even display their natural behaviour. It's just like those goldfish with their eyes turned upwards or all those dog breeds who have terrible diseases and conditions. And why? Just because people think it's pretty/cool/whatever.

"Because of these abnormally long fins that can be really heavy and delicate they are kept in small containers with no water movement....as cruel as some may think this is......this is needed to maintain the long flowing fins......"

This is disgusting.
That whole article is more about what humans want (a pretty fish with long fins) and not about the fish itself.

Some bettas have indeed very heavy fins and swimming a lot will be more exhausting for them. It might be wise to keep them in a smaller tank (or just don't buy them because it's sad). However, this betta looks fairly normal and will most likely be happier in a larger tank.


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## hlsiefken (Jan 23, 2014)

Altearithe said:


> I forgot to add this in my post earlier, but I remembered reading something about betta tails and tank sizes on bettafish.com that Oldfishlady wrote up and thought fellow betta lovers would love to read a bit about it..
> It makes an interesting read about tank sizes for bettas and how it's up to the hobbyist to adjust to the betta's needs as needed if possible. :3
> 
> http://www.bettafish.com/showthread.php?t=78317


Thanks for that link! It was a very interesting read. Clifford, while in a small tank, seems happy. He swims, always comes out when I walk by, has a bubble nest, eats well, etc.


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## Altearithe (Jan 13, 2014)

hlsiefken said:


> Thanks for that link! It was a very interesting read. Clifford, while in a small tank, seems happy. He swims, always comes out when I walk by, has a bubble nest, eats well, etc.


No problem!  It really is a fascinating read and I recall there being people in the thread who didn't like what OFL said though her main message is adjusting to the particular betta's personality/temperament and what they like and slowly giving them bigger and bigger homes if said personality prefers it. Apparently they thought she meant give them tiny containers. *sighs*

I'm glad Clifford's happy currently. I sure hope he can be even happier with more space to swim in later. XD I know my little Lumina couldn't wait to jump from her store cup to her giant 5 gallon as a wee fry during acclimation. :lol: I was afraid she'd bruise her nose bumping against the cup's sides so much.

Aww isn't it just the cutest thing when he greets you? >w<


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