Buying a new betta

[itschromesteel]

Petsmart or other chain store like i have for my previous ones or buy this beautyAquaBid.com - Item # fwbettasct1317661859 - KING CROWN TAIL HALFMOON PLAKAT MALE - Ends: Mon Oct 3 2011 - 12:10:59 PM CDT and spend the extra money i cant decide. thoughts?

 

[Tigroscr]

That's a really cool looking betta! But idk I've never ordered fish online! That's a tough one! Unless you can track your order down to the hour of when it arrives at your home, I'd be afraid I'd come home to a dead fish! Good luck!

 

[absolutangel04]

That totally depends on your personal preference. That one certainly is pretty, but I have also found gorgeous ones at PetCo.

 

[Mouth-Brooder-Fanatic]

they are beautiful in the pic, but whats to say the delivered one isnt shredded, ugly or the wrong sort?
at petco, you can scour the tanks (v. exciting!!) for bettas and fall in love as i did with mine. or go to a small lfs, where they prob care for them better. imo thats the better option xx

 

[LyndaB]

You buy a fish that you are really attracted to. There has to be a connection, in my opinion. If you buy a lesser fish, you may end up having less interest in it and then what's the point?

 

[itschromesteel]

I am just going to look around for a while. My betta who died of old age I got as a gift from my sister and he was my favorite fish just because of his personality.

 

[Pleco11771]

I am just going to look around for a while. My betta who died of old age I got as a gift from my sister and he was my favorite fish just because of his personality.

Petco has actually started to step there game up with the quality of there bettas, I saw some all white ones and black with red trim

 

[tarpon]

Yeah petco actually has a wide assortment of bettas now. I saw some beautiful double tails. Id go check it out!

 

[siva]

Petsmart or other chain store like i have for my previous ones or buy this beautyAquaBid.com - Item # fwbettasct1317661859 - KING CROWN TAIL HALFMOON PLAKAT MALE - Ends: Mon Oct 3 2011 - 12:10:59 PM CDT and spend the extra money i cant decide. thoughts?

I highly encourage you to purchase your new betta directly from a breeder. If you can find one who actually keeps all their bettas properly, that would be even better. I feel like we as hobbyists need to stop purchasing bettas from places like Petsmart and Petco. Don't get me wrong, I've purchased many from Petco in the past, but now I've decided to only buy from breeders and/or to start breeding them myself. I don't want to support the whole betta industry anymore. Those fish are being treated just terribly. I never walk into my Petco without seeing bettas dead in their cups or close to it. If we stop buying them, they'll have to stop ordering so many, and less and less will suffer. I know we often feel like we are saving them when we purchase from these places but, in fact our purchases just lead to the suffering of more bettas. JMO.

 

[itschromesteel]

Petstores will never stop selling bettas and goldfish. Its the people who don't know better usually who take fish home and keep them in a little bowl. I don't know of any Betta breaders in south florida close enough to drive to. There are some ones I hear are nice and breed quality bettas however none of them let you buy a single betta in an order.

 

[siva]

I'm not suggesting they will, nor am I making any statements about goldfish or the end owners of these fish. Just the bettas that are kept in those little cups with infrequent to no water changes. The less that are purchased, the less they will order/sell, hence the less that will die in those little cups on the shelves. It's my personal choice to not put money into the bettas being kept in that fashion any longer and, I'd like to encourage other hobbyists to avoid purchasing bettas if they don't agree with the matter in which they are being kept prior to purchase. It is, after all, the same misconception that they can do fine in these little cups that leads owners to keep them in containers much too small.

You can buy bettas from a breeder on aquabid, or directly from their websites. Severum mama and HN1 on this site sell them sometimes also, and they do not keep them in bowls. Just my thoughts on buying a new a betta.

 

[eco23]

I highly encourage you to purchase your new betta directly from a breeder. If you can find one who actually keeps all their bettas properly, that would be even better. I feel like we as hobbyists need to stop purchasing bettas from places like Petsmart and Petco. Don't get me wrong, I've purchased many from Petco in the past, but now I've decided to only buy from breeders and/or to start breeding them myself. I don't want to support the whole betta industry anymore. Those fish are being treated just terribly. I never walk into my Petco without seeing bettas dead in their cups or close to it. If we stop buying them, they'll have to stop ordering so many, and less and less will suffer. I know we often feel like we are saving them when we purchase from these places but, in fact our purchases just lead to the suffering of more bettas. JMO.

I absolutely agree. I used to be one of the people who believed in "rescuing" the poor little fish from those conditions...but the fact is for every one you buy...they'll just replace it with another and you'll be financially supporting the practice of how they're marketed.

I can't remember which member made this comparison (jeta or SM?), but Walmart is a great example. Many of them provide horrific conditions for their fish...and over time hobbyists have stopped purchasing from them, despite the fact we as animal lovers feel like we'd be "rescuing" them. As a result, Walmart seems to be getting out of the fish business. I know the new ones they've build near me no longer carry live fish.

 

[librarygirl]

I absolutely agree. I used to be one of the people who believed in "rescuing" the poor little fish from those conditions...but the fact is for every one you buy...they'll just replace it with another and you'll be financially supporting the practice of how they're marketed.

I can't remember which member made this comparison (jeta or SM?), but Walmart is a great example. Many of them provide horrific conditions for their fish...and over time hobbyists have stopped purchasing from them, despite the fact we as animal lovers feel like we'd be "rescuing" them. As a result, Walmart seems to be getting out of the fish business. I know the new ones they've build near me no longer carry live fish.

Unfortunately I went to my local one today. For the longest time they did not have fish. But they are in the process of remodeling the whole store. I went to the new fish section and what did I see..... two rows of very small, empty fish tanks with gravel and water and lights on, just waiting for fish shipments.