Betta tank

[Mako_]

Since my 10G tank is in the fishless cycle process and it'll take some time, I was thinking on setting up my 3G tank again and use it for a betta. I am going to use a betta because I know that a betta is the only thing that will be able to go in the tank. I used to own a betta when I was a kid but that was a while ago and only a few memories of it remain. When I owned a betta, it was in an extremely small tank because the tank was one of those small ones that have a wall in the middle to bisect two bettas. Of course the tank didn't need a filter and my 3G tank has an air pump. Would I need a filter for it to because a filter won't fit with the lid that doesn't snap. I would like some advice on this betta tank.

 

[Lowryder]

I would filter it but thats me.

 

[Mako_]

Does the fishless cycle have to happen for bettas to because when I had a betta, I didn't know what the cycle was and I just added water and put it in. Now that I think about it, I'm shocked that it lived that long becuase that was the first time I ever owned my own fish.

 

[Lowryder]

If you hav ea filter than yes you need to cycle. I dont know about not using a filter and cycling because it just isnt done

 

[Mako_]

Well I read up some more on these siamese fighting fish and it turns out that it is reccomended to go into a cycled tank although, many owners of bettas, with succuss, have kept bettas in tanks that havn't been cycled. Apparently, the key to this is doing many water changes. One every 2-3 days. But that is for a small tank, of course. (2-3 days until the tank is cycled, using the with-fish cycle method) The ones that said to use a larger tank up to 10 gallons or more said that they just went through the whole cycle.

 

[BigJim]

Personally, I wouldn't use anything smaller than a 5g for a betta. They do so much better when they have some room to swim.

There are filters intended for little tanks. I suggest you look into them. I wouldn't run any tank unfiltered. Maybe you'd consider using your 3g as an RCS tank?

 

[meegosh]

You need a filter with your tank. You could get away with doing water changes everyday but you could save yourself some work by just getting a filter. I'm a bit confused on the 2-3 day cycle with fish. No cycle could complete in two days. Continue with your fishless cycle and keep the filter in there.

 

[Mako_]

Personally, I wouldn't use anything smaller than a 5g for a betta. They do so much better when they have some room to swim.

There are filters intended for little tanks. I suggest you look into them. I wouldn't run any tank unfiltered. Maybe you'd consider using your 3g as an RCS tank?

What is an RCS tank? I'm not good with abbreviations on this site yet. And what is imo? I keep seeing that but I never understood it.

You need a filter with your tank. You could get away with doing water changes everyday but you could save yourself some work by just getting a filter. I'm a bit confused on the 2-3 day cycle with fish. No cycle could complete in two days. Continue with your fishless cycle and keep the filter in there.

No...I didn't mean that the cycle takes 2-3 days. I ment that water changes occur every 2-3 days until the tank is cycle with the betta in it and then you can start doing normal water changes..

 

[dkpate]

RCS~ Red Cherry Shrimp
IMO~ In My Opinion

In a tank that small, even if it is cycled, you will still need to do a 50% pwc twice a week.

 

[Mako_]

Red Cherry Shrimp are actually reccomended for a 3 gallon? I never looked into them so I don't know anything about them but I guessed the only fish I could put in a 3 gallon was a betta. (Thanks for the abbreviation help, by the way. That helps me a lot.) I know 3 gallons isn't a lot but I was going to use it for a betta because I feel bad that Bettas are in those small containers with no room to really swim at all. At least the 3 gallon would give it a little extra space and it would help it more compared to their pet store containers. I would use the 10 gallon for a betta but I was going to put more than one fish in that tank. Do betta fish get along with any fish that will fit in a 10 gallon?

 

[BigJim]

RCS are fantastic for small tanks. As their name suggests, they're a bright cherry red and they grow to about an inch max. You could support a decent colony in a 3g. They really don't produce much waste.

I agree that 3g is better than the little cups the bettas live in at the store, but they definitely do better in larger tanks. I keep bettas in my community tank. Check out my "My Tanks" link at the left side of this post. I've seen the bettas chase the guppies a little, but they don't do any harm.

 

[Mako_]

I will check out on these shrimp. What do you consider a decent colony of them? If I follow the '1 per gallon, I can fit about three....if that is accurate. It's weird....I'm kind of confused on bettas at times because sometimes I hear "Bettas are supposed to be alone at all times. They don't get along with any fish, especially their own kind." but I heard from some betta owners that they have bettas in the same tank and they are normal. This one girl had 6 neon tetras with her betta in a 10 gallon and they did fine.

 

[dkpate]

It just depends on the betta. MY belief is that the breeders who keep them with their siblings create a betta who is used to being around other fish. But there are breeders who separate them and I think those are the ones who become aggressive.
There have been people who keep bettas with pygmy cories just fine, but then there are some that attack them as much as they can.
So the whole point of this story is that it just depends on the betta.
I would not put 2 male bettas together, or a male with a female (because of the agressive breeding). You could get some female bettas and make a sorority tank possibly.

 

[dkpate]

And I am talking about the 10G, not the 3G.

 

[BigJim]

There's no hard fast rule for stocking an aquarium. As far as RCS, I think ten per gallon would be perfectly fine. They really don't put out much waste. Two male bettas together is a bad idea. Females only and females and a male together seems to work if there's only one female or more than two. Two females either pick on each other or pick on the male for some reason. JME, no guarantees.

 

[Freshie In Disguise]

I had a betta in a fishbowl who lived to nearly four years. His name was Blaze and he was the only fish I ever cried over losing. He died (wouldn't you know) shortly after an occasion when I asked my brother to feed him.

I don't know much about "fish", but I do know a scrap about bettas.

The average male betta shouldn't be kept with anything other than himself. I speak of bettas you get at Walmart and low-grade petstores. They bite eachother, they bite their girlfriends, and they bite their unrelated tankmates. Some males can be housed with other creatures (even done it a few times), females of different numbers, and even other males. Like mentioned above, I think it depends on their habits and how they're raised. No small fish has a particularily good memory, but they can become habituated to a certain lifestyle over time, and male bettas in particular are very curious about unfamiliar occurances, and this may lead them to display instinctive aggression. I've never had issues with housing females together. They are my favorite aquatic creature, and I suspect they have atleast a little bit of intelligence. I have one now, and I've had her for a month at the most, and she's already completely into my routine. She knows when it's time to eat, and she will finger feed. If I take too long to bring the food near the water, she'll jump out and snap at it. I just love her.

I tried once to permanently house a pair of bettas together when I was new to them. It was a hex tank from Walmart, but I don't remember how big it was. It was atleast 5 gallons. The bettas were standard from Walmart; one cobalt-blue male named Jericho and one melon-finned brown female named Olivia. Olivia was not carrying eggs, and Jericho had no bubble nest. Nevertheless, Jericho tried relentlessly to have his way with her, and he roughed her up quite a bit and even tore one of her fins. Once it got too rugged, I took Olivia out and Jericho subsequently tried to leap out of the tank, and eventually succeeded when I wasn't around. He could have been out of the water for as much as an hour. All I can say is, thank God for the labirynth organ.

Fish drama.