How to Train Your Betta

[Bettaluv]

I have had someone ask me how I trained my bettas their tricks, and I figured, why not let EVERYONE know my secrets! We will start small, and slowly work our way up the ladder to more complicated tricks. As I improve and develop new betta training techniques, I will keep you all updated! Each trick will be posted in a different thread.
The first, and easiest, trick is "come". Most bettas can very easily learn to immediately approach you whenever you step up to their tank. In fact, for those of you who have bettas, your fish can probably already do this trick! This trick is best learned by repetition, and remember to have patience with your fish, they are really smarter than you think.
STEP 1.) find some frozen blood-worms, brine shrimp, or some other tasty treat for bettas. Tear small chunks off, and approach the tank. Wait until the betta happens to swim over, or does anyway. many bettas usually learn this trick by themselves, knowing that when you step up to the tank, you are usually feeding them! Feed the treat.
STEP 2.) Step away from the tank, and repeat this excersize for 10 minutes straight.
STEP 3.)This trick is usually learned in one day, but once your fish learns it, continue to treat their good behavior with treats frequently or they will realize they aren't going to get anything and they will stop performing the trick!

Please comment below if you tried, or are going to try these techniques. I will answer any and all questions!

 

[Bettaluv]

HOW TO TRAIN YOUR BETTA 2-Circle/spin

I have had someone ask me how I trained my bettas their tricks, and I figured, why not let EVERYONE know my secrets! We will start small, and slowly work our way up the ladder to more complicated tricks. As I improve and develop new betta training techniques, I will keep you all updated! Each trick will be posted in a different thread.
If you are new to my series of How To Train Your Betta guides, please read the prior training guide first: "HOW TO TRAIN YOUR BETTA 1-Come"
Now on with the tutorial
This trick is moderately easy, though your fish probably wont be able to be taught to do this on command, and definitely not on verbal command. This trick is not natural for the betta, and it may take the betta anywhere from a week to a month to learn this trick, usually averaging around 2 weeks to learn, and 3 weeks to master.
Step 1.) Obtain some blood worms, brine shrimp, or other tempting treat for your betta. Rip these pieces into small, training size treats. Kind of like if you had a piece of cheese for a dog's training, you would break it into little bits.
Step 2.) Walk up to your tank, if your betta approaches the tank, performing the "come" trick, then reward him and continue training. Use tweezers (to hold the blood worm/brine shrimp) and the treat to maneuver your fish in a circular path. Reward after the circle is complete. If your fish has a hard time, start with just 1/2 circles and slowly work your way up to full circles.
Step 3.) continue this training exercise for 5 minutes, then take a 30 minute break. Bettas are like children, they have short attention spans, and low tolerance to long training sessions. Thankfully, it is easy to work around this.
Step 4.) SLOWLY switch from guiding them the whole way, to guiding them 3/4 of the way, to 1/2 of the way, to 1/4 of the way. 1/4 of the way is usually the least amount of guiding you can go, as fish do NOT respond to verbal commands. You could however try to train them to "circle" when you make a twisting circle motion with your finger above their water's surface.

I hope this helped you all! Please comment below if you tried, or are going to try these techniques. I will answer any and all questions!

 

[LyndaB]

This is hysterical! When I approach any of my tanks, food or not, all of my fish "come".

I'm going to hang around for the "sit, stay" lesson.

 

[meegosh]

Please keep all posts in this thread. Refrain from making new threads for each lesson.

 

[Bettaluv]

Please keep all posts in this thread. Refrain from making new threads for each lesson.

oh, ok, sorry I will

 

[Bettaluv]

This is hysterical! When I approach any of my tanks, food or not, all of my fish "come".

I'm going to hang around for the "sit, stay" lesson.

haha! I had a stay lesson prepared...cant figure out how to make those darn fish sit though!

 

[meegosh]

haha! I had a stay lesson prepared...cant figure out how to make those darn fish sit though!

What about in one of these?

 

[Bettaluv]

What about in one of these?

I actually have one of those....I will look into it and see if I can make a lesson for that. Right now I am working on a lesson for having your betta jump through hoops.

 

[CoryFan]

Following! My son is excited.
This is sure to please "Red" as he will get treats.

 

[Bettaluv]

I have had someone ask me how I trained my bettas their tricks, and I figured, why not let EVERYONE know my secrets! We will start small, and slowly work our way up the ladder to more complicated tricks. As I improve and develop new betta training techniques, I will keep you all updated! Each trick will be posted here now, so subscribe and keep following!
If you are new to my series of How To Train Your Betta guides, please read the first training guide first: "HOW TO TRAIN YOUR BETTA 1-Come"
Now on with the tutorial
This particular lesson will teach you how to teach your betta to jump through a hoop. This trick is extremely hard for your betta fish to learn, and can be quite dangerous if not taught and executed correctly. Therefore, this trick is for experienced betta trainers who have at least already had complete success in training their betta to perform the "come" and "circle/spin" tricks. DO NOT TRY THIS WITH A DUMB BETTA!!!

STEP 1.) obtain a treat such as blood worms, brine shrimp, or some other tasty snack for Mr. Betta. Break these into small pieces as you did in the previous tutorials. Put a piece between a pair of tweezers.

STEP 2.) fashion a hoop out of a betta-safe material. Make sure there are no sharp edges, and the material wont harm a fish's water. I recommend using a soft, fake plant. Simply strip the plant of its "leaves" and fashion the main stem part into a circle (fasten it together with rubber bands, or just hold it together all of the time)

STEP 3.) put your jumping hoop completely inside the tank, and use the treat to coax the betta through the hoop. If your betta shies away from the hoop, try making the opening slightly bigger, or temporarily making it a half-circle, and slowly graduating to the full hoop. Practice having your betta swimming through the hoop (rewarding them each time they are successful) for 5 minutes. This particular trick is very hard for bettas to learn.

STEP 4.) wait 20-30 minutes in between each five minute training session. Nothing has changed since the first two lessons, your betta still has the same short attention span!!! In between each break, raise the hoop up about 5 cm. Do not perform more than 5 training sessions in one day, or you will end up with a very bloated betta.

STEP 5.) NEVER try to raise the bottom of the hoop more than 5 cm above the water's surface, or your betta could get stuck. NEVER skip a day of training, or you will LITERALLY have to start all over again! Start and end training at the same time every day, and never fear, your betta will eventually get it! I have had bettas learn this trick perfectly in as little as 1 week, and some have taken up to 1 month!

PLEASE NOTE:
I originally thought that male bettas would actually do better at this trick than the females, simple because of the stereotype that males are usually stronger than females, but found that to be far from the truth. The females were much quicker to learn and perfect this trick than the males, and here is what I believe to be why:
The females did better because their fins aren't as long as the males. Therefore they have less weight, and bulk to carry. This not only made them lighter, but also limited the possibility of their fins not making it all the way over the jump and them getting caught on the jump. Many of the males underestimated the size of their fins (a great trait until now ) and they were hung up on the jump because their fins didn't make it all the way over.

NO BETTAS WERE HARMED IN THEIR TRAINING FOR THIS TRICK!!!
to avoid disaster when training your fish, always keep in mind your fish's limits. Some bettas simply do not have the mental capacity to learn these tricks...so please understand if tricks and training aren't the best past time for your fish. NEVER force training on a fish that simply cannot do it!!!

 

[mfdrookie516]

DO NOT TRY THIS WITH A DUMB BETTA!!!

I am very interested in your suggestions on how to tell the intelligence level of a betta. I think we may have a potential millionaire right here on AA

 

[Bettaluv]

I am very interested in your suggestions on how to tell the intelligence level of a betta. I think we may have a potential millionaire right here on AA

haha, might post a lesson on it! LOL

 

[mfdrookie516]

Please include a quick how-to on letting your fish know, in the unlikely event that you discover, that it is dumb. That's something I've struggled with for a while now. I think one of my fish is a little more than dumb... it just swims around all day, but I can't figure out how to tell it without feeling like I'm going to cause it to be depressed

 

[Bettaluv]

Please include a quick how-to on letting your fish know, in the unlikely event that you discover, that it is dumb. That's something I've struggled with for a while now. I think one of my fish is a little more than dumb... it just swims around all day, but I can't figure out how to tell it without feeling like I'm going to cause it to be depressed

It's every fishkeeper's burden *sigh*. I found it easiest to just come right out and say it you know. Just tell them that you think it might be best for everyone if they seek mental help. Tell them you think they need to do just more than swim...like oh i don't know...jumping through flaming hoops on super tiny motorcycles or something
Tell your fish that he also needs to get a job! He can't just expect you to pay tons of money to take care of him! I mean, come on! He has to pay his month's rent at some point!

 

[Maxkolbe]

NEVER skip a day of training, or you will LITERALLY have to start all over again! Start and end training at the same time every day, and never fear, your betta will eventually get it! I have had bettas learn this trick perfectly in as little as 1 week, and some have taken up to 1 month!

So after you get them doing it do you still need too train everyday or will they forget it if you go on vacation?

 

[pugmom]

gosh, now I really want a betta to train!

 

[smomus]

I have "come" down very well! My betta will also "jump" on command. Going to work on the circling training!

 

[Bettaluv]

I'm glad everyone is enjoying the tips!
@Maxkolbe: No, that is just the initial training Your fish might be a little rusty when you return but about 10 minutes of working with them when you return should bring them back around

 

[LyndaB]

Please include a quick how-to on letting your fish know, in the unlikely event that you discover, that it is dumb. That's something I've struggled with for a while now. I think one of my fish is a little more than dumb... it just swims around all day, but I can't figure out how to tell it without feeling like I'm going to cause it to be depressed

Oh my Lord.......

 

[Bettaluv]

If you are new to my series of How To Train Your Betta guides, please read the first training guide first: "HOW TO TRAIN YOUR BETTA 1-Come"
Now on with the tutorial
Today, you will be teaching your betta to perform, jump. This step usually comes after training your fish to jump through a hoop. It is moderatly easy for your fish, and so you could try this before training "jump through the hoop", to give them the feeling of jumping out of the water on command. In the wild, bettas lived in Thailand in the rice paddies. They would occasionally jump out of the water (for fun or to catch something), but would usually stick to their home in the water.
Therefore this trick is relatively easy, and almost all trainable bettas can do this trick. To tell if your betta can learn this trick, step up to your tank. If your fishy friend swims up to you, then he has learned a conditioned behavior, and is therefore trainable. Training, especially in fish, is all just conditioned behavior. They know they get a treat by performing a certain action, so they begin to want to do it.
Step 1.) Obtain some blood worms, brine shrimp, or other tempting treat for your betta. Rip these pieces into small, training size treats. Kind of like if you had a piece of cheese for a dog's training, you would break it into little bits.
Step 2.) Walk up to your tank, if your betta approaches the tank, performing the "come" trick, then reward him and continue training. Hold the treat just above the water surface where your betta can see it, but cannot reach it without jumping. Hold it steady there for a few moments. Eventually your betta will try to jump out of the water to retrieve the treat. Regardless of how straight they jump, or if they touch the treat, reward with the treat. Repeat this exercise for 5 minutes.
STEP 4.) wait 20-30 minutes in between each five minute training session. Nothing has changed since the first two lessons, your betta still has the same short attention span!!! In between each break, raise the treat another 2-3 cm above where it was. If your betta fails, then be patient, lower the treat, and try again. Its OK, the Zombie apocalypse wont happen for another couple years, you have plenty of time to train your betta! Your betta can only jump so high, it's just a matter of hardly having to do any signals for him to jump
STEP 5.) complete this exersize until your betta has mastered it. Usually, on all of my test bettas for this trick, they all got it down perfectly in just 1-2 weeks!