Betta care in not so good conditions

[MarkA123]

Ok I'm not sure if this is the right place to put this because I'm new but here goes. I have a veiltail female beta in a 1 gallon unheated, unfiltered, aerated, and lighted at night tank. I know this isn't proper but the "Expert" at petco convinced me she would be happy (I'm not callig him stupid or names etc.) I feed her a really expensive betta flake food. She has gravel, a cave, and artificial plant decor in her tank. The tanks lighting may or may not heat the tank during the day when it's on (I turn it off at night.) So far she seems happy (eating regularly, no signs of disease such as ick or swimbladder, and she swims a lot. I think she's just happy to be out of the cup she was living in. I've heard that fish can go brain dead/insane/etc. from being alone in a tiny space. Is this true I think it makes sense. I clean her tank every other day by doing partial water changes and applying water conditioner. How long will she be happy in this tank? So far she is tiny. I plan to get a 12 gallon eclipse once I get enough money from working at my parents restaurant which will take about a month. How can I maximize her happiness until she gets her new tank? Also can I put a mystery snail in the tank with her? Ok so how do I put a picture of her tank on Here. I took it with my camera and now it's on my computer how do I post it? Thanks for all your help!

 

[maxima423]

okay for now keep up with the water changes maybe 25-40% a day but thats your call, if you want to do every other day you might want to do 50-70% than, are you using a dechlorintor, if you arent i would suggest Prime http://www.seachem.com/Products/product_pages/Prime.html , they do need a heater and prefer temps around 78-80*, dont feed too often because your ammonia will rise pretty quickly in that small tank of yours, i suggest once a day or maybe even every other day, until you get your tank set up, read up on fishless cycling http://www.aquariumadvice.com/forums/f15/fishless-cycling-for-dummies-103339.html and invest in a API freshwater master kit Freshwater Master Test Kit Customer Ratings & Reviews - Top & Best Rated Products - Walmart

i dont know about the mystery snail, but they have been known to eat other inverts such as shrimp, so i would be cautious, i am personally going to try 2 nerite snails in a few months and see if they get along =] for now just READ READ READ

 

[MarkA123]

Thanks for your reply but I'm afraid I can't get a heater is there anything I can do to keep the tank water warm? I've decided to take your suggestion on cleaning the tank every day with 25 percent water changes. Thanks for your help!!!

okay for now keep up with the water changes maybe 25-40% a day but thats your call, if you want to do every other day you might want to do 50-70% than, are you using a dechlorintor, if you arent i would suggest Prime Seachem. Prime , they do need a heater and prefer temps around 78-80*, dont feed too often because your ammonia will rise pretty quickly in that small tank of yours, i suggest once a day or maybe even every other day, until you get your tank set up, read up on fishless cycling http://www.aquariumadvice.com/forums/f15/fishless-cycling-for-dummies-103339.html and invest in a API freshwater master kit Freshwater Master Test Kit Customer Ratings & Reviews - Top & Best Rated Products - Walmart

i dont know about the mystery snail, but they have been known to eat other inverts such as shrimp, so i would be cautious, i am personally going to try 2 nerite snails in a few months and see if they get along =] for now just READ READ READ

 

[Aquarium1]

Are you sure it's a girl? Female betta have shorter fins than males and enjoy being in groups of about 3+ although you'd need a bigger tank for that.

 

[MarkA123]

I'm sure it's a girl it does have short fins and is active. I never said the fins were big unless I made a mistake ill check the description again thanks for the reply though!!!

Are you sure it's a girl? Female betta have shorter fins than males and enjoy being in groups of about 3+ although you'd need a bigger tank for that.

 

[BlackMagic]

what kinda 1gallon? any pic ?

what i would do is change half the water every 3 day.
if u can get ur hand on some I.A.L, she will be super happy with those.
i found out that betta r light hater, they dont like to much light. they tend to stress out more when light is to powerful so try to cover the tank up a bit so there like shade in there.

 

[dkpate]

Ok, first off, in a tank that size, I would change 50% of the water 3 times a week. I wouldn't use Prime until you get a bigger tank, and I would go with Stress-Coat. Make sure the new water you put in there is as close to the same temp as the water in the tank. I am thinking you might have the triangular shaped tank that I started with too, that has the bubble stone that goes down into the tube. If so, at night, turn that stone off. It is super noisy and I am sure it's stressful to Mrs. Betta.
Mystery snails need at least 2.5 gallons to themselves, so I would hold off on one of those until you get the bigger tank.
You will need a heater that can keep the tank at at least 78*, or she won't be happy.
My bettas are fine with the lights, and I leave them on for 8 hours a day. They do have plants to hide in though.
Take the flakes back and get some Hikari Betta Bio-Gold pellets, and soak them for 5 minutes before feeding. You can find the little package of those pellets for about $2. Make sure they are for bettas, and not the micro pellets. Flakes bloat bettas and so do freeze-dried foods.

And last but not least, congrats on your new betta!!! I love my bettas!

 

[MarkA123]

Ok what's I.A.L. And she has pliantly of place to hide from the light.

what kinda 1gallon? any pic ?

what i would do is change half the water every 3 day.
if u can get ur hand on some I.A.L, she will be super happy with those.
i found out that betta r light hater, they dont like to much light. they tend to stress out more when light is to powerful so try to cover the tank up a bit so there like shade in there.

 

[MarkA123]

Thanks I use tetra safe water conditioner to take chlorine out and other things toxic to fish. I've decided to do 25 percent water hangs every day thanks for your help!

okay for now keep up with the water changes maybe 25-40% a day but thats your call, if you want to do every other day you might want to do 50-70% than, are you using a dechlorintor, if you arent i would suggest Prime Seachem. Prime , they do need a heater and prefer temps around 78-80*, dont feed too often because your ammonia will rise pretty quickly in that small tank of yours, i suggest once a day or maybe even every other day, until you get your tank set up, read up on fishless cycling http://www.aquariumadvice.com/forums/f15/fishless-cycling-for-dummies-103339.html and invest in a API freshwater master kit Freshwater Master Test Kit Customer Ratings & Reviews - Top & Best Rated Products - Walmart

i dont know about the mystery snail, but they have been known to eat other inverts such as shrimp, so i would be cautious, i am personally going to try 2 nerite snails in a few months and see if they get along =] for now just READ READ READ

 

[BlackMagic]

Ok what's I.A.L. And she has pliantly of place to hide from the light.

sorry for the late reply. Indian Almond Leaves(I.A.L.)

do keep us updated on how ur betta doing.

 

[MarkA123]

Hey guys I'm going to put a YouTube video of the tank ill give you details as soon as I get it uploaded thanks ill also be creating a new post to update her condition time to time along with any change to her tank etc is there a specific category for that what category do I put it in I'm going to I've updates on her and changes etc!

 

[mommytron]

about adding pictures to your posts: upload your pictures from your computer to a place like Photo bucket, google's Picasa, or even facebook. then go to where you uploaded the picture you want in the post, right click on the picture, then click "copy image location." while adding your post, click on the little picture icon and a box will come up asking for a URL address. click paste (or press ctrl + V) your picture should pop right into your post!

and when you're ready to post the youtube video, just copy and paste the link of the page the video is on right into your post. once you post it the video will just pop up.

can't wait to see your little betta. how is she doing?

 

[MarkA123]

I know how to do pictures and videos and stuff but. I want to start a new thread that I can update her condition changes tank info how she's doing new pictures and videos changes in tank etc. So is there a specific category to post that in or what category would that go under? Freshwater and brackish, getting started freshwater general or what category? Maybe videos/photos category I don't know thanks!

about adding pictures to your posts: upload your pictures from your computer to a place like Photo bucket, google's Picasa, or even facebook. then go to where you uploaded the picture you want in the post, right click on the picture, then click "copy image location." while adding your post, click on the little picture icon and a box will come up asking for a URL address. click paste (or press ctrl + V) your picture should pop right into your post!

and when you're ready to post the youtube video, just copy and paste the link of the page the video is on right into your post. once you post it the video will just pop up.

can't wait to see your little betta. how is she doing?

 

[dkpate]

I would put the info in getting started.