Hi! New to fish owning all together, help please!

[Jesse]

Hi there, I just got given as a present a small tank split into two with a betta fish in each half. I love them!!

Ive attached a rather shocking photo (the only one I have at the moment).

Just curious how to clean the tank, whilst maintaining the health of my new babies.

The one of the right, marley, isnt really eating much at all he likes to spit it out alot. I have pellets for them esp for bettas.

Ive also got water conditioner so when I change the water/ clean the tank i can put that into.


Any advice in plain english is much appreciated. I just dont know also how to get the food out each day that they dont eat as its quite a narrow skinny tank.

Thanks so much

[Shedeivl]

Do you eat ice cream or chinese ? I do and affter I keep the containers wash them well and carefully pour my betta from his tank to the contaner as u have two betta u will have to use two containers puting a betta in each make sure u keep the containers apart if there clear as the betta will see each other and fight (well try to ) lids with beathing holes one of the bettas i had loved to jump and wouls jump out of the container Y i was cleaning the tank then u can clean the tank with hot water and a cloth i got one that I keep just for my tank if u have to use soopy water u can but make sure u rise it really well then make sure u use the conditioner as drected i like also use per boild water that has cooled agin as my tank water and If I can also say I would buy them biger home as the small betta tanks r kinda crule as you have two and u can't put them one big tank as they with kill each other and tanks can b expancive I would get a large glass vase for each mine only cost me $15 From A cheep shop but I live in Australia so I dont know where you would get one rember never put them side by side I know they are in there betta tank but that disinged so they can see each other and female betta can live with them also as they will kill each other hance the name fighting fish I once was told that betta spit there food back out to make it easyer to swallow and also not ever betta eats the same amont like not ever humen dose if this is ture i'm not sure sorry you can buy a book on the betta off ebay
I hope this info helps you

[Shedeivl]

welcome to the wonderfull world of fish

[BettaLu&Meg]

Welcome Jesse! I'm bettalu&meg(Luis) the breeder on this site, and congrats on the new hobby
Ok, now For feeding, you want to feed twice a day, one in the morning and one at night(before you go to bed)
Also, a variety of food for your bettas is definitly a good idea, feeding just pellets will eventually give complications. this is because there always eating the same food and not getting nutrition elsewhere thus leading to Swim bladder disorder, and constipation.
Giving a variety is the best thing for them! Flakes you should perchase (hikari is what breeders like myself and keepers use [Registered users only can see links. ] ) Also the occasional treats can be given like, bloodworms or freeze dried bringe shrimp.
Also with the feeding you should only give what they eat in about 5 minutes, leaving excess food in there will lead to poor water quality and rotting food will leave harmful bacteria in the water.
FishMomma is the health and tank expert on this site and can explain the cleaning process if you get ahold of her, until then don't clean 100% of your tanks water, this will get rid of benefical bacteria thats needed. Do a 40% percent change once a week.
The conditioner is a good thing, it gets rid or chlorine, chloramines and metals in our tap water that harmful to our bettas. so thats good

[Oscar Betta]

Welcome to betta fish forums! You will learn a lot here If he is spittimg up his food,because you just got him, i think hes just getting use to it. Mine did it for a few days. If he does it a few weeks later or something that means hes being over fead. I dont think it means he doesent like it usually.

[Jesse]

Thanks for your help i really appreciate it, will get them sum variety in food thank you!

[Shedeivl]

Hi jess

I know i'm no Expert but what I would do is get them two seprate biger homes this could be small tanks most ppl say 2gal with heater and filter rembering that there fighter fish so they need one each and they can't bewhere they can C eachother

as tanks are kind of expacive and you have to leave the water in for a month with filter so the water will b right for the bettas i would just do what I have done and bought my betta a large vase mines like 1 gal and you can clean it the way you clean the small there home u have them in now
u dont have to get use to a harder prosess cleaning tanks for a new fish owner can b hard geting use to

a snail for each vase or tank is a good friend for betta as they help keep the tank clean and also dont both the betta as there not a fish

also you can deco your new betta home with fake plants i have purple ones

betta normal only live for 3-4 years and are like 3 month when u buy the from a pet shop so if u get 3 years out of ur betta dont b sad as he got to spend his life time with you

[BettaLu&Meg]

no problem, and if you have any other questions regarding anything to do with bettas, breeding, health, tankmates, tankcare just ask. there are some people here like myself and fishmomma who are experts in different field of betta care! keep us posted on your bettas!

[FishMomma]

Thanks, Luis! I'll try to give some help in the area of water changes and tank care. Jesse, welcome to the forum site and also the world of fish keeping! You'll get hooked before you know it!

First of all, on the size of tank, each Betta should have a tank that is at least 2 gallons in size. You can go up to 10 gallons for one Betta, too! This will help keep your Bettas healthy and also give them some good space for swimming in and playing. Let me say one thing about the split tank . . . while this is a good way to keep Bettas seperate (and do that or you'll have a fight on your hands!), it does put them in "fighting mode" for awhile when they see the other Betta all the time. This can be a little stressful for them which is never good. Perhaps when you get a chance, you should convert your split tank into one and then get another to put the other Betta in.

For water changes, like BettaLu&Meg said, NEVER do a 100% water change! Once a tank is cycled which usually takes about 1-3 months, you'll get benficial bacteria that will help keep ammonia and nitrIte levels from spiking and becoming unsafe for your fish. Ammonia and nitrIte levels should always be zero (0) but with new tanks, you can get spikes rather quickly so you have to watch that. Get some test strips at the local pet shop (API has some good ones out there) to test for ammonia, nitrIte, and pH levels in your water. Bettas like a STABLE pH around 6.8-7.0. Now, for the water changes, if you have a filter, change out 25%-50% of the water once a week but not more than twice a week since this can be stressful for the fish. If you DON'T have a filter, change out 75%-85% of the water weekly. If you get an ammonia or nitrIte spike, change out 50% of the water immediately and then two days later. Fish that are in water with too much ammonia and nitrItes will pale, be lethargic, and gasp at the surface. So remember, though, that Bettas have alabyrinth organ that will require them to breath some air from the surface so don't panic if you see your fish at the top of the tank sucking in some fresh air. If you see him doing this a lot or constantly, then you need to check the levels. You'll also need to get a gravel vaccum to get left over food and poo out of the tank.

Be careful to not overfeed your fish. Remember that leftovers turn into ammonia and nitrItes so overfeeding will just make your water dirty faster. Betta's tummies are about the size of their eyeball so that should help you judge a little bit. If you are giving them pellets, soak them in some water for about 5 minutes to help soften them. This will help your fella eat them easier and also help you avoid issues like constipation and swim bladder condition.

Hope this helps a bit. Please, let me know if you have any other questions and I'll be happy to answer them! Good luck and congrats!!

[Jesse]

Thank you again, so helpful!!