How to Take Care of a Betta Fish - Betta Care Mistakes to Avoid
As a Betta owner, I know how rewarding these pets can be.
My fish Gilbert excitedly swims up to grab food off of my finger and sticks to the side of the glass I'm on when I enter the room.
The trick is, the fish has to be alive to be that rewarding and the thriving pet you strive for right? Strive for the thrive, that's the motto! Enough with funny business.
Below I've compiled some common Betta fish care mistakes for you to avoid.
Overfeeding - What's Right? Overfeeding and poor water conditions fight for the spot of "#1 Betta fish killer" and so you should watch out for this guy.
You want to keep your Betta on a steady feeding schedule to avoid stress.
Remember, a Betta's stomach is about as big as one of its eyeballs, so you don't want to get your pet all blocked up.
I feed my fish two pellets in the morning and two at night, I use pellets because they provide the well balanced nutrition of flake food but are easier to measure out (to avoid aforementioned overfeeding).
Also, once every week microwave a frozen pea and cut off the outer shell.
For that day give your Betta small pieces of the inner pea rather than pellets.
They will love the treat (although they don't even need a whole pea in a day) and it will help to clear out their system.
Improper Tank Setup When it comes to setting up for a Betta fish, you're gonna want to get things right.
You need a filter, a heater, a thermometer and drops to remove chlorine and other chemicals from tap water.
The tank will also need to be cycled meaning that you should let it's Ammonia and nitrite levels stabilize before adding fish.
Your temperature should remain constant somewhere between 78 and 84 degrees Fahrenheit.
Once you find an easily maintainable temperature keep the tank water there, Bettas don't like rapid fluctuations.
My fish Gilbert excitedly swims up to grab food off of my finger and sticks to the side of the glass I'm on when I enter the room.
The trick is, the fish has to be alive to be that rewarding and the thriving pet you strive for right? Strive for the thrive, that's the motto! Enough with funny business.
Below I've compiled some common Betta fish care mistakes for you to avoid.
Overfeeding - What's Right? Overfeeding and poor water conditions fight for the spot of "#1 Betta fish killer" and so you should watch out for this guy.
You want to keep your Betta on a steady feeding schedule to avoid stress.
Remember, a Betta's stomach is about as big as one of its eyeballs, so you don't want to get your pet all blocked up.
I feed my fish two pellets in the morning and two at night, I use pellets because they provide the well balanced nutrition of flake food but are easier to measure out (to avoid aforementioned overfeeding).
Also, once every week microwave a frozen pea and cut off the outer shell.
For that day give your Betta small pieces of the inner pea rather than pellets.
They will love the treat (although they don't even need a whole pea in a day) and it will help to clear out their system.
Improper Tank Setup When it comes to setting up for a Betta fish, you're gonna want to get things right.
You need a filter, a heater, a thermometer and drops to remove chlorine and other chemicals from tap water.
The tank will also need to be cycled meaning that you should let it's Ammonia and nitrite levels stabilize before adding fish.
Your temperature should remain constant somewhere between 78 and 84 degrees Fahrenheit.
Once you find an easily maintainable temperature keep the tank water there, Bettas don't like rapid fluctuations.
