Betta fish are some of the most beautiful of the fish kept as pets. They’re fairly common at pet stores around the world because of their attractive qualities and their uniqueness. Unlike some other fish, they have a few special requirements that make caring for them a little bit particular. You need to know your fish and prepare properly for getting the fish. You need to know how much aquarium you will need and how much you have to spend. Then you can shop around beforehand; when you bring your fish home, you should be able to put it right into its new home.
The Size of Your Aquarium
Aquarium size is one of the first considerations you should make. Once you know how big your aquarium needs to be, you can decide how much money you are going to have to spend. That might determine if you can get a betta fish at all. The general rule of thumb is that you need 4 litres per 2.5 centimetres of fully grown fish. Betta fish do best by themselves, so you should probably keep it down to one fish per fish tank. A betta fish tends to be between 2.5 cm and 15 cm when fully grown. That means you’ll need between 4 litres and 24 litres depending on the size of your fish. You can always get a new tank if the fish grows bigger than you expect it to. Your best bet is to ask the pet store how big their betta fish normally grow. They can then give you a good estimate of how much aquarium you will need.
Buying the proper aquarium supplies is crucial for taking good care of your betta fish.
Daily Care
The daily care of your betta fish will involve feeding it twice a day; the fish food will give you specifics about how much and how often to feed the fish. You’ll also need to make sure that your water is between about 23 and 25 degrees Celsius. Any cooler than that can cause temperature shock that slows its metabolism and compromises its immune system. If the water temperature is warmer than that, the betta will be fine but bacteria will begin to grow in your tank.
Keeping the temperature in the proper range involves a thermometer in your aquarium as well as some kind of heat source. The easiest way to heat the water is with a heater that dips down into the water. If you live in a warm area, you might be able to get away with putting the aquarium near a window and allowing the sunlight to warm it. You need to make sure that it does not get too warm or the temperature does not fluctuate too much. Watch it closely.
Weekly Care
On a week to week basis, you will need to change the water and scrub the glass of any algae that might accumulate. However, if you buy a good water filtration system, you might not need to do this as regularly.
