Caring For A Betta Fish

 Meet Uncle Sam

Sorry about the picture quality it's really hard to get a good picture of a fish,  he just wouldn't sit still and smile for me.
Anyway this is Uncle Sam he's a present for my Hubby who wanted a little fish for his office.  I love betta fish they are probably the simplest pet in the world to take care of and the ONLY fish that can truly live in a fish bowl. 

YES I KNOW

The picture on the bowl and those little tanks (the ones under 10 gallons)  show gold fish in them.  But don't for a minute think they are going to live out their full life in those bowls.  Yes I know there are people out there who say they were able to keep one in a bowl for a couple years but since they can have a life span of 10 or more years, a couple is death in childhood to them.

Anyway sorry got off track there.... 

Betta fish have a life span of 2 or 3 years. they don't require a heater or a pump though a low flow pump is good for water circulation ( that black thing behind the fish is a small filter).  You can set up the bowl with what every decorations you want.  We have two live plants and a half a hollow log for him to hid it. 

 Make sure it is not in direct sunlight since this will encourage algae growth.

You want to either get a betta water conditioner which is a solution that takes the chlorine out of the water or let the water sit for 24 hours before adding the fish which will allow the chlorine to evaporate. 

About once a week remove 10% of the water from the tank and replace it with fresh water.  This helps in two ways.  First if you empty all the water you kill of the good bacteria that have started to develop which help keep the tank in balance.  By only removing 10% you leave them in.  2nd you remove excess minerals, left behind by water evaporation and excess waste.  Because of the small sizes of betta tanks I recommend going out and buying a Turkey Baster to help remove water from the  tank.  The turkey baster allows you to reach the bottom of the tank where the fish waste sinks but doesn't remove an excessive amount of water.  Don't forget to de-chlorinate the water before adding it to the tank.

Last feed him every other day.  He has a little tummy don't feed him an Supersized meal, a few little pellets is all he need.

Last But not least DONOT place him with another Betta Fish one of them will end up DEAD.