A Siamese Fighting fish or a “Betta” is one of the easiest fish to keep, much simpler than the traditional “goldfish in a bowl”. If you keep your Betta’s environment clean, don’t overfeed him, and add a live plant to his aquarium or bowl, he can live for a very long time. One customer reported that she had her Betta for six years. The common length of time is between 2 to 3 years.
Here is a simple, easy approach to caring for your Betta:
All you need to do is change 1/3 of the water once a week. You can either use a little siphon to take the water out of your bowl or pour it out carefully. I like to keep a house plant next to the bowl so I can use the old Betta water to water my plant. It is full of nutrients that your house plant will love.
A water change is like opening a window and letting in some fresh air for your fish. Use water that is slightly warmer than the water that your betta is in so he doesn’t get a chill, add your water conditioner, (we recommend Sea Chem Betta Basics Conditioner because it not only renders the chlorine harmless, it also sets the ph to 7.0) and slowly poor the water back in to your bowl.
Bettas love frozen Hikari Blood Worms!
We feed our Bettas Frozen Blood worms 3 times each week. Always use a conditioner for the water like Seachem’s Betta Basics.
Sometimes, in spite of all your best efforts your Betta may become lethargic, lose his colour, develop a film on his body, swell up and stop eating. He may show all of these symptoms or just one. It may be that his home is too cold! We have tiny heaters designed especially for Bettas in small tanks or bowls that will warm him up. In any case, you should clean up his bowl immediately by doing a complete water change and treat him with some medication. If you are unable to come to the store you can put a pinch of non iodized salt in his bowl (1/4 teaspoon per litre). Make sure you only use aquarium salt. Put his bowl in a warm spot, (not a window) sometimes the top of your fridge is the best place, and stop feeding him for a minimum of two days. Follow the directions on the medication…..and relax.
If you are going away we sell 7 day feeders made especially for Siamese Fighting Fish.