It doesn’t take long to notice that the life-filled Betta you get from the pet store isn’t the same one that sits motionless in an empty tank at home.
A Betta fish truly needs a roomy tank to move around effectively. The optimal tank size should be 5 gallons, but you can also look at some of our suggested betta fish tanks.
Unfortunately, if you’ve read even a little about betta fish, you’ll always associate them with the stereotypes associated with the term “Siamese fighting fish.”
Over the years, the insistence of some “experts” who continue to declare that betta behavior is mostly about aggression, hatred, and violence has upset me more and more.
Betta fish don’t have a lot of fins, tails, or body shapes that would generally be considered intimidating.
Male Bettas can be quite aggressive toward one another, yet fights can last for hours.
In contrast, the betta itself is probably going to be dead within just 15 minutes when they are up with smaller fish of different species.
I’m hoping you’ll notice that the majority of what you’ve heard about Betta fish psychology is completely false when you look more closely at their body language.
What Are The Signs Of A Happy Betta Fish?
Bettas are much more likely to show their happiness than their desire to engage in conflict. You can use these indicators to determine your betta’s happiness and contentment when asking, “Is my betta happy? ”
Betta Bubble Nests
Building a “bubble nest” is one of the blatant indications that a betta fish is content. You might observe your betta blowing the nest if you keep an eye out for a cluster of bubbles on the tank’s surface. Once they are ready to mate, male betta fish build bubble nests, and a fish would only exhibit this instinctive behavior if it felt secure and comfortable.
The lack of bubble nests in your tank, however, does not indicate that your betta is unhappy. Each male betta will build a bubble nest at his or her own unique rate, which may be as frequently as every day or every six months. Even though it’s typically a male activity, some female bettas can build bubble nests.
Expanded Fins
How an aquarium fish holds its fins might reveal a lot about it. The fins of a betta in good health will be spread broadly. Their fins frequently resemble colorful flags moving with the current.
To communicate with other fish and other betta fish, they raise their fins. Like a dog’s perked ears, upright fins indicate an interest in clever fish.
Despite this, you shouldn’t count on always spotting open, flowing fins. A betta will hold its fins against its body to swim more quickly. This makes it more aerodynamic, which reduces drag on the water.
However, having fully open fins can also be an aggressive sign. When battling an opponent, betta fish use their fins to make themselves appear larger.
Therefore, if you noticed your betta fish following after a tankmate with upright fins and flared gills, keep an eye on it.
Due to their fairly lengthy fins, even unrelated fish, like guppies, may be misidentified as a rival. If your tank mates are being bullied too frequently, you may need to switch them around.
Aggressive Response
Betta fish are typically aggressive when they are delighted. Male bettas are fiercely competitive and fight over territory and mates. They might even turn hostile toward other species once a bubble nest has been constructed.
You can use a tiny mirror to check your fish’s vitality. Healthy betta fish will become aggressive in response to exercise mirrors like these. Bettas believe their reflection to be a male opponent because they fail the Mirror Test for self-awareness.
They’ll begin by performing a complex dance with their fins and gills. Then, the tail smacks and even attempts to bite! In Thailand, male bettas have long been bred for violence. Hence, it is recommended that each tank only have one male betta fish.
Betta fish reared in sorority groups are females because they are more kind in nature. They do, however, occasionally approach their reflection with attention and violence.
Never leave an exercise mirror in the betta’s tank permanently if you do decide to buy one. The bettas will experience ongoing competition as a threat.
This will undoubtedly stress you out because it will be like having a bully roommate staring at you nonstop. No more than 20 to 30 minutes should be spent exercising each day. In this manner, each time your betta fish defends the entire tank, it gets to “win”!
Feeding Behavior
Betta fish are smart and may be taught to perform tricks like jumping through hoops. Knowing when it’s time to eat is one indication of their intelligence.
When you approach the tank to feed it, a contented, well-adjusted betta will start to swim over, especially if regularly feed in the same location. When you add food to the tank, they will eagerly move toward it and begin to eat.
Normal Activity
A Betta that is adapting well to its surroundings will engage with it frequently. This entails swimming around any aquarium plants and decorations you may have. A Betta may be unwell if it just stays in one spot, particularly at the bottom of the tank, and shows no interest in its surroundings. Sleeping, which bettas will do and is perfectly normal, is not the same as this.
The degree of activity in your betta fish is one indication that you are maintaining its content. Betta fish who are content will swim all over the aquarium. They don’t have particular areas of the aquarium to move in like the majority of tropical fish do.
The betta fish’s typical habit involves investigating the tank’s surface, middle, and bottom. In between the gravel grains, they occasionally search for food scraps. Sometimes, all they want to do is look around the tank.
Betta fish can rest in the midwater area thanks to debris, plants, and other ornaments. Additionally, bettas frequently surface to breathe through their labyrinth organ. If they are extremely content, they may even construct bubble nests!
Attentive To Nearby Activity
Another indication of a healthy Betta fish is when it is active in its aquarium and simple to locate daily. Your fish may be agitated or even ill if they are always hiding in the tank and you have problems finding them. Bettas like to hide in hiding places in ornaments, but they shouldn’t stay there all the time and ignore the rest of the tank.
One of the most observant pets you can have is a healthy, happy betta fish. They constantly observe what is going on around them and have huge, perceptive eyes. Bettas can even turn their heads slightly, unlike many tropical fish.
When you approach the aquarium, the betta fish will become more animated. Even when their stomachs are full, bettas constantly wish for a meal until their next meal.
A Betta fish just finds movement around them entertaining if they are not hungry. Betta fish immediately follow movement because they are carnivorous. They are continuously looking about them for evidence of food, competitors, or larger predators.
Effortless Swimming
Every day, a cheerful betta will swim all around the tank. They can move almost sluggishly at times and suddenly jump from left to right at other times. Your betta is happy and content if it swims without apparent difficulty and isn’t struggling or tilting to one side. A betta that isn’t doing well could appear uncoordinated and have problems swimming. Additionally, they could remain close to the tank’s bottom while displaying signs of difficulty swimming upstream.
Getting Along With Tank Mates
It’s a good indication that your betta and the other fish in the tank get along if you keep them together. This implies that they can swim past or around them without getting tense or pursuing them.
You may need to eliminate the other fish from the aquarium if your betta is flaring their fins, pursuing, or even biting at them in response to the other fish.
Vibrant Color
Bright hues are another indication that your Betta fish is content. Bettas use their colors and fins to show their state of health and attitude. Their scales and skin should be rich to the point of becoming metallic when they are joyful.
That is, based on the betta breed. Some variants come in naturally pale or creamy colors. However, persistent pallor in a breed that is typically bright is an indication of a dissatisfied male Betta fish.
Your Betta fish would occasionally change color. Temporary stress can be brought on by rapid moves, new tankmates, water changes, and changing the decorations.
A pallid betta is attempting to hide from potential predators. But once it feels comfortable once more, it will color again!
How To Make Your Betta Fish Happy
We now know what a cheerful Betta fish looks like. So how can we ensure that he maintains his positive attitude?
Warm Water Temperature
The temperature of the water is a crucial factor in betta fish maintenance. In Southeast Asia, where it rarely gets cold, betta fish live. A heater should be used to maintain warm water temperatures.
You’ll hear this advice from many pet store employees: maintain your betta at ambient temperature. For a healthy fish, this is bad. Cold spells won’t harm bettas. However, a sustained cold will deteriorate their immune system. There will be a rise in conditions, including body fungus and velvet disease.
A chilly betta consumes little fish food and develops more slowly. Your sick fish might even pass away eventually. Set your betta tank’s heater to a temperature between 75 and 85 degrees Fahrenheit. Additionally, neon tetras, cory catfish, and other tank companions can be kept in “integrated systems,” where the plant consumes fish waste and the betta consumes the plant.
Unfortunately, deceptive advertising is an example of these systems. For instance, betta fish don’t consume vegetation. Additionally, fish waste is consumed, and oxygen is released by aquatic plants.
The simplest species to maintain are living plants that float. Elodea, duckweed, red root floater, and hornwort are all plants that enhance bad water quality. A betta can use them as anchor points to construct its bubble nest.
Make sure to clean any new aquarium plants, though. Otherwise, rapid algae growth or snail infestation could result!
Frozen And Live Food
Offering your betta a new food source is one simple approach to determining whether it needs a change in its environment. Both flakes and pellets work well. But occasionally, even fish like variety. Betta prefers to live alone. A lonely betta’s aquarium can benefit from additional activity by adding tank mates.
Betta fish are frequently described as being too aggressive to coexist with other fish by new aquarists. That is untrue, though, as they are too hostile to coexist with the other male Bettas.
A betta in good health could act aggressively and chase its aquarium mates. However, they move far too slowly to cause any harm. The majority of bettas will observe other fish but not pursue them. If you observe any aggressive behavior, the betta is probably mistaking another fish for a male opponent.
The quantity of fish you can add will be hampered by a tiny tank. However, a healthy Betta fish may live among many other fish species.
The same water quality enjoyed by bettas is also enjoyed by gouramis, tetras, cherry barbs, livebearers (like platies, guppies, etc.), and cory catfish. Additionally, these fish are calm and won’t bite at a male betta’s lengthy fins.
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Toys And Decorations
Want to give your Betta to explore? Look for ornaments for fish tanks and intriguing caverns that he can swim through or dive into. Ensure that none of the ornaments have sharp edges and that your betta fish fit through all the holes without becoming stuck. We like the floating betta log because bettas like to swim toward the surface to occasionally breathe.
Your betta can effortlessly swim through this organic-looking decor, take a calm nap, or even create a bubble nest inside of it.
To prevent his meal from getting stolen by other fish or disappearing too rapidly into the gravel, there is another hole on the side that you can use to feed fish food.
Do Frequent Water Changes
Bettas are delicate in unsuitable or bad water conditions. Therefore, you must perform water changes of about 20% once a week to keep your betta tank steady and healthy.
To keep it from decaying and polluting the water, you also need to use an aquarium vacuum to remove plant debris, uneaten food, and fish waste from the substrate and tank corners.
Conduct Regular Water Quality Checks
Bettas are quite sensitive to quality and other factors, as was already mentioned. Therefore, spend money on an aquarium water testing kit of high quality and check the water in your pet’s aquarium once a week.
Ammonia and nitrite concentrations should be low, while nitrate concentrations should ideally be 20 ppm or below. With a hardness of 3 to 4 dGH and 3 to 5 dKH, the pH of the water should be in the range of 6.5 to 7.5.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can Betta Fish Live In Tap Water?
Tap water can be used by bettas, but only after being treated. Heavy metals like copper, lead, and zinc is frequently found in tap water, along with chloramines and chlorine, which can all be harmful to the health of tropical fish. To make the water safe and suitable for your betta, you will need to apply a water conditioner to get rid of chlorine and chloramine and detoxify these toxic substances.
How Long Do Betta Fish Live?
The lifespan of a betta fish is typical for tiny fish. If properly tended for, they survive between 2 and 4 years. A very cherished Betta, maybe five years old.
How Do Betta Fish Breathe?
In addition to gasping for oxygen at the water’s surface, betta fish also breathe through their gills. Because they frequently inhabit oxygen-poor environments in the wild, bettas have developed a method of drawing oxygen directly from the atmosphere utilizing their labyrinth organ.
Do Betta Fish Get Lonely?
Even though it might appear different, your pets do not experience loneliness. Bettas are solitary creatures and don’t mind living by themselves at all.
Your fish will be fine if it has everything it needs, including a clean environment, plenty of protein-rich food, and the best care possible.
Conclusion
Betta fish just require a few things to survive. All you need is a small fish tank (at least 5 gallons) and food. Basic services are fairly simple to supply. But having a content betta fish should always be our goal!
Taking care of the betta fish’s emotional and physical needs will keep them content. This entails providing them with a tank that is the proper size, high-quality food, and a variety of plants and decorations. You’ll know you’re on the correct track if you observe the telltale indicators of a content betta fish. You can also make adjustments by watching your betta’s regular life if you notice symptoms of illness or depression.