Aquarium Supplies Part 1 - My First Experience With Bettas

Keeping fish as pets takes more than just feedingHowever, that little jar was kind of small for a pair of
them and changing the water every once in a while.fish although they got along. So, we decided to
Sadly, many people aren't aware of that and theymove the fish to a much larger plastic container.
just buy aquarium fish because they're attractive.Later I added a couple more females so that it
After a short while the fish start to get sick and diebecame sort of a betta community tank.
one after the other, and the newbie would loseBeing fascinated by the beauty of the male bettas, I
interest in the hobby and give it up all together.bought a couple more and put each in individual jars. I
Basic knowledge of fish keeping, together with thefed them dried food and occasionally bread.
right aquarium supplies, is crucial to the livelihood andHowever, I fed them too much. The water would
longevity of your fish. It's important to maintain thebecome cloudy fast from fish waste and uneaten
optimum living conditions for your fish and other livingfood. So, I completely changed the water every
things you may have in your aquarium if you are toother day. I would fill up the jar with new water right
enjoy them for a long time.from the tap.
To illustrate this, I shall share with you my ownAs you might guess, the fish didn't last very long.
experiences when I got started with this hobby forAfter only a few months they started to get sick
the very first time as a child. The first experienceand eventually one after the other died.
was with bettas and the second with goldfish; twoDirty water, untreated new water, fluctuating water
different kinds of fish with different requirements.temperatures, and trauma from being moved
My first pet fish were a pair of bettas (a male and afrequently during water changes were some of the
female) which my mom bought me because shefactors that contributed to the fish's low resistance
knew that I liked fish and felt sorry for me becauseto diseases.
a toy fish was all I had.Although it's acceptable to keep bettas in relatively
We put the bettas in a small plastic jar with a floatingsmall containers without aeration, it would be much
live plant. The male was aggressive. He continuouslybetter to put them in a tank of at least 2 gallons,
chased after the female and attacked her until sheand you would still need to observe certain basic
was full of bruises. One night, running out of place tothings such as not feeding them too much and
hide, the female desperately jumped out of thesetting aside new water to equilibrate the
water onto the floor. Fortunately I was nearby andtemperature and remove chorine prior to water
was able to save her.changes.
My mom then suggested that we separate the fish.I was only about 10 years old at the time and didn't
So we put the female in a different jar. However, Iknow anything about fish keeping. Neither did my
felt that the female was lonely. So one day I askedmom. Also, back then there were very few books
my mom if I could buy another fish. There was aabout aquarium fish and the aquarium supplies were
beautiful green male betta that I decided to buy.not as sophisticated as they are today.
At that time I didn't know that bettas were fightingToday, there are plenty of good books and
fish and that the males would fight with each other.magazines as well as web sites about fish aquariums.
So at first I decided to put the new male in theSo, if you're serious about taking up this hobby, you
same container as the first male. I knew the firstshould start by reading a few of them and gain the
male was aggressive and I just wondered how hebasic knowledge before you even buy your aquarium
would react toward another male.and fish.
To my amazement the two males fought with eachIn the next article you will learn what happened when
other and there was no sign that they would stop.I tried to keep some goldfish, also with very little
After a while I got worried. I didn't want any ofknowledge. In the mean time I invite you to visit my
them to die so I finally separated them and put theweb site (see below) to learn more about aquarium
new male together with the female, and to myfish keeping.
pleasant surprise they got along pretty well.