I found a site that said this stuff about betta metabosism is it true?
1.5 gallons is 6 quarts and that's a pretty big fish bowl. We might put one Betta in a half gallon bowl but 1.5 gallons is much better.
Notice we recommend putting the bowl in a cool part of your home where the water is 65 to 75 degrees F. not 78 to 80. The lower temperature allows more oxygen in the water and less fish waste because the animals' metabolism is slower.
The cultured gravel provides a lot of surface area that is covered with the essential nitrifying bacteria that turn fish waste into harmless residue.
We recommend that you change 20% of the water at least twice a week and replace it with bottled drinking water.
We recommend tha you feed Tetra BettaMin and Tetra Delecta Freeze Dried Blood Worms, because these foods float and leave less residue than most foods.
We strongly recommend you check your fish bowl 10 minutes after each feeding. If there is any uneaten food, remove it with a small
Answers:
All of that is true for as far as it explains things. 65F water will hold more oxygen than 80F water, but a betta will not do well in the lower water temperature. Yes, it's metabolism will be slower, but it's disease resistance will also be lower. All of the other material is reasonable in my opinion, except I would say to change at least 50% of the water 2 times a week and use dechlorinated tap water instead of bottled water, the bottled water is a needless waste of money.
The part about the bacteria is of course true, except a gravel bed in the bottom of the bowl will barely support enough bacteria at those temperatures, hence the large and frequent water changes.
MM
Bettas can live in colder temperature, but it wouldn't be very healthy. A warmer temperature boosts its immune system, allowing it to fight off diseases. I don't like what they said about bettas living in colder temp. And the colder water=more oxygen is true, but doesn't apply to bettas because they take oxygen directly from the air.
its not really true because bettas need a temp of about 78 -80 degrees not cooler. that shortens their life im not exactly sure about the oxygen part but it seems like bullshit (excuse my language) and the gravel bacteria helping the waste turn majically into harmless residue is tottaly false . while the nitrifying may help convert some of it, it will not get rid of all of it. The half gallon is not true either. Bettas need a fairly large area to swin and live in. i say its not true
well some parts inst true. A betta fish's water needs to be warm or room temature. Betta fish cant live in water or water colder then 70-65 degrees or lower bc in they're origan -- which is South Asia or Thailand -- they're water is warm.
Also, i clean my betta fish bowls at least once a week or whenever the bowl is really dirty.
I dont check if theres still food in the bowl after 10 minutes because if you give betta fish food, they're going to eat it. They seem hungry all the time but they're mostly not. Betta fish can go up to 10 days without food, but dont do that. I feed mine once a day.
And i feed my fish Betta Food - EZ feed bottle, FOR ALL BETTAS. From Animal Planet.
So yea, betta fish are suppose to live up to 2-5 years with proper care. I got mine in September and still living:)
I really hope this helps and i really hope your betta fish works out:)
Gina%26lt;333
Betta fish aren't a big fan of big bowls. Betta fish in the wild, live in rice patties. And if you ever seen a rice pattie its not that big, so the big bowl thing is dumb, I mean unless you like to waste alot of water! Changeing 20% of the water is true, but you can actually change more than that. Just leave some of the old water in the tank *Unless it really filthy than just dump it.* As for the food as long as its "Betta" food your fine! And the water should be at room temp, when changing the water. betta fish aren't gold fish, they live happier in room temp waters, not cold. And as for it being "oxientated " I believe its Bull Crap!
I work at a pet store, have spoken with fish specialist, have a betta for over 3 years now, and its as happy as anything! Who ever wrote this doesn;t really know a betta. Hope this helps. Need any more info feel free to message me @ taralaudette@yahoo.com
It is true that bettas can be kept in a container as small as a coffee cup, but it is much better for the fish (and owner) to keep them in a bigger tank. This would help them develop better finnage. Imagine a drop of dye in a cup of water and a drop of the same dye in a gallon of water, you would see the difference in the resulting color. This is also what happens when the fish produces waster, in a large tank the waste is diluted in a larger volume of water, thus making it less damaging for the fish than it would in a smaller container.
Bettas comes from tropical waters and would require higher water temp to thrive. It is true that cooler water does hold more Oxygen and lower the fish's metabolism (fish being cold blooded), but it doesn't mean that they will be healthy, remember that aquarium fish come from different parts of the world and we are providing an artificial environment for them and that we need to simulate as much as possible the conditions that they are found in. And for bettas that is water temp of 78-80F.
Cultured gravel does (in the ideal conditions) hold more bacteria that is beneficial for the fishes, but in such a confined space and the lack of water circulation, i doubt that there would be any benefit in using them.
I prefer to do up to 50% water changes every 2-3 days with dechlorinated tap water, removing as much debris as possible during water changes. Theree is no need to use bottled water.
You can feed bettas with either live or commercially prepared fish food. Live food like daphnia, brine shrimps, blood worms, mosquito larvae, etc.. are usually consumed within a few minutes and any uneaten food will stay alive in the tank until eaten (except for brine shrimps). While commercially prepared fish food like tetramin, freeze dried and frozen blood worms, etc.. have to be consumed immediately after feeding, any uneaten dried food will soon spoil the water, thus you need to remove them after 5-10 minutes.
Another thing about the oxygen thing is that bettas use their labyrinth organs more than their gills, so the amount of dissolved oxygen in the water really doesn't matter. They breathe atmospheric air more than using dissolved oxygen.
I disagree with the colder is better, also. Sure it increases their metabolism, which will increase the number of water changes you'll have to do. This is why most people want to keep them cold and unfed.
Better brands of betta food are Hikari and Atison (from Ocean Nutrition). I suggest feeding frozen bloodworms and brine shrimp as a treat. Unless you're conditioning to breed, you don't need to feed a lot of meaty foods daily.
About the gravel... if the water is not being aerated, there is no nitrifying bacteria in it. The site is wrong. That many water changes in the bowl will also remove too much water most of the time to keep any sort of bacteria alive.
I do 100% water changes on my bettas with conditioned tap water. Bottled water is often not recommended because the water parameters may be very different than the betta is used to, and they may be undesirable.
