Hi! So my moms boyfriend got me a red short finned betta for my birthday (July 2nd) and I didn’t want to leave it in the small container as I have a hamster and know the significance of at least having the bare minimum so I got a 5.5 tank and the employee recommended me a filter and light. I also bought two Anubis plants and a small java fern. I’m starting to add some bacterial growth to cycle it. Friday or Saturday I want to use the all in one ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate tube kit to see if everything’s going alright. I haven’t added anything else to the tank it’s just semi cold water (not warm) with gravel and some rocks which I’ve made sure are all smooth to touch. The employee also gave me this chloride (don’t know if that’s the right name) drops so that I can add them to the tank whenever I do a partial water change. I also wanted some more plants (not sure what) that are somewhat low maintenance, some accessories to try and stimulate the betta, and a hide (don’t know which would work best)
For any experienced owners could you tell me if I’m on the right track? I’ve never owned a fish so learning is a bit stressful. I also don’t have a name for him but he’s been making bubble nests and eats his fruval food well. He was on some weird pellet thing but I swapped it cause the ingredients weren’t specific enough.
It is a bit interesting to watch the betta interact with me. I feel crazy but it’s like it knows I’m there. To interact I rub two of my fingers together to catch its attention but sometimes if I’m in front of him long enough he becomes more active. Though there’s also a weird behavior, at times I’ll try putting my finger in the water (just a bit) to try and make him used to my finger but his gills flare a bit or he starts swimming a bit weird. Like side to side or he runs to a different side of the tub thing. Is that a sign of stress? Does it like me?
Any feedback would help a lot! Thanks for reading 😀
https://i.redd.it/pyp5kzjzg0bd1.jpeg
Posted by ImmediateClaim7715
5 Comments
Ur tank is fine, if you have a cover you can fill up the tank a bit more, 5.5 is just fine but it’s better to fill it up as far as possible (with a lid) I just set up my 5.5 gallon and it took approximately 3 weeks to cycle, I had my current one in a smaller tank that was already cycled just wanted to give him a bigger home. I’d recommend a heater, water temp should be 76-80 ish degrees. Since he’s in such a small tank now you could look into fish-in cycling I believe it’s called, it’s perfectly fine just will have to do lots of water changes to balance out the ammonia levels. That’s what I did with my current fish and he is thriving. Drift wood is good hide, however it does cause a yellowish hue to the water (tannins) it’s very good for the fish and they love tannins, just depends how you want ur tank to look. Anbubias plants and Java ferns are great! You could look into floating plants as well for the top of the tank. So to break it down, heater, fish in cycling, some sort of natural wood hide, and floating plants ! Good luck with ur fish friend, ur going to love him and he’s going to love you once he’s all set up in his new home.
https://preview.redd.it/r56yghn0m0bd1.jpeg?width=4032&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=80eb2b161837371c9add02cc7ebffe71f39318ea
This is my current setup if you want to take any notes of it. Meet frank.
Also looking closer at ur picture, try added a little more substrate at the bottom, sometimes plants will come loose which looks like has happened, but with more substrate they’ll be easier to hold down. The more plants the better , will also help cycle faster !
What the heck! Literally I have the exact setup lol same filter and same exact light. Your setup looks good! Now go to petsmart or petco and buy you some mopani wood. Boil it first and throw it in the tank for decoration 😉
https://preview.redd.it/c9wn8c9so0bd1.jpeg?width=4032&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=84a6a3ffcf57c44545a585551e592cfa12d62bd6
Here’s a photo of some mopani wood