1 gallon Betta vase

[brianclaw]

Here's a quick Betta enclosure I set up. It's got Java Fern and a mixture of Java and Taiwan moss.
It's filterless and water changes will be done on a 20% daily Mon-Fri basis.

[benny]

I see a pretty Crowntail!!!! Lucky betta he is! Many just live out their life in a plain jar.

Cheers,

[wong1979]

I have something against betta keeping. It's like keeping a bird in a cage
A 1 feet planted tank would be a minimum criteria for me. In fact, I feel that they are the worst off of all fishes held in captivity

[Emg]

I have most of my betta in one gallon tanks and they do just fine. I find that it helps to have other bettas around them that they can interact with. It keeps them active and alert...wiether they're in a one gallon tank or a 10. The bettas that I see that are listless and inactive are the ones that have no neighbors to make faces at.

I also have 3 in a 10 gallon that I have divided up into 4 sections. One section has the filter in it and then 3 sections for the 3 bettas. They aren't any more alert and happy than the ones that I have in the smaller tanks.

As long as you are good about keeping the water clean and they have other fish around them to keep them interested in thier surroundings...they do just fine.

Oh....BrainClaw...nice setup !

[brianclaw]

I have something against betta keeping. It's like keeping a bird in a cage

Bro, if that's the way you feel about Bettas in captivity, then maybe you're in the wrong hobby. The same thing can be said about all fishes. They definitely have more space to swim in nature than can be provided by the average HDB dwelling Singaporean.

A 1 feet planted tank would be a minimum criteria for me. In fact, I feel that they are the worst off of all fishes held in captivity

If it was up to me, he'd get his own 1ft cube, but it's not. This is sitting on my colleague's desk. You have no idea how much effort I had to put in just to get her to upgrade to a vase this size.

Everyone else, thanks for the positive comments.

[budak]

In the new supplement of the Raffles Bulletin of Zoology, which focuses on Southeast Asian fishes (including bettas), one paper showed a swamp which had dried up in the hot season, with tiny puddles and sinkholes barely the diameter of a hand, in which the bettas survive.

The RBZ Supplement is probably the best single issue publication on SEA Freshwater Fishes you can buy, especially Anabantoids. The cover price of $80 is a bargain in my view. For the contents, please see: http://rmbr.nus.edu.sg/news/index.ph...pplement13.txt

[wong1979]

I knew my comments would stir up a lot of debate, or maybe just a 1-sided affair by myself But the point here I'm making is not about health and well-being.

We all know that betta keeping originated from Thailand, and that they are found naturally in water-logged areas like pond, padi fields etc, maybe not rivers. Yes, they need only stagnant water to survive. And it's because of its ability to gulp air and solitary nature, that people use the advantage to keep them in small little jars.

For human's own pleasure in seeking thrill by watching them flare up against each other is rather sad. Making them fight each other is even sadder which I will not go on any further as this is out of topic.

While I cannot make all of you to agree with me, I hope that people in keeping fish is not just for the sake of appreciating its beauty. But most importantly, to think of it as if you are the fish.

Sorry for sounding like a member of PETA

[vinz]

Well, each have their own view. We can't force our views on others but there's no harm in sharing and discussing them. You can try convincing people with good arguments but don't expect you'll win all the time or that people will be convinced. At the end of the day, you might convert someone, or you might get converted, or neither would happen.

Also, there are others who are reading but not partcipating... they might learn a thing or two too.

There's no reason to be sorry about it. Just keep the debate civil.

[juggler]

Hi Wong, good comments. I am not a betta maniac. But I think almost all of us here keep them to appreciate their beauty and not letting them fight.

Budak and I once observed some wild bettas (I think a pair) in our catchment area. It was a very slow moving stream. The bettas did not move or swim away from their territory. If I remember correctly, Budak said that he saw the bettas there on an earlier trip. It could be the same or different bettas. And it could suggest that their territorial range is small. So I think the small jars used to keep them seem OK. But of course some bigger jar is better. If it is not OK, I think most of the bettas would have jumped out of their jars already at the LFS.

I recently tried to combine betta keeping and my emersed sword plants. I keep forgetting to water the plants. And thought why not submersed the pots in water. And to take care of mosquito problem, I put a betta in there.

Maybe to add a point: I saved the $1.50 betta from his more miserable life in a little plastic bag hanging by a nail at C328, with probably 100ml of water inside.

Thanks to Amani for the glass tanks.

[brianclaw]

For human's own pleasure in seeking thrill by watching them flare up against each other is rather sad. Making them fight each other is even sadder which I will not go on any further as this is out of topic.

I do agree that it's pretty sad that some people keep them for the thrill of fighting them and watching them flare up against each other, but that's not what's being done here with this Betta.
I also put up this post to find out what you guys thought about the set-up and not to start a debate/arguement about the reasons why people go into the fishkeeping hobby, or the health and well being of Bettas, or how right it is to keep an animal in an artificial environment as opposed to just watching them in the wild.
Mods, maybe it would be best if this entire topic was deleted/closed/whatever. I think I shall just continue to stay on as a lurker.
Either way, thanks for your time.

[Emg]

Bro, if that's the way you feel about Bettas in captivity, then maybe you're in the wrong hobby. The same thing can be said about all fishes. They definitely have more space to swim in nature than can be provided by the average HDB dwelling Singaporean.

Same can be said of any fish kept in an aquarium...I'm sure the average arrowana would much rather be swimming happily in a larger river.......

My bettas are healthy and well cared for and doing just fine. I just answered someone on another forum however, who has a very unhappy betta in a 30 gallon tank......seems he spends all his time hiding behind the filter....hhhmmm....

[juggler]

I also put up this post to find out what you guys thought about the set-up and not to start a debate/arguement about the reasons why people go into the fishkeeping hobby, or the health and well being of Bettas, or how right it is to keep an animal in an artificial environment as opposed to just watching them in the wild.
Mods, maybe it would be best if this entire topic was deleted/closed/whatever. I think I shall just continue to stay on as a lurker.
Either way, thanks for your time.

Hi Brian, I liked your setup. That's what prompted me to share mine as well.
1 gallon vase is very generous for the betta compared to the 500ml or so of water they live on in the LFS. And I like your choice of plants too.

Aiyoh, don't need to lose sleep over differences in opinions.
Everyone's civil opinion is welcome.

Since this is Aquascaping forum, we should also try to restrict the comments to aquascaping.

Cheers!

[Emg]

Juggler...what a good idea !! Those planters look fantastic !

(point taken ! )

[vinz]

I do agree that it's pretty sad that some people keep them for the thrill of fighting them and watching them flare up against each other, but that's not what's being done here with this Betta.
I also put up this post to find out what you guys thought about the set-up and not to start a debate/arguement about the reasons why people go into the fishkeeping hobby, or the health and well being of Bettas, or how right it is to keep an animal in an artificial environment as opposed to just watching them in the wild.
Mods, maybe it would be best if this entire topic was deleted/closed/whatever. I think I shall just continue to stay on as a lurker.
Either way, thanks for your time.

I don't see any reason for closing this thread. Different people have different opnions and they are free to voice it out for discussion. That's what forums are for. The main thing is to recognise the fact that there are differing views out there, and not to force one's own view on another.

I hope you don't become a lurker just because somebody disagreed with, or criticised you. If that is the case you might as well go find a deserted place to live in because the world is full of people who will disagree with, or criticise you. Right?

Anyway, I don't think wong was targeting you specifically, but at the betta keeping hobby in general.

Cheer up and reconsider, ok?

[wong1979]

Correct I'm not targetting at u Brian. Don't take it personally. Anyway, just to share my betta copper in my 2 feet community planted







Cheers!

[benny]

Hi Brian,

I think just about everybody who participated in this thread has nothing but positive comments about the setup and adding the betta is definitely considered a nice touch (ok. I admit I am bias because I'm a betta fan).

Obviously wong1979 has a different view about keeping bettas, but it's specific to the "fighting fishes" that the "Ah Peks" play for money at the coffee shops. I think wong1979 will also agree that most of our members in our community are responsible hobbyists and this is precisely why our forum is not as active as some the more frivilous ones that you see elsewere, local or otherwise.

I will agree that the thread has gone off topic (fish keeping instead of aquascaping) and I am to be blamed for being the first to focus on the fish instead of the aquascape (Did I say I'm bias towards bettas already?). Obviously the discussion went off tangent from there and the beauty of the set up was overlooked.

In any case, these are open forums and given the nature of Singaporeans (being the dominant member group), topics may stray from their original scope fairly quickly. However, I think that what we have here is a case of misunderstanding and there's no need to restrict your participation in our community because of a misinterpreted sentence.

We can close/delete your account as you wish, but would rather have you as an active, contributing member in our community where we call all learn and enjoy the hobby together. Hopefully, I'll get a Private Message from you and see more of your discussions soon!

And since all that need to be said has been said, I see no further discussion on this thread necessary. This thread is now closed as requsted by Brian.

Cheers,