Bettas are some of the most commonly bought fish in the aquarium trade. They're colorful, readily available in your supermarket check-out line and they just live in a little bowl their entire lives! Not entirely true, but we'll get to that later. For many, a betta on their office desk in a bowl is their first "dip" into the fish world. Unfortunately, many of these unlucky "desktop bettas" meet a painful and needless end to their lives within a month due to the uninformed and uneducated people that buy them as decorations.
I've created this Basic Betta Care page to hopefully help some of these new owners with the care of their new friends. As always, feel free to email me at with any specific questions or comments.
How Much is that Betta in the Window?
We've all seen them at our local Wal-Mart's, Meijer's, pet stores, etc. sitting sadly on the shelves in tiny see-through cups. It always saddens me to see bettas treated this way and I get even sadder when I see someone grab one of the cups, a small "betta bowl", a can of food and throw them into the cart. The great marketing scam on these fish is that they can live in tiny bowls with no care and be happy. Those poor fish probably have about a month max to live in their new homes if their new owners don't take the time to learn about their needs. So what exactly should you have if you want a betta or already have one living in a bowl on your desk?
Housing - Bettas do best in 1-5 gallon tanks with a filter and heater. Many companies sell ready-made tanks for bettas in cute little shapes and colors, unfortunately, most of these do not have heaters or filters included with them. YES, bettas do need filtration and heaters. Bettas are tropical fish that do best at around 78-80 degrees 24 hours a day. No house stays at this constant temperature all day long and most office buildings turn the heat off during the weekends and evenings, this is why it is imperative that you have a heater in your betta tank along with a thermometer to monitor the temperature. You also need light filtration to circulate the water. Throwing a heater into a tank with no water circulation doesn't do much good. See the "Tank and Equipment" page for filtration options. Bettas do best with filters that aren't too strong. Most of these fish are raised in literally paper cups in faraway countries and have never had to fight a current before, so their swimming skills are not up to speed if they are faced with a strong current from a filter. Decorations should not have any sharp edges. Plastic plants are a good option as any betta will appreciate a plant to hide behind if things get scary. The regular tank cycling rules apply to betta tanks as well, see the "Cycling a Tank" page. Eclipse tanks are a great option for bettas.
Food - There are several brands of betta food, generally any commercial pellets will work. Bettas do not do well with flakes. One serving of 5 small pellets a day is plenty of food. Make sure he gets all of the pellets, you don't want any to sink to the bottom and rot. Bettas also enjoy bloodworms and mosquito larvae.
Tankmates - I can remember my parents telling me about the "Siamese Fighting Fish" at the grocery store and how they're used as fighting fish. While this is partly true, bettas can actually be great community tank centerpiece fish. Bettas enjoy having "territories" in their tanks and will defend those territories to the death. It is never a good idea to keep more than one betta in a tank, or to keep a betta with any other larger fish like gouramis or paradise fish (both which should also only be alone as centerpiece fish in a tank). Bettas do well in tanks no larger than 20 gallons (remember they've lived in a cup their whole lives, anything larger is liable to shock them, further, if a tank is too deep, it will be hard for him to swim to the surface to get air). They can be with smaller tetras, cherry barbs, danios, and ghost shrimp. Guppies, mollies, platies and swordtails can be mistaken by the betta as another betta, so it is best to leave them in separate tanks. As long as the other fish will not pick on the betta, he will be happy to hang out by himself.
Female Bettas - Female bettas used to never be sold since they weren't quite as colorful as the larger males, however, they are becoming far more common. Many are beautifully colored these days. Females make even betta community fish than males. The same rules above apply as far as housing and also make sure that if you put a female or male in a community setting that they are still getting their pellets as most bettas won't eat flake foods. Females are even more prone to jump than males, so make sure any tank is well covered. Betta breeding is a tricky and specialized task and I do not recommend novices try it due to the aggression issues between the sexes. A male betta should not be kept with a female betta.
Signs of a Happy Betta - Bettas have a lifespan of about 2 years average. When you purchase them from the store, they are anywhere from 6 months to about a year old. Many live well past the 2 year mark with excellent care. A happy male betta will blow "bubble nests" on the surface of the water. Bettas will also come to greet you when they see you and ask for food, they're very social fish.
Signs of an Unhappy Betta - Unhappy bettas sit on the bottom of their tanks, only moving when they come up for air. Shredded tails mean that there is something sharp in the tank they are getting caught on or, more likely, they are chewing on their own tail out of stress. Stress can be caused by a number of factors, look at whether the current in the tank is too strong for him, whether any fish are bothering him in the tank, or perhaps the tank is just too large for him to handle. He may be better off by himself in his own tank. Bettas are also prone to dropsy and blockages/bloating. See the "My Fish is Sick" page for more information on both. Bettas also have very delicate skin, not like normal fish, and can easily be scraped in standard fish nets. Bettas should be scooped out with cups or by hand if you plan on moving them, otherwise they are prone to infection.
"Desktop Bettas" - As a solid rule, I don't believe any living thing should be used as a decoration. Bettas are not table toppers or wall mounts. However, having a small desktop aquarium can be a very fun endeavor. Make sure you have appropriate heating and filtration on any desktop tank, bowls of water in the office is just asking for trouble, not to mention are unsuitable homes for any fish. I recommend putting the tank against a wall on your desk, out of direct sunlight (don't want algae!). Make sure the heater works properly and monitor the tank temperature every morning when you come into the office since most office buildings turn off heat at night and over the weekends.
My Betta has been living in a bowl for a gazillion years and he's just fine, thanks - Bettas are very hardy creatures and will take a lot of abuse. Since they breath air, they will last longer in an un-cycled tank. Some have even been raised in such horrible conditions on oriental fish farms, a cold bowl of water on a desk can seem like a luxury in the short term, but the hard fact remains that an unheated betta tank is shortening his lifespan and making him uncomfortable. As a betta gets older, he may need warmer water as well. Remember, bettas should live at least 2 years if not more, many in bowls don't make it past the one year mark.
Bettas are some of the more intelligent fish and have distinct personalities. They are a wonderful addition to any fish keeper's collection. It's a shame that many are mistreated and live out their shortened lives in inadequate conditions.
