Betta Keeping Guide

Hi fellow betta lovers,

"To aid those that are new to betta keeping in Singapore, this will be a general guide based on my experience in betta keeping over the years."

Regards,
Bettafanatic aka Walter


WATER
- Water in Singapore contains Chlorine and Chloramine, and these are harmful to fishes in general. Hence, a product called "Dechlorinator" or "Anti-Chlorine/Chloramine", must be used for treatment of the water before it can be used to keep our bettas in. Most reputable brands such as Aquaplus from ATI will do the job pretty well.

- Some hobbyists do not practice this, but as a traditional practice in betta keeping, I encourage aging the water for 24hours before using too. This is to ensure all harmful substances are removed properly.

- Water changing frequency is dependent upon your tank size and betta types. I will give my routine and you will have to estimate your routine to match mine. I keep mainly HMPKs(Halfmoon Plakats), ie short fin bettas, in 6" x 6" x 8"(inches) tanks, and do 100% water change every 6-7 days. HMPKs are the hardiest, CTs(Crowntails) and HMs(Halfmoons, Long finned) require more frequent water changes. 100% every 3 days will be good. Note that it will vary with how much you feed your bettas and how often you siphon their waste (waste management).

FOOD
- I feed my bettas mainly on live tubifex worms and sometimes pellets. Occasionally, I do feed live brime shrimps (Sea Monkeys) but note that shrimps generally enhances redness in fishes and thus, it may not be advisable to feed shrimps to white and blue bettas where red washes are undesirable. (Please note that the degree of accuracy of this belief is not very high, it is more of a "better safe than sorry" practice for me. Furthermore, constant sea monkey supply is not easy and expensive anyway. Personally, red washes should be due to genetic implications.)

-Frequency of feeding is 1-2 times a day, 6 days a week.

SICKNESS
- There are many types of betta diseases, but they are generally grouped into 2 kinds; Internal and External. Please note more research is to be done in this area as I am giving a very general guide.

- External kinds are usually visable such as fungus, and should be treated with Ketapang Extract and Salt. Methylene Blue kills most external parasites too. Water change every 2 days until fish recovers.

- Internal illnesses affect bettas from within, usually of bacterial form. Yellow powder is effective for such cases.

FLARING
- Bettas should be flared 1-2 times daily and 10-20minutes per flaring session. This is a form of exercise for them, and I find bettas that flare regularly are usually much healthier.

- For cases where bettas appear healthy but do not flare, try these methods:

1) Changing the colour of his flaring partner
2) Use a mirror
3) Use female bettas
4) Throw in a smaller and active fish, such as another betta or guppies

Fry food sold here!

Cheers! :)
Bettafanatic aka Walter