How to Create a Bond with a Betta

Betta fish, also known as Siamese fighting fish, are popular aquarium fish because of their vibrant colors and striking fins. Although they like to live alone, bettas are quite friendly, often bored and sick if given little attention. Betta fish can and deserve to be human companions, not just a pretty decoration in an aquarium. With proper care and regular interaction with your fish, you can create a close bond with your fish.

Table of Contents

Choosing and Caring for bettas

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Choose a healthy betta fish. With good care, betta fish usually live 2-4 years, many live up to 10 years. Choosing a healthy fish and taking proper care of it is the best way for you to create a lasting bond with it.

Betta fish sold at aquarium stores mostly have male leaves, because they are brightly colored and have larger fins. Whether you choose a male or a female, you should look for fish that are bright (not dull), have intact fins, and look healthy.
You may prefer to choose an active and excited fish over one that seems quiet, but the behavior at the aquarium shop may not necessarily represent the betta’s personality. They can get tired after a day of being knocked on the walls of the tank.
More detailed information on betta care can be found at How to Care for a Betta.

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Prepare the right house for the fish. You’ve probably seen a betta fish swimming in a glass jar, even in a drinking cup at someone’s office or home. Because betta fish are often solitary, many people think that they have no need and do not like to live in large tanks containing a lot of water.

You may have heard that bettas prefer small spaces, as their natural habitat is puddles left by buffalo in their native Southeast Asia. While bettas are sometimes found in such tight spaces, that just proves they’re good at adapting to the dry season, not that it’s their preferred habitat. ^{[1] X Research Source}
In fact, bettas love to have space to roam, so you should choose an aquarium that can hold at least 12 liters of water, preferably up to 40 liters. It may sound too big for a small fish, but it gives your fish a better chance of staying healthy and happy. ^{[2] X Research Source}
The aquarium needs to be heated between 24 and 27 degrees Celsius and have a simple filter that doesn’t stir the water too much (bettas like calm water). Keep the water clean and change the water periodically.
For more information on tank preparation and maintenance, see How to Care for Betta Fish.

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Know that bettas like to live alone. Although some bettas have no problem sharing a tank with others, many, especially males, will become stressed, agitated and aggressive in the face of intruders to their living space. they.

Despite being named “fighting fish”, actually male bettas prefer to take over the throne rather than harming each other. However, fights and injuries often occur when two or more male bettas live in the same tank. Therefore, it is best to prepare yourself that the male betta lives alone.
Two female bettas do not get along well in the same tank, but they can live peacefully in a large school of about 10 fish. (This is called the betta’s “women’s union”.) Therefore, you can allow female bettas to swim alone or in a group. ^{[3] X Research Sources}

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Feed the fish properly. The diet of betta fish in general is quite specific, consisting of three main types of food: pellets for bettas, bloodworms and shrimp larvae (e.g. bloodworms and shrimp larvae usually in freeze-dried form).

You feed the fish twice a day, 3-4 fish food pellets each time (crushed if the fish are still small) or 6-7 bloodworms/shrimp larvae is enough. Betta fish can overeat if fed freely, and this is not good for their health. Betta fish can also suffer from constipation (manifesting a bloated belly) which is said to be cured by feeding the fish a finely chopped thawed pea. ^{[4] X Research Sources}

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Discover more about the species of the fish you keep. Betta fish also known as Siamese fighting fish, is native to Southeast Asia, and males are especially aggressive towards each other.

Betta fish have very strong vitality. They live in the rice paddies of Southeast Asia and are well-adapted to cycles of high and low water.
Betta fish are also one of the rare fish that can breathe oxygen both in the air as well as in the water. As such, as long as there is moisture, they can survive for short periods of time without water. They can also live in small saline ponds (usually during the dry season) for long periods of time.

Create a bond with a betta

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Place the aquarium in an area where many activities take place. Betta fish like to live alone, but they also get bored quickly and prefer places with “action scenes” that still have their own “territory”.

Place the aquarium in a place where there is a lot of traffic and activity, such as the living room or near the kitchen. Betta fish love movement and activities, even if they do not directly interact. ^{[5] X Research Sources}
Occasionally move the aquarium to another part of the room to change the scene. New things around will attract the betta’s attention and keep them interested.

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Name your fish and talk to it. You’ll have a hard time making friends with a creature without a name, of any kind, so find a name that matches your little friend’s personality. If needed, you can go online to find betta naming suggestions on the internet, like a baby naming list. ^{[6] X Research Sources}

Betta fish are quite sensitive to vibrations in the water caused by sounds such as human voices, and many people think that the fish can gradually recognize your voice and its name. Try stimulating the betta’s response by calling its name each time you approach the aquarium.
At the very least, talking gives the betta the chance to interact that it desperately needs, and you build a bond with it. After all, who doesn’t want a good listener?

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Create an eye-catching scene for the betta fish. Moving the aquarium as discussed above is a way of changing the scene for the betta, but even just watching the fish more often will bring something new to its attention and eventually will. recognize you.

Male bettas are known for their “fins out” when looking in the mirror – their reaction when confronted with another beta fish. Whether showing fish fins in front of a mirror is good (excited) or bad (stressed) is still controversial. Note that some bettas can be timid – even scared when they see themselves in the mirror.
In addition to occasionally giving your fish a mirror (if desired), you can also use a marker to draw or cut sticky notes into different shapes and stick them on the side of the tank, or simply place new objects and Fun near the fish tank. ^{[7] X Research Source} Observe that bettas “study” and respond to these new phenomena.

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Play with betta fish. While the natural action of people is usually to knock on the walls of the tank, you should absolutely not do so, as the sound is amplified in the water and will stress the fish. Instead, draw your finger along the side of the tank and see how the fish react.

The betta fish may start swimming to see your finger, even swimming along when you slide your finger along the edge of the tank. Sometimes you can even control it swimming around with your finger.
Betta fish love to come to the surface, so toys or floating objects are also a good idea to entertain the betta. The bouncing ping pong balls are also fun – just remember to wash them first.
Read How to play with bettas for more fun ideas.

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Betta fish training. Like most animals, including humans, promising rewards can be a powerful motivator for a betta during training. With a little patience and practice, you can teach your fish some fun.

You can train your betta to eat by hand by bringing your finger a little closer each day when you drop the pellets into the water until the fish comes to eat right in your hand. It even jumps up to grab the food you’re holding.
You can use lures to teach the fish to swim up, even jump around in circles (which you can shape with corduroy, for example). You can also train the fish to push the ping pong ball into the net.
The article How to play with bettas is also a useful source of betta training ideas and methods.

Warning

Always wash your hands thoroughly before putting them in a betta aquarium.
Do not shake the aquarium; This action can stress your fish.
Buy a first aid kit for your betta so you’re ready to treat the fish when it’s sick.
Do not keep 2 male bettas in the same tank. Research before raising multiple females together. Do not keep female and male fish together.
Do your research before adding any animals to your betta companion tank, and make sure the tank is large enough for them.
If you don’t use a tap water treatment, your fish can get sick and very easily die.

Steps

Choosing and Caring for bettas

Create a bond with a betta

Warning

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