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Child's first pet = betta?
Hi there, I'm coming to this board for help. My daughter is 7.5 and has been asking for a pet for a while. She has always wanted a dog, but we, as a family, are not ready for a dog yet. She's asked about a hamster or gerbils as well, but I'm not sure if she's in the capacity to care for one at this age/stage (I had my first hamsters when I was 10 or 11). Today she told me she doesn't want a dog or a hamster or a rabbit anymore because you have to clean up poop, but she asked if she could have a fish. Specifically, a betta fish.
My knowledge of bettas is pretty limited. My mom got one from a bridal shower that was in a vase. We expected it to die after a day or two, but it lived for 3 years. Sadly, it died the day after my brother bought my mom a "Betta tank" for it... The transition didn't go well, it seems.
Can anyone tell me about bettas or give me a good idea of where I can learn more about a Betta and what sort of care it will require? We won't be getting one until after our vacation in the end of July, so I've got time to educate myself (and her) about what responsibilities having a fish entails.
I apologize if I'm making something so simple seem so complicated--I just want to know as much as I can about bettas so we can be informed about what sort of care it will require, what supplies we will need, etc. I don't want to just walk in to a pet store and buy one, completely clueless.
Thanks!
Re: Child's first pet = betta?
I don't know much about bettas specifically, but my cousin had a goldfish for like 10 years as a child and it was a great first pet. She had it in a fish bowl, and her job was feeding it and she "helped" with cleaning the bowl, but basically her mom cleaned it (and also supervised the feeding to make sure it wasn't overfed or starving).
You can probably find some betta-specific info on the internet. I think I've seen bettas both in fish bowls and in tanks. I think they need to be solitary.
I've never had good luck with fish, but I've only had goldfish and bettas. I've known people who have had their fish for years, but mine always die so quickly no matter how much research I do. Here's a site for your betta:
http://www.bettatalk.com/basic_care.htm
Fish, like any pet, is gonna take a little work. Betta's are pretty hardy fish, but you need to make sure their tank is set for their specific environment before hand.
A new tank will need to be cycled to create bacteria. What that will do is turn the ammonia(poisonous to fish) in their feces and food into nitrite (also poisonous) and finally into nitrate(not poisonous).
The easiest way to do this is without fish and using gravel/water from a properly cycled tank. It will take longer, but safest for your fish. You can also cycle without fish by 'feeding' your tank daily (small pinch of food daily as if a fish were in there). The decaying food will create ammonia.
You can also do 'fish in' cycle. This is the best and quickest way, but your fish will take a beating, so make sure you do a lot of research on 'fish in' cycling. You will also have to do large water changes often until the bacteria has grown to a large enough size to deal with all the ammonia.
Once you fill your tank, you want to treat the water to get rid of chlorine. If you are cycling 'fish in' you will want to buy a product that promotes good bacteria (there are tons of them). This will help bacteria colonize quicker to treat the water.
You want to also buy a water testing kit. This will help you keep your levels steady and keep your fish alive.
There are also a lot of signs a fish has a disease, is being poisoned, or you have bad water environments (fin rot, ich, etc.). There are tons of websites that will help you with this.
Since Betta's are a tropical fish, you should get a heater for the tank. This will keep it at a constant 70-80 degrees (only if kept in tanks larger than 5 gallons).
I've never kept Betta (only Platy) so do your own research before you buy any. Do not rely on the employees at the pet store (they still want to make a sale).
Hope that helps, would have been great to have this information for my first tank. I didn't know it at the time, but I cycled fish in, and those poor fishies went through a lot but they're still here!
I know this may seem like a lot just for a fish, but I want to give all my animals a healthy environment to live in and a nice long life span.
Once you get the tank cycled, they are really easy to take care of. I only have to do a 25% water change (10 gallon tank, 4 fish) every other week, and give it a good scrub down once a month. Other than that, I just have to feed them and turn their lights on in the morning and off at night (fish have to rest too, don't leave the lights on all night!)
Bettas are great first pets IMO.
I have had several Betta fish in my life time as well as a full 30 gallon tank. I never once fully cycled my fish tank for my Bettas, but they seemed to handle it just fine. So don't be overwhelmed by the cycling.
My niece just got a Beta for her 6th birthday. My sister and I went to Petsmart where they have a decent selection of fish and tanks. I think she ended up with a 2.5 gallon tank with a filter/ light/ and a divider so you can have 2 Bettas which I really like. My niece loves her 2 fish and loves the responsibility of taking care of them.
The one thing about Bettas is people tend to over feed them, they only need to be fed every 2-3 days and only 1-2 pellets a feeding. Its a very little amount of food but they are little creatues.
Like PP said you are ultimately responsible for their care, but I feel like Bettas can teach great responsibility and aren't too much for a 7yr old to handle.