# Mission to Help Petstore Bettas



## Xox-Zip-xoX (Aug 14, 2010)

So I am sure all of you are aware of the poor living conditions of most petstore bettas. Well, I've been wanting to do something about this situation for a long time now and I think it's finally my chance.

I know many of us see sick and injured bettas in your local pet store and make a sympathy purchase thinking that it's helping the situation, but the truth of the matter is it's only encouraging petstores to continue to not give there fish the proper care, If you buy a fish, despite the poor living conditions they realize that they can still make money from poorly cared for fish. And to tell the truth, it's alot easier to not care for them.

Another thing I don't think many of us take into consideration is how costly these fish can be. We all know that male bettas need to be tanked seperatly, well imagine how much it would cost petstores to individually tank all of thier bettas in 1/2 gallon tanks at the least? And after the cost of seperatly tanking there's still the cost of heaters and filteration for each tank. In the end it can get pretty expensive, to the point where the fish is costing them more money then they are making off of them.

Well, heres my idea. What if there was an orginization that aided petstores in taking care of thier bettas by helping to provide knowledge, and equipment to properly care for there bettas? It really wouldn't take much, expecially if we could even convince stores to take in limited quantities of bettas at a time.

Anyone with me on this?


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## Revolution1221 (Apr 20, 2010)

well they wouldn't need to have filters and heaters for each tank they could just have them all in one big system that is seperated off. at my old job the dumb boss decided to order way to many bettas than there was shelf space. so we just put one betta in each community tank. occasionaly we would have to take one out if it was being mean but 95% of the time it worked just fine.


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## Revolution1221 (Apr 20, 2010)

or they could have a set up where they were all in 1 gallon set ups to look nice and have lines running into them with sponge filters. unfortunately i dont think you will be able to get any one to change their ways unless you can get law enforcement to crack down.


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## julem35 (Dec 22, 2010)

Sounds good on paper. Hey! Maybe a letter to the editor in the paper might get other people in your town to join you!

But I would agree, It is hard to convince them, but maybe if you had a one on one w/ the manager, you might get something done or bettered? 

Good Luck to you!


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## Bettawhisperer (Oct 1, 2010)

The solution would be for the stores to set up about 3 - 20g long tanks with dividers in each to house 5 to 6 males. This way they can house 15 to 18 males in filtered heated tanks. Problem solved except for getting the stores to do it.


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## Chard56 (Oct 10, 2010)

The store I sell my Bettas to puts them in display racks in the tanks of their other fish. They are separated from the other fish and each other. The tanks are on a filtration/heating system and my babies aren't sitting around in cups with dirty cold water! The employee that talked the owner into giving me a Betta order even went to the extra lengths of putting colored dividers between the compartments. That way they can be removed for daily flaring exercise.


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## julem35 (Dec 22, 2010)

Bettawhisperer said:


> The solution would be for the stores to set up about 3 - 20g long tanks with dividers in each to house 5 to 6 males. This way they can house 15 to 18 males in filtered heated tanks. Problem solved except for getting the stores to do it.


Again, A great idea, but the mainstream stores could be hard to convince. Maybe a letter with a bunch of signatures could help. And i bet alot of us fish forum people could help.


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## Xox-Zip-xoX (Aug 14, 2010)

That was my reason for posting. My whole point was that If we can get enough people together we could make a difference, or at least an effort.


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## Bettawhisperer (Oct 1, 2010)

Well I don't think the stores would really pay any attention unless you had backing like PETA. The stores figure whatever is cheapest and easiest for them. As long as they are still selling to uneducated public they won't care.


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## hXcChic22 (Dec 26, 2009)

PETA doesn't even agree with domesticated pets, I can't imagine them putting up a big to-do over stores that sell them.


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## e048 (Dec 23, 2010)

correction PETA does have domesticated pets department i know im an active member, as for fish im not too sure, they recently launched a campaign against petsmart to stop reptile sales. as for your idea some stores arent to blame, you should blame the shipper/breeder. The store I work at our bettas come in little tiny ziploc bag things about a fifth the size of a regular sandwich bag, they come from Thailand, and in the heated box comes the little plastic tanks and lids, they give us the little tanks, we don't have them en mass in the store, if anything you should try to get the shippers of the bettas to pay up, you're blaming a store for something that isn't their fault. Same as buying a used car that breaks down, you shouldn't blame the dealer but blame the original owner. As for whatever's convenient for the store is the truth about half the time. I know for a fact that my store only has about 20 betta safe tanks (the rest all being SW or fish too aggressive for betas) when some stores get their betta's shipped they ship them over 50, so there is no way to fit 50 bettas in 20 tanks, even with dividers.


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## Betta man (Mar 25, 2011)

If stores used 40 gallon tanks, they could fit plenty of male bettas into it and use screens as dividers so they would only have to use one heater. The petco near my house is horrible with bettas. They keep them in little half pint containers. Their bettas are very unhealthy. Sometimes you see dead bettas in the containers. I bought my betta who is in the album splenden at sunrise pet center. At least they keep their bettas in the round goldfish bowls. Some people are saying that bettas don't like small tanks but I kept my betta in a half gallon and he was very happy! He even made a bubble nest. Check out the album splenden. Does anyone know what type of betta he is???


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