I agree...
I bought my betta. phantom from an LFS about2 months ago....he was very sad
looking and not moving much (he was in a jar). I took him home and put him
in a set up 40 litre tank.....He is obviously alot more happy there,
swimming around, flaring at the filter and lying on his side to sleep on a
single glass pebble i left in the aquarium....

Hes been such a joy to watch...he makes me laugh!
"winddancir" wrote in message
. ..

Just because bettas in the wild can survive like that doesn't mean we
can treat our pets like that. Would I keep my very active 3 yr old in a
closet? NO! Why should I treat my fish that way? I would think that any
sensible fish owner would provide good conditions for the living
creature they provide for. In a way, the child analogy is a good one.
Because you are responsible for the child or pet all their lives (just
ask any parent, just because a child has grown up, does not mean they
do not need/love/care for their parents.)
I did see one betta in a vase combo where the store DID take care of it
properly, and it was not for sale. partial water changes, rinsing the
plant, and very important, feeding the betta. The female in question
looked quite happy. No signs of stress that I could see.

The major point on this is most people are not told how to properly
care for them, and the plant is usually totally unsuitable for this
type of set up. I keep mine in small 1 gal to 2 gal tanks, with a small
java fern. They are very friendly, and appear to have a blast playing
with the java fern. My female has a bad habit of jumping over a leaf
that is up at the surface, so she's in a 2 gal tall tank, with 4 in of
space between the secure lid and the water. As far as I can tell, she
does this for fun!


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winddancir