"IDzine01" wrote:

Jade wrote:
Polar's new betta jumped the tank the same day he posted and is no more.
But
I too had the betta mixed up w/ Marty and was referring to him thusly.

Oh. That's awful. I lost my Frost to a jump just a couple of months
ago. I knew better too. I had a tiny opening in the back where the
filter didn't quite block and I found him on the floor the next
morning. They can squeeze through openings smaller then their bodies.
(Don't ask me how)

I read several posts on different message boards about fish jumping the
tank, especially betta, but also various guppies. After reading Polar's post
about his loss of betta, I immediately checked out the new tank to find
there *was* an opening in the back to fit around the filter. It was plenty
big for a betta to get through, if one so chose to make a breakout attempt.
Immediately, I got some fabric and taped it carefully over the open space so
as to block it as an exit path.

I know I appreciated your comments, IDzine. We have 2 new betta in the
house
and we've never had fish before, so I've been trying to learn as much as
I
can about them so we can do right by them. I found your advice quite
helpful
and really appreciated the link you provided to Aquamaniacs. I took a
look
at the board and will probably be posting there soon w/ questions.

That's wonderful. I love hearing that people care enough for their
fish to search out information.

Thanks for the compliment, Christine. It would be easy enough to convince
myself it would be ok to keep the fish the way they came...in a 1/2 gallon
plastic tank w/ divider and no filter for the 2 to share, cleaning it once
or twice a month. I could tell myself they're only fish...what difference
does it make what kind of life they have and what evidence is there a fish
cares about anything or has the capacity to experience discontent? But after
learning more, I just couldn't do that. Not in good conscience.

The only problem is there is SO much
bad info out there.

No kidding. There's SO much info out there, period. And a lot of it is
conflicting. It's hard to believe both things can be true, so that suggests
some of it is inaccurate. But how to know which can be trusted and which
should be discounted? That's the trick.

I think you'll be pleased with Aquamaniacs, they
really promote good health and proper treatment. (Not to mention they
saved my Bettas lives on several occasions)

That's really good to hear. Trouble is, seems like everyone on a particular
forum believes that forum is the last word on the subject. Makes it tough.
About the best one can do, it seems, is to seek out enough different sources
to see if one can come up with a consensus on any given question or care
issue.

It really helps to get whatever support you
need when you're starting out w/ something new (especially something
that
could up and die on you if you screw up). So thanks.

That's the truth! They sure are a lot more work then first thought
they would be. (but who am i kidding, I love every minute of it)

It is turning out to be more work than I anticipated or really desired. And
all of this was thrust on me when my sister presented 2 betta to my son for
his birthday. But I figure now that they're here, I just have to make the
best of it.

They are kind of fun to watch. Yesterday, the orange-gold betta (Angin-san)
did something pretty cute. The two have really been going at it lately at
the dividing screen between them. They were in head-to-head combat, jumping
and flaring at each other on their respective sides of the screen, for a
couple of minutes. The dark blue one (Toranaga) went in the other direction
for a few seconds. Angin-san slipped in behind a clump of fern near the
screen and waited. When Toranaga came back to the screen, Angin-san leapt
out of the "bush" in which he was hiding very suddenly and lunged at
Toranaga. Clearly, he was going for the element of surprise. "Trying to get
the drop on ol' Toranago there, huh Angin-san?" I said to him. LOL! What
does it tell you when you find yourself talking to a fish? Still, it was
funny to see.

Anyway, thanks for the encouragement, Christine. Maybe I'll see you around
the Aquamaniacs forum. Take care,

Jade

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