MattsBettas

VERY anecdotal... But when I breed my own bettas, they live noticeably longer than the fish I get from other breeders, especially when they're imported from SE Asia (which has very different water params, etc than us). Fish from overseas are bred ASAP and then typically only last a few months more if that, and this is pretty standard among betta breeders across North America... Everyone knows they just don't last as long. Even fish I buy from good, reputable breeders in Calgary don't live the same length as ones that are bred in my house, with almost the exact conditions throughout their lives and never any shipping stress. To put a few numbers to it, two girls that I imported from Thailand and I believe one other country in that area of the world got to me in July (would have been 4 months old when sold), were bred, and then died that September. Some of their offspring are still alive and very healthy today, a year and a half later. That's about 6 months for the parents compared to 18 for the offspring that I kept, and those are still doing very well (knock wood).

In my experience Albertan born/raised fish do better in Alberta water.

Fishclubgirl would have them if anyone does, she'll probably post but if not I'd check with her. Would be great to see these around.

Malaysian Trumpets dig and stir, I know planted tank keepers often use them to keep soil from going anaerobic. Assassins burrow too but it'll cost a lot more to get enough to make a difference.

Probably what you wanted to find- http://www.jehmco.com/index.html

Probably tanks. Usually when you hear of those sales it's in Petcos in the US...

Was this at the border or at an airport?

Got a pair of least killies, Hygrophila polysperma, riccia, a beautiful finnex light, a fluval spec, a java fern on driftwood that came with daphnia (didn't even want the java fern, just the daphnia lol), a ~18g tank. and a breeder trap from the fluval guy.

What did everybody else come home with?

Today's the day! Don't forget cash and a small cooler if you have one!

I love the GH series from Aquatop (off amazon). Reliable and affordable, and I'm yet to have one fail (that wasn't my fault). 100-200w for a 20g tank depending on how warm you need it.

Neat!

Lol true but you might this time as I'm running short on tank space. Only have enough space left for another trio of duplicareous, a group of hastatus and maybe space for a small group to double up with either my similus or loretos lol

Haha, no, you definitely do not have room for any duplicarius...

Yea, by the time it gets through the process it isn't cheap...

By the way, I have a couple light food pink shell (if that's what you're after) mysteries that should be nearing breeding size, if by some chance they breed I'll let you know... They do exist in Canada... Big Als up here had a tank full of most of the colors a few months back.

The process might work differently for other fish, by the way... I'm only familiar with the process surrounding bettas.

I know with bettas (Thai bettas are often the best, if you know what you're buying and who you're buying from) they have to go through our transhipper in Toronto- he charges a transhipping fee of ten bucks per fish (he can be fairly ridiculous since he has the monopoly in Canada, transhipping in America is usually like 2-4 bucks a fish), and then ships them out to you. You don't need any permit, the transhipper has the permit to bring them into the country.

The best fish I've owned, which were also a lot of my starting stock, were from Thai and if I remember correctly Malaysian betta farms. I did not deal with the transhipper directly, there were a few of us who got fish from the same order.

What kind of fish are you looking at?

It's at High Park Community Hall, in the west end (11032 154 St). Items are auctioned off one by one. It's a lot of fun, and you're bound to come home with some good deals.

I find that decorating he spawn tank is a balance between the female being able to escape the males line of sight, but not so much that they can lose each other.

If they don't spawn this time take them out and fully condition them- lots of frozen food and pellets three times a day, and let them see each other for fifteen minutes a day.

Breeding bettas is super exciting. More work than lots of other fish but more fun too.

Very nice plant, and stunning picture!

Ocellata are a ton of fun... Super easy to breed, too. Throw the male in a (covered) ten gallon while he's holding and you'll get a ton of fry...

I am. Not at home right now but if you're interested I can try to get you pictures tomorrow. Right now I only have a few available, marble and grizzle (lots of blues) HMPKxHMDT offspring. Let me know if you want the pictures.

Tank size: One gallon is the minimum amount for one betta, but you could never have tankmates and it's really just more work than it's worth when it comes to water changes. No maximum tank size, go as big as you want. You would set up a nice community in a ten gallon with tetras and ottos.

Filtration: Sponge filters are generally considered the best for bettas. They take care of the ammonia and don't produce a lot of flow, which is good for all bettas and especially for the long finned ones (lots of flow tends to lead to tail biting). Plus, sponges are cheap and easy.

Air stones are only needed if you like them. They're labyrinth breathers (use atmospheric oxygen) so they don't need any oxygenation.

Gravel and sand both work (so does bare bottom), color is up to you. Try to keep it darker, it displays the fish better IMO.

Lighting and decor depends on what you like and in the case of lighting whether or not you have plants. Make sure the decor isn't sharp at all (fins can and will rip). Live plants are the best, then silk.

Heaters are necessary, bettas are tropical fish from Thailand. A range of 76-86 is generally considered acceptable, with 78-80 being ideal. This might be a new concept considering they are usually seen in unheated bowls, but trust me... They do so much better.

There really isn't much else, they aren't difficult fish by any means (until you get into some of the wild species). Food shouldn't be hard, skip most of the betta pellets and go with something like new life spectrum betta formula or small fish, or omega one betta buffet.

Is this the pair you robbed from me at the April auction? (No hard feelings- I'm happy you ended up with them!)

Congrats on the fry, good luck getting them all raised up!

Happy to hear, I'll probably end up in the market for a new pump shortly. Is it quiet enough for a bedroom?

Is there a reason playsand wouldn't work? That's what I use, easy to find, cheap, works well and looks great.

You could try somewhere like Home Depot.

I have a quick question-

Where is the least expensive place to buy ro/di water in Edmonton?

I was just wondering if there was anywhere better than the grocery store... I'm looking at trying my hand at breeding some fish that require a fairly low pH; our 8.2 water just won't cut it.

Thank you.

You could aim for show standards... http://www.ifga.org

If you figure out the lighting issue I can't see a reason it wouldn't work for livebearers and plants. What fish are you looking at keeping?

I have a low-med light planted 20 tall, it keeps my healthy and happy endler colony (along with a pair of wild bettas).