In this article from my own research I have found the basic tips to keeping your Betta fish alive as long as you can. It is important that each and every Betta fish owner read and recognize these needs. The tips in this article are critical to your Betta's lifespan. And they all do play an important roll in increasing their lifespan.
Believe me, when you first get your Betta, you will be everywhere doing your own research on every aspect on Betta fishes lives. Be sure to follow these tips because they will help.
1. Betta fish should always be kept alone if the tank size is small, otherwise it will get cluttered and your Betta fish will become claustrophobic. No matter what, male Betta fish should always be kept in different fish tanks. Male Betta fish fight for territory and sometimes may result in death if the tank is too small.
2. Make sure that your fish are in a relaxed environment. Don't let the water current be too strong because it can stress out their small fins. Their fins are very sensitive due to their size.
3. Like humans Betta's need some type of entertainment in their life (so they don't get depressed) you should provide them with some silk plants to hide behind. They also would enjoy some beautiful ornaments especially the sparkling ones (they enjoy those a lot). Ornaments help Betta's so that when they are alone they don't get so bored.
4. Betta's come from places like China, Thailand and Vietnam which means that they had a good amount of darkness. So you want to make sure that you allow your fish a good amount of darkness also and too much sunlight can cause your Betta to stress which is definitely not good for their lifespan.
5. A big factor in increasing your fishes lifespan is maintaining the right water temperature (78 degrees is perfect). I advise you to get a filter and thermometer and check frequently. This is very important because Betta's lived in ponds and streams, it would be hard on them to switch temperature so keep it right.
6. Even though this might sound silly and simple believe me when I say this but their have been accidents when the Betta jumps out of the tank. So remember to keep your tank covered. Try and leave some air supply so they don't die because they also use oxygen. You can do this by punching in holes or leaving a crack at the top.
Now this isn't a direct fact but there have been some incidents on the type of water you fill your fish tank up with. Some people reported having their fish die because they filled their tank up with tap water. So after doing some of my own research I discovered that instead of using tap water that it can be more healthier and (better for lifespan) if you use true spring water or any other filtered water and a couple of Aquari-Sol drops.
Betta fish are very good fish and can have a lifespan of up to 2-3 years. There is a lot of info over the internet (Google) and with the right research you can become a Betta expert.
I recently wrote this on Ezine articles. Just thought it was that important.
