Its true! I read it online that they like hearing your voice and they especially like it when you sing to them. I have a female betta and I used to have a male betta. I got my female 3 days ago and yesterday i looked it up that they liked to be sung to. So I tried it. I sung to her a lot for the rest of the day. Now whenever I come up to the tank she swims over to greet me. I also just talk to her about normal stuff to because even though they cant reply, fish are good to vent to. Plus they like it when you talk to them. If you have any tips for me....I'll take them!

Hahaha,your absolutely correct.They love to be talked to for sure.I have a female macrostoma who the neighbor trips on.They spawn a lot and the male has yet to hold.The neighbor(Bob)chews her out because he thinks its her fault,lol.He will point and talk to her and she turns around and bucks up to him.

What can I say they have personality!

What type of tips are you looking for?I guess basically tell me what her setup is,and I can tell you more after that.I think I saw her pic uploaded to the gallery,a blue girl right?Or was she green?Either way she was shiny and I think shes a very pretty girl.

dont remember if I welcomed you but if not,Welcome to the forums!I could talk(type)your ears(eyes)off about bettas,lol.I love them tons.Be sure to check out the profiles of wilds,and see that there are many bettas,other than the ones found in the petstores!(profiles are slowly growing,so far only two)

__________________
http://bountifulbettas.blogspot.com/

"Come to the dark side....we have cookies...and filters/heaters/and water changes!"

When fish can see you, they seems enjoy it already in anticipation of food. No matter if you are singing, speaking or remain silent. Interesting what genre they prefer? Do Bettas like modern hits? I would sing Lady Gaga's songs to them, but I am afraid I am not good at singing. This is a lot more likely then stories about plants listening and reacting to music.

I also agree that bettas love attention. My last one was about 5 years ago. I had him in a very large vase/fish bowl, and everytime I go to leave or come in the house he would start swimming 2 laps around the bowl, flare up at me,and when I said whats up he would turn over for me to rub his stomach, then he flare up at me again until I waved my hand at him. Of course I did have him for 6 years, before my ma's cat got 'em, he did it mainly when I got home or was sick like he could sense it. My ma said when my bus stopped by he would perk up everytime, except when eatting. And he danced to the CMT.

It is a pity that this fish does not live long. Six years is a very long life for this species. Most turn senile after 2 years. I used to breed them by the dozens and even hundreds, many color varieties showed up in the offspring. Probably your male lived longer, because he did not ahve a chance to breed. However, the breeding process shows a lot more activity and beauty of this fish. I do not keep them now, beause my tank is well populated and I have tiger barbs.

Actually,the average lifespan of a healthy betta is indeed six years.

It is a proven fact that spawning will shorten the lifespan significantly,and most of the fish sold in the petstores are either retired or failed breeders.I raise them myself as well, and have discovered the secret to the longevity is a varied diet and clean water.

I have one male,who traveled 1200 miles with me,the last of my dragon line.He is four years going on five now,and was a breeder.However he didnt raise any of his spawn;he would flip out when they hatched so he had an early retirement.

What type of bettas did you spawn,out of curiosity?Were they the veils or another tail type?Would love to see some pics of some of the ones you raised,especially if it were the veils.They dont get half the credit they deserve.

__________________
http://bountifulbettas.blogspot.com/

"Come to the dark side....we have cookies...and filters/heaters/and water changes!"

I have a long history of keeping and breeding aquarium fish. It was about 20 years ago. I started with a purple with red pair of veiled bettas. They spawned in a 10 gallons tank and the male turned out to be excellent father. The fry grew up in the same tank. I fed them with live food (crustacea from road side ditches and ponds). When differences between sexes showed up and males began posturing, I put them all in
Mason jars, one male per jar and fed them with small pieces of raw meat, chicken and liver, but most often with earth worms cut into small pieces. They grew up rapidly and presented an array of colors, which I enjoyed to watch. I had pure red, pure blue of different shades, green, green with blue and yellow bettas. Many were just like their parents, a pleasant mixture of red, blue and green. I sold them in a local pet store, $1 per fish. Of course, raising them in Mason jars required changing water every day or every other day. Adults lived well in a community tank, 29 gallons with other fish, such as Pearl Gourami, fancy guppies and platies. The water was clean and the food was diverse, but after a few times of breeding males tended to become less active and sleepy. My males lived up to two - three years. May be this was because water temperature in the tank was too low for them, especially in winter. Now, I do not keep bettas simply because I have tiger barbs in the community tank. I would like to try some wild type varieties with short fins. Yesterday I bought two juvenile Pelvicachromis pulcher (Kribensis).

My wife just said if I start singing to my fish, she's going to buy a gun and shoot me!

then you dont have a very good wife!


Anyways, thank you everybody for all your comments! now when I ring my fishes bell, she jumps for it like its a worm or something! its so cute and i dont mind because she only jumps like a centimeter. And yes, my betta was the blueish blackish one.

That's pretty cool! I'll have to try this... when the semester starts, I'll be taking my betta and his tank buddies with me back to school again. This time, however, I'm living in the on-campus apartments and I'll have my own bedroom... I'll get to sing to him all the time now!! =D *right now he's in the middle of the house so it's hard to talk and play with him and not look half-retarded to the rest of my family hahaha*

__________________

thats cool!

My Braveheart LOVES to be talked to! He gets very upset if I pass by his tank without saying something. He also loves it when I make kissy noises at him. I put my face up to the tank, and he swims as close as he can and puts his face right in front of mine!

__________________
Creatures great and small, I love 'em all! But mainly the fish.

same here!