Beeker

I never wanted a betta before because I know they don't do well with tankmates. But, one day, I was browsing, and I got that look. You know how puppies at the store stare and pout until you are suckered into taking it home? Well, bettas do something similar. It isn't a "buy me, I need love and a hug" pout, with bettas it is more like a "buy me or I'll kill you" pout. I was sold! Such attitude in such a beautiful small fish, I had to buy him. Besides, my 10 gal planted was empty, so I bought him. I don't remember how long I had him, but I was sad when he died.
Later I was told that bettas are often middle aged when they get to the pet stores. That makes sense, they are pretty much full grown. So, how do I know the difference between buying a young betta, or a runt? I know I have to check color, eyes, scales, and attitude. Is there something I am missing?

TFA101

The inforamtion. Typically, bettas hit the market at around two months of age, and they can live up to five years under good care. Also, it depends on where you buy your betta. if you get it from petsmart, you have little to no chance of rasing it unless you are experienced and have single-minded determination. otherwise, i would try looking for a fish specialist store, or a local breeder so you can be sure they will live a long happy life

pinkfloydpuffer

Yeah, with the ones from petco that i've got, some died within weeks of me getting them from kidney failure... I think it's pretty reasonable to say that expecting those kinds of bettas to live more than three years is irrational.

dinatwin

Thank god i was the lucky one. My male Betta (ginger LOL I know a girl name) lived 3 years and he was from walmart. My female Betta pixy is a bit over a year old and I too got her from walmart.

capekate

Hi Beeker,
If looking for a young Betta, you can check out the size of them in the cups. I find that there is a big difference in sizes and hence, age of them. All my Betta's were tiny things when I bought them and were housed with Betta's that looked like they were at adult size.
I know just what you mean about that 'look' lol... they are little love bugs arnt they? lol...

Allie

Actually it's more like 3-3.5mos from breeder. From LPS or fish room you don't know how they are, they all look to be different ages, some are older than a year. Just look at their faces, you can tell the differnce between an old betta face and a young. Don't get suckered in by the old ones tho, they usually don't last as long as I would like.
It really doesn't matter if you get a betta from a breeder or Pet Smart they aren't easy to keep. So if you aren't into breeding don't waste your money. Save one of those cute cup bettas, they cost a lot less and can last just as long.

Allie

Size doesn't really make that much of difference, most people have different growth rate for their Betta which mean one breeders 3 mos old Betta could look 2 months old where another could be giant at 3 mos. It all depend how they were bred, what size tankt hey were in for growing out and how long they were in the jar. No room to grow in a jar.

Shaina

You can kind of get a rough estimate just by looking...totally subjective I know, but that's the best you can do if you are looking at a typical LFS Betta. My guess is that Hollywood was quite young when I brought him home, based on his size, fin development, and face.

Here's some pics to show you what I mean:

Fresh out of the cup in March:


July (don't have more recent pics handy):

pinkfloydpuffer

All my petco cup boys were about half the size as my old man Floyd (bless his soul) when I got them. But he was at least 20 months old, so that's not much of a comparison really.

capekate

Hi Allie
I have seen enough baby and adult Betta's to be able to tell the difference between the two. A teeny tiny Betta.... like my girls were when I got them, compared to a male that is too big for a cup and looking quite mature is not easy to confuse. that is why I mentioned to look for the size. Maybe I should have said.. look for a teeny tiny betta... lol

Allie

I guess I should say that baby faces are the key...a baby faced betta is much easier to see.
My sorority girls were itty bitty when I got them too, just an inch. So I know what you mean by size wise. Female always seem to be younger looking than males.

Red1313

When I picked up my girl she was so tiny that you could pretty much see through her. I've had her for a little over a month now and her fins are colored up now and she's not quite as transparent lol.

Beeker

Thank you.
The development of the fins will help.