Baby Betta (help)

I made a mistake as a beginning fish mom and got a baby betta at Petco before I knew what I was getting into (the people at the store said there was no difference in care between a baby and an adult, and that bettas are easy to take care of)

I currently have her in a 1.5 gallon bowl pending a ten-gallon tank, but I had no idea the babies were so high maintenance!

Tank will be kept at 78-80 using the room thermostat or a heating pad under the tank, is that okay or should I invest in a heater?

I know I need a filter but I thought they like still water? Does that mean I need a special filter?

Substrate: I have gravel for the bowl, but I think I’ll do a clear-bottomed tank

Food: I have betta flakes with krill in them, supposedly high-protein. How essential is live food for baby bettas? Will crushing the flakes up a bunch be enough?

How can I kick off the nitrogen cycle in the tank ASAP? I put her in the bowl because I couldn’t stand seeing her in that cup from the store, but now I’m worried that the water won’t be clean enough if I leave her too long. It’s uncovered and it’s kind of dusty in my room so I’m fairly concerned.

She had stress stripes when I got her but I’m worried they’re getting darker and I just want to take good care of her

 

Invest in a heater, a sponge filter, airline and an air pump rated for a 10 gallon or lower tank.
I fed my baby betta ground up frozen cyclops, ground up frozen blood worms and first bites when I first got her.
I had to change her water often and feed her small meals 3 times a day.

When can you get the 10 gallon tank? When can you get the heater and sponge filter? Can you purchase all of these things at once, along with some prime water conditioner?

Until you can get these things, you need to change her water, 50% twice a day. Make sure you treat it with water conditioner as well. (Prime would be ideal) You might even want to put her in a bigger container (rubbermaid tote) and just put a sponge filter/heater in it until you can get a tank set up, if possible.

Once you get the tank and have everything set up in it, I'd recommend adding some TSS+ or stability to the tank since you will be doing a fish in cycle. You might want to go with stability since you can do water changes with it, I'm not sure if you have to wait the 24 hours after adding prime to add the stability or not when you do the initial filling of the tank, with TSS+ you do have to.

 

Invest in a heater, a sponge filter, airline and an air pump rated for a 10 gallon or lower tank.
I fed my baby betta ground up frozen cyclops, ground up frozen blood worms and first bites when I first got her.
I had to change her water often and feed her small meals 3 times a day.

When can you get the 10 gallon tank? When can you get the heater and sponge filter? Can you purchase all of these things at once, along with some prime water conditioner?

Until you can get these things, you need to change her water, 50% twice a day. Make sure you treat it with water conditioner as well. (Prime would be ideal) You might even want to put her in a bigger container (rubbermaid tote) and just put a sponge filter/heater in it until you can get a tank set up, if possible.

Once you get the tank and have everything set up in it, I'd recommend adding some TSS+ or stability to the tank since you will be doing a fish in cycle. You might want to go with stability since you can do water changes with it, I'm not sure if you have to wait the 24 hours after adding prime to add the stability or not when you do the initial filling of the tank, with TSS+ you do have to.

I can get all the supplies tomorrow, I’ve got AquaSafe conditioner but I can pick up prime... do I cycle the tank once, or more and if so how many times? And would it be okay to put some plants in or should I wait for her to get bigger?

 

Typically the tank will go through one cycle, but it is a continuous cycle once everything is in place....meaning you have to do weekly water changes once it is fully cycled and while it is cycling, you might have to do daily ones. (you might want to either have a place that will do liquid tests for free or pick up a apI master test kit as well).
I strongly recommend you read up on the nitrogen cycle on this website, and even look up a few youtube videos on it.

 

Aww I hope it goes well for you and your baby betta! I almost got one myself, but then I googled it and they’re actually a lot of work! Like real babies! And I’ve got a 3 year old already lol

And they’re so tiny and fragile looking. I would still put plants and hiding places on there for it. Babies need somewhere to unwind to. Good luck!