If I'm clean and use only used water from his tank, could I take a bath with my Betta ?

I know I'll be judged for that one, but know that if I ask, it's to avoid doing something dangerous and refrain from doing it if told to.

One of my betta seems too intelligent and curious for a simple betta. If I put my hand (clean, no soap) in his tank, he comes to it and rubs himself on my hand, pretty much like a cat would do, and he lets me pet him gently. I know people look a their betta in a tank with no tank mates and incorrectly assume that "they're bored" , but I truly seem like it's the case for that one. I know he does not want tankmates as he's been aggressive even towards snails and he's a plakkat, but he always looks like he wants to be petted and even looks sad when I ignore him and don't pet him.

I sometimes feel like if my entire apartment was filled with water (and I somewhat could breath under water) that he'd follow me everywhere I go.

From there came the strange idea to take a bath with him, in order to bring the bonding to another level (that sounded weird, lol but I guess you know what I want to say).

Okay now I know all the obvious risks about doing so. Water Temp, Chlorine, different PH, dirt from my body, etc.

But I'm thinking of a safe way to make it happen.

1 : I only keep water from his own aquarium when I make water changes, until I get enough to fill maybe 3-4 inches in the bath.
2 : I'd add a sponge filter and a heater in order to keep bacteria living. I'd also make sure to keep the same temps as his tanks.
3 : Day of the bath : I'd clean myself in another bathroom, without soap or anything and wouldn't put any clothes on.
4 : After comparing all the parameters Ammonia/Nitrites/Nitrates/PH/Temp, I'd put the betta in a bag with it's own water, like when you buy one from the lfs.
5 : I'd site in the bath with him in his bag and would leave him there to acclimate to temp if temp is different.
6 : I'd use the drip method if PH is different too.
7 : In fact, scratch #5 and #6 : if temp and ph are different, I'd just make sure they are before I do this.

So, if there are no soap residues, no dirt or acid on my, if the water is the same as his tank's with the same temp and parameters, would it still be dangerous for the fish ?

Are there other risk I just didn't think of, and could they be fixed in a way that it could be done ? Or is it just a big no-no ?

I know that's seriously a weird question or even a weird plan, but hey I have thought of it as a joke a few times but wonder if it could actually be done.

In the same vein : Could I keep a smaller container (still with his own tank water) and put him in it for short period of time just to show him around and bring him with me in the living room for like 15 minutes or so and then take him back to his tank ? Again, I would always make sure temp/ph/parameters are the same each time.

 

I wouldn't. If nothing else, the risk of crushing him would be fairly high. Bettas like to swim where they aren't supposed to and move a lot faster in the water than we do.

 

Correct answer is to get him a 300+g tank and join him.

Had a friend that had a 350g and he wojld get swim trunks on and sit in while cleaning and scaping. To make it crazier he kept a couple stingrays and big catfish.

 

i wouldnt because even if you clean your body still secrets oil all the time plus the soap you clean yourself with leaves residue on your skin and both of those are severely toxic to a betta

 

A fish and a naked man hanging out in a bathtub. Where are the priest and the rabbi?

 

I wouldn't. If nothing else, the risk of crushing him would be fairly high. Bettas like to swim where they aren't supposed to and move a lot faster in the water than we do.

I had in mind to not move a bit except my hands, but I agree that there are still chances that it could happen by accident. Anyway, based on the other comments below I see that wouldn't be the only risk hehe

Correct answer is to get him a 300+g tank and join him.

Had a friend that had a 350g and he wojld get swim trunks on and sit in while cleaning and scaping. To make it crazier he kept a couple stingrays and big catfish.

Boy that'd be my dream ! Do you know if they recognized him in his suit and came to interact with him, or is it only all about faces and food ? lol

i wouldnt because even if you clean your body still secrets oil all the time plus the soap you clean yourself with leaves residue on your skin and both of those are severely toxic to a betta

I though about cleaning myself with only water and a scrubber or something like that. But I didn't think about my oil. I guess I'll take a raincheck for that project hehe

Speaking of oil, do you think that means I should pet him in his tank also ? I don't do it often, not for long, but maybe once a week for about 30 seconds to a minute.

A fish and a naked man hanging out in a bathtub. Where are the priest and the rabbi?

Trust me i knew how weird every words I was typing sounded when I was typing them hahaha

But don't worry, I don't need an exorcist there's nothing weird : Just a naked man, and his fish, bonding.

(LOL)

 

I wasn't making fun, fishlore, (so thanks for removing my comment) that would be hypocritical, I have often actually thought about what it would be like to a have a pool with ro water and have a bunch of fish. I feel like it would be fun.
darn imagine swimming with fish that would be fun.
pool into koi pond would be cool

 

I live in upstate NYS so it gets really really cold here in the winter. I’m still only in high school, but my dream is to one day at my future house get a high tech greenhouse connected to a door to my house or something and keep tropical plants and a pond with tropical fish in it. It would have the pond and mostly terrestrial elements so I could totally get some sort of amphibian or turtle. I would love to swim with fish but I think I would get sooo freaked out if they started to nip me or something.

 

omg that is an awesome idea!!!

 

omg that is an awesome idea!!!

Thanks!

OP, have you tried teaching him tricks? It’s not the same as what you are asking but it’s something, there are some great videos on YouTube. I had a fish who I trained to swim up to my hand when I made a circle with my fingers and swim through the loop! You could do some stuff like that. I wouldn’t bring him around your house though, no matter how careful you are you could still drop him. Also it would be really stressful for the fish as bettas are not even from flowing water in the wild, let alone being sloshed around in a small container. I have definitely wished to do that myself. You can do some cool things with training like following a target stick or swimming through hoops and tunnels, stuff like that. I agree with you bettas are smart little creatures!

 

my betta jumps for food, and used to do the hoop thing but then he got older and lazy. Lol

 

Haha I moved mine into a bigger community tank and I couldn’t do it with him anymore because the tetras wouldn’t mind their own business lol

 

what type of tetras do you have? Just curious

 

I have some brass/gold tetras and some (this one’s a mouthful) long finned white skirt blushing tetras

These guys -don’t mind the algae this picture is from a while ago and is now under control

 

Let's not derail the thread with side conversations.
Remember this is OuiBonjour's thread.

Thanks

 

In all my years I have never seen a question quite like this...

I will say, your desire to bathe with your betta is interesting, and I don't really shun your idea, but there's a lot to consider here.

First, if you're using a tub that is used for bathing or showering, you'd have to clean it. There's definitely residue from soap and anything else that might be used in it. You'd have to clean yourself completely before even doing this, and even then there is still body oils to consider, which cannot be completely removed from the skin. It's unlikely that you'd end up crushing your fish, but it can happen. Overall, as fun as it might seem, it sounds like more trouble than it ends up being worth, since you'll only get a small window of time to spend time with him in there, and you'll be taking a bath in a less than comfortable water temperature

Still, appreciate the question!

 

hmm maybe to help with body oils cover yourself in saran wrap *ofc not your face* also careful with the drain, that would honestly be my biggest concern, a betta getting sucked down the drain. for temp bettas like about 80 degrees so that's not too terribly cold.
siran???
nm saran. Spelled it right the first time.

 

I wasn't making fun, fishlore, (so thanks for removing my comment) that would be hypocritical, I have often actually thought about what it would be like to a have a pool with ro water and have a bunch of fish. I feel like it would be fun.
darn imagine swimming with fish that would be fun.
pool into koi pond would be cool

Something like this ?

That'd be another of my dreams!

Also I'm curious what was your first comment, I don't mind if it was making fun or not I'm good game and knew my question (even though it was legitimate) would bring some laughs when I posted it!

Thanks!

OP, have you tried teaching him tricks? It’s not the same as what you are asking but it’s something, there are some great videos on YouTube. I had a fish who I trained to swim up to my hand when I made a circle with my fingers and swim through the loop! You could do some stuff like that. I wouldn’t bring him around your house though, no matter how careful you are you could still drop him. Also it would be really stressful for the fish as bettas are not even from flowing water in the wild, let alone being sloshed around in a small container. I have definitely wished to do that myself. You can do some cool things with training like following a target stick or swimming through hoops and tunnels, stuff like that. I agree with you bettas are smart little creatures!

I'm not sure I'm have the patience and consistency to be a good teacher, but I'll definitely look at the tutorials as he'd most certainly make a great student. He already sometimes jump a little when I feed him, and we have a kind of "game" where I look at him in the tank and he looks at me, then I act super excited/happy and he starts to act super excited too, like a puppy or somnething! And he's not parading or anything he jsut starts to act over happy !

As for the hoops, where his tank is currently installed I don't have a lot of room over his tank because he's on a kitchen counter and the cabinets are right over it. If I even change his location, I'll try to teach him a few things!

Let's not derail the thread with side conversations.
Remember this is OuiBonjour's thread.

Thanks

No worries, I vastly prefer an alive thread that digresses than a ghost thread where I don't even get an answer hehe

In all my years I have never seen a question quite like this...

I will say, your desire to bathe with your betta is interesting, and I don't really shun your idea, but there's a lot to consider here.

First, if you're using a tub that is used for bathing or showering, you'd have to clean it. There's definitely residue from soap and anything else that might be used in it. You'd have to clean yourself completely before even doing this, and even then there is still body oils to consider, which cannot be completely removed from the skin. It's unlikely that you'd end up crushing your fish, but it can happen. Overall, as fun as it might seem, it sounds like more trouble than it ends up being worth, since you'll only get a small window of time to spend time with him in there, and you'll be taking a bath in a less than comfortable water temperature

Still, appreciate the question!

yead, indeed the risks vastly overshine the benefits I'm glad my question made you smile though hehe

 

There’s also the fact that there are bacterias in tank water that are harmful to humans and if you had even a minor cut, you could get infected.

It’s an interesting question though, I admit.

 

Something like this ?



That'd be another of my dreams!

Also I'm curious what was your first comment, I don't mind if it was making fun or not I'm good game and knew my question (even though it was legitimate) would bring some laughs when I posted it!




I'm not sure I'm have the patience and consistency to be a good teacher, but I'll definitely look at the tutorials as he'd most certainly make a great student. He already sometimes jump a little when I feed him, and we have a kind of "game" where I look at him in the tank and he looks at me, then I act super excited/happy and he starts to act super excited too, like a puppy or somnething! And he's not parading or anything he jsut starts to act over happy !

As for the hoops, where his tank is currently installed I don't have a lot of room over his tank because he's on a kitchen counter and the cabinets are right over it. If I even change his location, I'll try to teach him a few things!



No worries, I vastly prefer an alive thread that digresses than a ghost thread where I don't even get an answer hehe



yead, indeed the risks vastly overshine the benefits I'm glad my question made you smile though hehe

I said that is hilarius for my first comment. I did not mean it offensively. I meant that it was funny because I would do the same thing.

I said that is hilarius for my first comment. I did not mean it offensively. I meant that it was funny because I would do the same thing.

Yesssss thats my dream lol

 

Along with what everyone else is saying, more to consider: Fish Diseases Transmitted to Humans

 

I have read some silly stuff on this forum. This by far takes the cake.