Is my Betta going to be okay for now?

HI everyone! I just found the forum and I think it's great.I am a new fish owner.I actually just bought a Betta fish yesterday.He is a veil tail Betta, about 6 cm. I am keeping him in a small tank, a 2.2 gallon.I am fully aware that it is a pretty small tank and I am going to upgrade in about 4 months, 5 tops.I was told he will be fine without filter and heater but I am planning on buying an equipped 5.5 gallon tank when I upgrade.Right now Chuck has natural gravel and a cave/log.I intend to buy him a natural plant but I was thinking I should wait until I upgrade,when I want to also add a snail and 2 small size cleaner fish(or even one as long as it doesn't need a school).So what could I put in the tank to keep him entertained in the meantime? Also, should I do 100% water changes or partials and in whatever case how often should I do it.Please, I know it's a small tank and he will not permanently live in it,I am trying my best to give him a good life with what I have right now.I just really hated seing him in that tiny cup at the mall...So please tell me what else I could do for him in the meantime? Like what toys could I add and stuff.Thanks!

 

I think the best thing you could do for him right now would be add a small filter and heater if you can. All fish need filters and tropical fish need heaters. As long as you have a hiding spot for him ans some plants to lay on he should be ok. I would definitely recommend getting some live plants asap since they can HELP filter the water but you also need a filter unless you have a special tank (walstad method) which gets complicated. You can not fit any more fish into a tank that small and all algae eating fish would not do well in a tank less than like 20 gallons in my opinion since they will have to have lots of algae to eat and a 2.5 gallon tank is just not big enough to have that much algae. Also there just wouldn't be any room for them. A snail would be a good idea such as a small nerite or pond/mts snails. For the plants though try to get some moss and/or anubias since they are easy to care for. Java moss is great for beginners and java ferns are also great beginner plants. You can find them on ebay really cheap.

 

Welcome to FishLore!

Please take some time to read up on the nitrogen cycle. The words should have turned into a link and clicking will take you to a page about it.

Once you understand the nitrogen cycle, you will understand why you really need a filtered tank for him. Additionally, Betta's like a tank temperature of 80-81 degrees.

Good luck, and how about posting a picture of the little guy.

BTW, there is a very good Betta forum on this site with a bunch of people who are very knowlegable about Betta's, so it would be worth it to check it out.

 

Thanks for your advice! I will definitely get a snail when I upgrade to my 5.5 gallon tank.I would have loved an apple snail but I'm guessing it's too big? Anyway, I really like nerite snails as well and I will probably get one of those. Now, when I upgrade I will have a 2.2 gallon empty tank.I would love to put something in it.Any suggestions? I will upload a picture of Chuck and I need to tell you that my tank is not made out of glass and it's a shade of blue.I'm saying this because it might look like the water is dirty but it's not,it's the colour and my crappy cell phone camera.

 

You could always put shirmp in the 2.5 gallon. I have yellow shrimp in my 2.5 now and they breed and you can sell them and stuff. And they are just awesome looking.