Weird thoughts on how a lady thought i might fight my bettas??

I don't know why I keep thinking back to when I got my two bettas last week but I thought this was strange.

When I was checking out with my two boys the lady who was checking me out, kept repeating at least four times
that I have 14 days if I kept my receipt to bring back my bettas if they die and I can get them replaced.. I thought it was quite odd. Maybe she thought I was going to fight them?
I did check out without any fish tanks.. But I did have two already set up at home..
So she must see young people buying two bettas at a time and coming back a couple days later saying both died??
o.0
And she was giving me kind of a mean look like she was expecting me to fight them..

I really do not know why I keep thinking back to this.. weird

So I decided to tell you guys my thought process on how I thought the lady was thinking that I am going to fight them.
lol

 

Many people have negative thoughts on young hobbyist. For some reason they think that we don't know what we are talking about just because we are "young".

 

This stuff happens..... pretty dumb, imo. What I mean is that people fight their bettas.

 

She didn't think you were going to fight them. She thought they might die, as bettas from petstores often do, and wanted you to know that you could replace them if anything happened.

 

She may not have thought about fighting.. but if you think about the "betta habitats" that are sold at most fish stores, it is no wonder she thinks they will die.

Imagine the person who goes in the pet store, buys a betta, gets told that this tiny bowl (which holds less water than I want to drink with my dinner) is all that he needs to live in. They buy said betta, tiny little bowl, no heater, no space, no filter, throw betta in itty bitty bowl and because he was never acclimated, never gets to experience a cycled tank and may already be sick, the poor betta dies within 2 weeks.

I'm sure this checkout lady was just making sure she did her duty by informing you of the return policy. Most people buying a betta for each child may stick them in a mason jar or goodness knows where. She may even have thought you were buying one each for the kids and planned to keep them in the cups because she has no idea that you are one of the rare and amazing betta owners who knows that a heated, filtered, larger than 2 cups of water tank is a much better way to keep your lovely new boys happy.

 

It also bugs me how just because I am "young" people expect me to know nothing about fishkeeping! Like I was getting another tank the other day and someone was like um what are even planning to put in a tiny five gal and you didnt even get a FILTER you know fish need them. I was like dude calm down I already have my filter at home and am gettig another betta. people are so weird sometimes

 

they were like 50

 

My husband almost went off on a Petsmart employee who was following us around, asking what kind of fish we were getting, what size tank we had, then proceeded to give us the most inaccurate info imaginable. My husband finally told her we were putting a great white shark in the 5 gallon.

She was trying to talk us out of a 5 gallon for a betta - it's too much room, they don't need filters, heaters, plants, anything! I'm surprised she didn't tell me water was optional. I told her that's why all the bettas in her cups were dead - no filter, no heater, and no ROOM!

 

And that's the other extreme. Wanting you to buy a smaller tank? Really?

 

Okay thank you guys for convincing me that she probably did not think I was going to fight my boys. I wanted to tell her that they are going into warm tanks, but I did not want to seem weird in saying that.
And I do agree, people doubt that "young" fish hobbyist know anything about taking care of fish and how to maintain a fish tank. But we do know how to take care of our fish, I am about to take pictures of my happy, healthy fish and show them and say " yes I can take care of my fish!"

And oh my god. Really?? That is horrible! You would think the employee would be happy that the fish is going into a warm, filtered big home and not into a small, cold tank.

I had an employee tell me that those small little tanks that can hold two bettas will make them so much happier then a five gallon heated and filtered tank.

 

Putting aside fish care... speaking as a retail employee myself, why on earth would you try to convince a customer to buy a smaller item when they want the large version?! It's normally vice versa! Unless she was trying to convince you to buy a betta bowl that was more expensive than a larger normal tank.

 

Where I live the 10 gals are cheaper than any other tanks. And some of those little kits are really expensive

 

Where I live the 10 gals are cheaper than any other tanks. And some of those little kits are really expensive

Same! I always try to talk people into the 10 gallons!!! It's cheaper to set up by far and easier to maintain a healthy environment for the fish!

Sadly, people just don't understand that the bigger the tank the easier to maintain a proper balance! They just think it's easier to clean those awful small tanks! I find it very upsetting.

 

I went to a Petco today to pick up food and medicine and the new aquatics guy was genuinely suprised when I knew exactly what I was talking about. I in return was suprised that he himself was a saltwater aquarium enthusiast. He gave me the name of a place where I could get glass cut to make my own aquarium at a better price!

 

I went to a Petco today to pick up food and medicine and the new aquatics guy was genuinely suprised when I knew exactly what I was talking about. I in return was suprised that he himself was a saltwater aquarium enthusiast. He gave me the name of a place where I could get glass cut to make my own aquarium at a better price!

So I hate to go off topic, but I am idea for a stackable betta stand that will allow me space for multiple tanks without taking away the space they deserve...to do it I have to make my own everything...any good books or site you can recommend?

Again sorry to go off topic!

 

I'm one of those people who always tells everyone to hold onto the receipt because I've seen too many stressed out fish go belly up despite all the experience and equipment. When you've hung out on Fishlore a while longer, you'll have seen a lot of people go through extraordinary lengths to treat sick fish.

 

Amzwiz87 you can find that all right here on fishlore! Just type it into the search engine.

On topic, endlercollector has an excellent point. Sometimes there just isn't anything you can do, especially when they start out stressed and sick from the store. Considering the expense these fish can be, it's handy to keep the receipt, especially if the fish is visually ill at the start.