Hello everyone. I'm new here. Glad to see a lot of ppl actually love bettas and care for them!! We need more ppl like this especially with the knowledge and interest to jaga bettas workin in pet shops. I got damn angry seeing how bettas are kept in commercial pet shops... you know what I'm talkin about la... >.>

Anyways, I've been reading up somewhat about betta... and I heard from some breeder that the algae or izzit the daphnia (that lives on algae) eats the betta punya shit.... which is good.

1-So the question is... maybe this sounds dumb but izzit safe to keep the betta + algae together in an aquarium? Cuz I takut the water become lagi dirty, then the betta fall sick. So it's safe to assume that the betta eats the daphnia that lives on the algae and the algae eats the shit of the betta? Like 1 cycle liddat.

2-Izzit can use tap water *without anti-chlorine* as aquarium water?

3-And does anyone knows where to find ketapang tree in PJ??

4-Any good recommendations on buying betta live foods such as larvae, white worms, bloodworms, brine shrimp, dapnia from any shop? Got any shop sell kah? Can culture sendiri oso I know but then have to monitor closely lo... if not eg: larvae will jadik mosquito then damn syiok my house nanti.

5-I'm also looking for bettas particularly HM/ DT/Rosetail; multicolour, butterly or marble....transparent oso nice. Better if it's from a breeder or owner and not a pet shop.... Send me a picture. XD

Thanks for all the help yeah.

This post has been edited by cirebonbetta: Feb 12 2008, 04:53 PM

Thanks so much, ynneb25 and inv!! XDD Damn fast you guys reply!! LOLOL! For your info, I've reared a betta before but unfortunately it died. So I wanna keep 1 again... I notchet buy la but I wanna prepare a home + makanan for the betta 1st before I keep it. So that everything will be in order.

Although I baca some info... but I memang n00b la. Hahaha. XD

ynneb25>

1. If I use rain water instead of tap water oso can right? Even if it's aciditic... I read the pH level oni at 5 liddat... bettas usually prefer pH 6-7, right? T_T

2. As for the ketapang leaves. Haha. Thank you yeah!! XD Will go check them out soon.

3. If I still wanna feed my betta mosquito larvae how? Got shop sell kah? T_T Tak mungkin right.... nanti kena saman.

Btw, your name is Benny izzit? XD

****
inv>
Thanks for the links ya. Have you visited this site?? http://www.plakatthai.com/ I think it's one of my fav betta sites. X3 Just sharing ya. I feel like ordering from there but.... dunno how the fish looks like and the site macam mati adi. T__T

****

-Is it safe to assume that bettas fit well with all types of fresh water aquatic plants? And that when we plant the plants together, they won't kacau each other? Like fight for sunlight/etc? Maybe I'm mixing them up with plants on land... O_o I just know that the plants' leaves or ornaments mustn't be too sharp la or else the betta fin can koyak wan.

-As for the gravel and sand for the bottom, anything oso can right?? X3

This post has been edited by cirebonbetta: Feb 12 2008, 06:01 PM

Hello!

Benny>
Nice to meet you! XD You know, actually last time I used to use rain water for the fish but like you said, memang dangerous oso! As for the tap water... I'm having quite a debate with my father currently. He says according to his breeder friend, NO NEED to use anti-chlorine.... just leave the water overnight then next day no more chlorine adi.... I read that ppl leave tap water overnight because they wan the water to be room temperature so can sesuai for the fish. I read that leaving tap water overnight makes it aged water, right? Actually both ways oso can pakai right?

I know you already answered this question but my dad still INSISTS from with a tip from his breeder friend that algae is good for betta even after this. What I know is the fish can kena skin infection from algae... izzit Columnaris? Or lic?? I check on the net and all the website says that algae is bad for fish unless it's those DBKL fish la.... I would love to end this argument with my dad. LOL

And I did read up about aquatic plants... aquascaping more precisely... memang hard to maintain and cost a bomb. T__T I think I will go ask Slippery Little Suckers how to jaga the plants. Haha.

Will having plants in the aquarium compromise the quality of bettas?? Like if I want to raise mine to be a show betta. I thought bettas can jadi depress one if the bottle empty and nothing to do? Or izzit big aquariums can stress them? Cuz I also read that somewhere... in MAC forum, I think. Now I'm confused. Haha.

Thanks.

Inv>
Hey, thanks for the link again. The price... yes... it's USD... T_T What is a reasonable price for a nice HM?? My budget around RM20-40...

Thanks for the advise on rain water.

Newbiebetta>
LOL Nice to meet you! Thanks for the aged water tip. Do you keep your betta in an aquarium with plants since you mentioned home filter? If ya, pls tell me more cuz I would like to learn about it. XD Thanks again!

Inv>
Thanks again. XD About the nitrate level and stuff, this Java Moss ( http://www.bettatalk.com/java_moss.htm ) + Java Fern - http://www.bettatalk.com/buy_supplies.htm#plants (need to scroll down a bit hehe!) will makan the nitrat and fish tahi. But just too bad kenot order from that site... dun take international order... they got so many nice betta there oso...

Looks like I must up my budget if want a good HM adi... T__T Good bye ang pow money!!

Just curious, how many bettas do you own? Got pics??

This post has been edited by cirebonbetta: Feb 13 2008, 03:39 PM

Inv>
I was just reading up BMS foruming and wondering who this Ming Han dude was. Rupa-rupanya it's YOU!!! LOL XD

Just registered. Checking it out.

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Added on February 13, 2008, 4:12 pmFoxngn>
Cute betta. I'm a newbie so dun mind me asking for educational purpose LOL, why got horizontal lines on the betta in the middle pic? Izzit stress ka? Or izzit just the pattern?

This post has been edited by cirebonbetta: Feb 13 2008, 04:12 PM

Fox>
Oh! XD Thank you for the enlightment! LOL

NewbieBetta>
LOLOL!! Sorry I salah sangka about the filter. HAHA. XD My bad. But eh, why never keep betta adi? Too mah fan?

Ivan>
Ya. If I am betta, I oso jadi happier if got plants inside. Keke. But for Ming Han, he keep 20 bettas... want to keep plant summore... kenot la... so tiring to clean up. XD I only thinking of keepin 2 bettas at the most so I think can jaga the plants la.

Come to think of it... it's not the price of the bottle/betta that will cost the bomb... it's the maintenance... especially if wan cantik aquarium + super healthy betta.

Sorry, n00b moment again, tapi apa itu WC?? LOL

LOL!! XD

Ming Han>
Ei, dun la terasa. Hahahah. HAIR ALGAE?? VERY SMARTTTT. ROFL

NewbieBetta>
Wow. So sad one. T__T Like Benny said... maybe it's the way you aged the water or something something got to do with that??

Benny>
You mean kenot simply just aged the water kah? I know must put Seachem in the water to hapuskan the chloramine la... but other than that? boleh ajar any other technique on how to aged water and how to prevent the bettas from kena fin rot? And Indian almond leaf (ketapang) soak in water is good right? So you recommend how long to soak? 2 days??

But Benny, isn't mineral water hard water?? Izzit the ketapang/IAL leaf will dissolve the minerals??

And that means IAL leaf can only be left in the water for a few hours la until it turns very soggy, then have to remove it straight away?

And as I know, IAL leaf will make the water like tea colour... so just leave the water there until the next water change is done?


Ivan>

Regarding Seachem to treat the water.... I heard it's very concentrated. SLS ppl said only to use 1 or 2 drops to the water cuz the whole bottle can last your entire life. And once you put Seachem, dun need to aged the water adi. That's what Kevin said. If you test it out, pls tell me the results ya. Thanks!!

About feeding betta peas... ya ya... have to be cooked or raw? And what type of peas to feed? Got so many types... @_@

Haha. Thanks ya! XD

Hey, Benny, thanks for your pic on the Ketapang tree and leaf! From what I know, ketapang tree is very big and shady. The leaves are big as well right?

So last Sunday, I went to pick some leaves up. I'm afraid of being mistaken, so I post the picture of the leaves first... let you guys verify if it's ketapang leaves or not...

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v62/Asuk...eofDSCN1577.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v62/Asuk...eofDSCN1578.jpg

Maybe I pluck wrong.. HAHA The leaves look rotten oso. T__T

Mecharojak! That sounds scary and terrible! T__T So kesian your betta.

Here's what I found on BSM forum for dropsy.

Dropsy
Occurrence : Very infrequent
Symptoms : Swollen body, protruding scales, bloated eyes
Cause : Organ failure from cancer or poor environmental conditions.
Treatment : Antibacterial should be given through medicated food. Improvement of water quality through water changes will help to clear up this disease. Full recovery from dropsy is rare.

Other infos here:
http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qi...3AAYkRG1&show=7
http://www.healthybetta.com/articles/Illne...sis/dropsy.html
http://aquarium-answers.blogspot.com/2006/...ith-dropsy.html

It's not impossible to cure your fish from dropsy. But hv to be diligent la. Dun give up! And obviously it will take more than just ketapang water to cure dropsy. Need medication, anti biotics, etc.

Btw, DUN release your dropsy fish into the pond... treat it as contagious disease.
And dun flush it down or let it die either. Just imagine your mom want to terminate you if you ever fall real sick or hv cancer, etc. NO, right?? Like I said, don't give up! Quickly go get medication and do the necessary preparations after reading those sites.

This post has been edited by cirebonbetta: Feb 28 2008, 02:03 PM

Mecharojak>
Errr.... according to the site... dun put aquarium salt adi cuz might make your betta worst.... use Epsom salt or something... The reason for this is because the fish cannot remove the sodium from it's own body. The betta is already having a difficult time getting rid of salts due to kidney dysfunction. This is what has caused the inflated appearance, as well as raised scales if he has reached that point. Your adding aquarium salt to the water is only increasing the problem. The addition of Epsom salt to the water, may be useful however.

Go baca the site I bagi tadi la. They got tell in detail.

The other site say put aquarium salt + epsom but uhh... IMHO better not... cuz now knowing what salt does and the content, etc... Use epsom salt.

Hope it helps.

Try asking around in BSM forum or Mac forum about dropsy oso since got more ppl there.

Benny>
Thanks for certifying teh leaf! I rinse it with water adi. The red spots on the leaf is nothing wan right? XDDD Takut nanti rot and affect the water.

LOL I know who to find if my betta got prob with the leaf. HEHEHHE. >D

This post has been edited by cirebonbetta: Feb 29 2008, 06:05 AM