It’s not hard to find a betta fish in horrible conditions. Just walk to your local Petsmart or Petco and you’ll find dozens of these fish squeezed into minuscule cups. The conditions of these cups slowly kill the betta fish. Betta fish require a minimum of 5 gallons of water and a filter and heater to have the best chance at living a long, happy life.

These large companies try to justify this fish abuse. They claim that it’s ok to put the fish in theee conditions because,

1) It’s temporary and

2) they do water changes every other day, so there’s no way the water conditions can be that bad.

These statements simply aren’t true. These betta sit in these cups for up to weeks or even months at a time, so they definitely stay there for long enough to cause the fish significant stress. Also, with any tank smaller than 2.5 gallons, one should perform daily water changes. The buildup from toxic chemicals like ammonia and nitrates skyrockets too fast. I’m sure that many fish keepers understand that the main reason that these fish are kept in such tight living conditions is to save space so more fish can be displayed at once. While that is an advantage, it sacrifices the health and well-being of the fish.

My suggestion is to get rid of the cups entirely and keep the bettas in at least 2.5 gallon tanks with a filter and heater for each. The warmer water would cause the bettas to be more active, and therefore more attractive for the customer. Also, many betta tend to show their “true colors” once they are put in better living conditions. This might help the betta that are rejected because they are all plain-looking brighten up. Overall, this setup is not only a better setup for the fish, but business-wise as well. If the fish look healthier, people are more likely to buy them. 

Thankfully, it seems that some Petsmart/Petco stores individually decided to switch the betta’s living conditions to better ones, but this should be the bare minimum, not the exception. 

Any donations will be used to rescue sick bettas from these stores. I don’t like supporting them, but I don’t want these fish to die needlessly.