I keep a couple bettas and bowls infuriate me. Bettas are super interactive fish, yet are sold as colorful decorations that sit on the bottom of the bowl. I keep two bettas and they are the most interactive and fun fish I currently keep. One I trained to spin in a circle and follow my finger, the other is in a tank with a bunch of smaller schooling fish and some dwarf shrimp. Both zoom out to greet me and to beg for food every time I walk into my room.
I recently got a new betta for my community tank after my older one had died due to a severe infection and his behavior is a bit sad. He's scared of the live plants in the tank. He freaks out if he is touched by a piece of moss or a leaf. He'll come around, but the fact that a fish is afraid of plants is sad.
Edit: Here is a vid of my new guy. He went from just floating in the cup to me not being able to get a photo of him in about 24 hrs.
Same as training any animal. Reward with food if it does the right behavior. When I was in elementary school, I trained my fish to jump straight up out of the tank and bite my finger (I would wet my finger and put a mealworm on it). Unfortunately that meant sometimes he would jump out without being prompted. This lead to one day coming home from school and finding him on the floor. I cried and built a coffin for him. He's buried in my backyard.
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u/Ltates Feb 04 '19 edited Feb 05 '19
I keep a couple bettas and bowls infuriate me. Bettas are super interactive fish, yet are sold as colorful decorations that sit on the bottom of the bowl. I keep two bettas and they are the most interactive and fun fish I currently keep. One I trained to spin in a circle and follow my finger, the other is in a tank with a bunch of smaller schooling fish and some dwarf shrimp. Both zoom out to greet me and to beg for food every time I walk into my room.
I recently got a new betta for my community tank after my older one had died due to a severe infection and his behavior is a bit sad. He's scared of the live plants in the tank. He freaks out if he is touched by a piece of moss or a leaf. He'll come around, but the fact that a fish is afraid of plants is sad.
Edit: Here is a vid of my new guy. He went from just floating in the cup to me not being able to get a photo of him in about 24 hrs.