A very good article and good points. :)

http://www.bettysplendens.com/articles/pag...?articleid=5215

Excellent article Yeev.

Another thing she could have added was:

When a breeder is overwhelmed with too many bettas to take care of perhaps they should just slow down until they can take care of them.

Or hire someone and pay them in fish :D

I highly recommend culling!










:jk: :pft:

:lol: awesome.

See, now this seems cruel to me! If you don't have the resources to move healthy, viable bettas, then don't breed - OR give the fish to someone who can move them for you. With the internet, there are plenty of options you can investigate - fish can be donated to organizations that will give them to older people in residential care settings to keep as pets, or to people who can't afford to buy one.

I think it's irresponsible to just keep cranking them out to the point that you feel overwhelmed and you have to kill them!

I couldn't have said it better myself.
I totally agree.

:goodpost: Exactly

if you have werid deformed bettas you can send them to betta momma thats another method LOL

The funny farm is full right now.
Thank you very much.

:lol:

Yeah, how many 'saved,' abused and neglected bettas can you keep? I imagine some of them HAVE to have more compromised immune systems, and come up with more problems than what a healthy betta that's been well-cared-for would... probably on a regular, ongoing basis.

I didn't have the heart to destroy any of my bettas. I know as a breeder I should have done it to keep the space free for the ones who are healthy, but I took care of them all for SO LONG and worked really hard on them. I couldn't do it. I thought about it, especially with the one who can't swim and just hangs at the top of the jar, but I couldn't put a living creature in a baggie and stick it in the freezer. SO NOW they're in jars on the kitchen counter!!! GHEESH! ...I sometimes wish I still had my flowerhorn!

I'm in the Human Services field, and was approached by a former co-worker who's the administrator of a new type of nursing home. They want the residents to take care of something, and she asked me about my bettas. I'm going to discuss further the possibility of taking some of the fish that are kinda funky, but otherwise healthy. They could possibly get the undivided attention of someone who would love them dearly!

I think there are always other, more creative options than putting healthy fish to death just because you have too many...

I'm not sure that's much better than culling, if you really think about it. I mean, I know my 86 year old grandmother would be incapable of actually properly caring for a betta, what with weekly water changes and all, so I dunno about that. Maybe if the healthcare workers would do the water changes and make sure things get done...

As for people who can't afford to buy one... if you can't afford a $3 fish, how are you going to be able to afford taking care of it? Dechlor and food are pretty cheap for just one fish, but what if it gets sick? Would they pay $5 on medicine for a $3 fish, do you think?

I'd honestly rather cull my entire spawn than see them go to homes where they wouldn't get the proper care.

(As a side note, freezing a fish by popping it in a bag and placing it in the freezer, I think, is probably less humane than freezing a bowl of water until it has a thin sheet of ice on the top, breaking that ice, and dropping the fish straight from their tank water into the freezing water. The temperature shock instantly stuns them so they're unconscious during the actual freezing process.)

I agree that euthanizing a fish becaue you are overwhelmed is a pretty horrible thing to do. You should be able to take responsibility for the things you that you have control over.

I think that is a great idea!! Many nursing home residents are capable of taking care of a betta and I'm sure that taking care of one would be theraputic for them. I have a friend who is in her late 70's who is in the very beginning stages of Alzheimers and in a nursing home. They have a large cage of finches and canaries in one of the patient seating areas. Mary can tell you how old each bird is, who it's parents are if they are in the cage and the names of many of them. Twice each week, when the lady that maintains the cage comes in she gets Mary from her room and Mary gets in the cage with her and helps clean, feed and water the birds. It is much more complicated than taking care of a betta, and the lady told me that Mary could do it herself very easily, but their regulations require that the lady be there with her when the cage is cleaned.


BTW in my book, there is no such thing as an Unwanted Betta. I want them all!!