# Healthier Types of Bettas?



## Baconator (Jul 31, 2014)

Hello everyone!

I am a long time member who frequents this site any time I need information to help me care for my betta properly. I absolutely love this site and it has helped me maintain a great environment for my red female veiltail betta! Thanks to everyone for posting such helpful information!

That being said, I have a quick question regarding all of the different types of bettas that are available at Petco or Petsmart. My sister unfortunately lost her betta last night. She was upset but I ensured her that she did everything that she could for him, and he had a great run at 5-6 months. She listened to all of my advice and he had plenty of clean water and quality food throughout his life. She wants to replace him later today and wanted to get the same type as he was (halfmoon male) My question is, is there any difference between durability or projected longevity of the different types of bettas? For example, do halfmoons tend to last longer than Elephant Ears but not as long as Veiltails, or is it so random that it is impossible to predict?

Any information or advice on how to go about picking a healthy betta that will last with proper care will be greatly appreciated. While I can accept that my fish dying after a few months can happen even with the best care, it seemed to hurt her feelings a lot so if there is a breed that has proven to be more durable that I can suggest, it would be greatly appreciated!

Thank you in advance!


----------



## PurpleJay (Jan 4, 2015)

They all tend to live the same age. There is no such thing as a healthier kind of betta. Only good care will help them live longer.


----------



## Crossroads (Jun 28, 2014)

Not entirely true. Fancier tails often come at the price of longevity due to a lack of resistance to disease. This stems from inbreeding for desired traits. Typically, a standard blue or red VT will be hardier than a perfect EEOHM with fancy colors because no one is searching for the next big thing in blue and red VTs, they are dominantly plentiful so they tend to not be massively inbred unlike most designer tail types and colors. Doubletails, rosetails and giants are known to have internal problems, especially shortbodied ones. However, longevity also depends on where the fish is from and its previous conditions. A malnourished, ammonia burned walmart fish whose sat in his excrement for all his life wont typically live as long as a fish who has been weell cared for and carefully bred.

To look for a healthy fish, find one that is active, attentive to outside stimuli and inquisitive. Fins should be free from damage or rot, and scales should be in straight lines and not look smudged. A long bodied fish will typically fate better than a short bodied fish. As a general rule, larger fins come with the risk, and price of biting, which can lead to fin rot. Plakats aren't as prone to this since most can't reach. Pectoral fins grow slowly so if you get an ee and it bites its fins, they will be ragged for a long while. Kings and doubletails are prone to swimbladder and digestive problems so be aware of that when buying and feeding them.


----------



## PurpleJay (Jan 4, 2015)

Crossroads- that is true. But at proper care there really is no way to predict how long they will live. I think the most a betta has ever lived was 10 years, and that was in a heated, filtered, properly maintained 10+ gallon (forgot what it actually was).


----------



## Crossroads (Jun 28, 2014)

Well yes and actual lifespan is near impossible to predict but you can generally predict a longer lifespan due to higher disease resistance on a typical VT. However, lots of factors play in. I've had a sickly neglected red VT that I rescued survive for a week in an 80 degree 10 gallon, while my big ole steel/red metallic bicolor DDR walmart CT who was in gross conditions is still going strong at almost a year and a half old. Most bettas will live between a year and a half to three years once in a proper home. Some may live as long as 10 others as little as a few days. Genes, immune system, water conditions, parameters and additives, and early life will all affect how your new fish will do and his/her longevity


----------



## quietlythundering (Jan 29, 2013)

I guess it all depends.
There's no way to know an individual betta's genes, though with the fancier breeds of bettas, it is suggested that they are more susceptible to certain diseases due to inbreeding (most, not all.) I love Crossroads's rundown of it. To put is this way, it's like what they say about dogs-mutts on the whole tend to be healthier because they have more genetic diversity, while purebreds are subjected to generations worth of heart disease/ cancer/ the like.
Besides that, it's also really hard to tell what age a fish is when you adopt it. I think many assume that the average age of a betta when it's in a pet store is anywhere from 6 months to a year old. In addition, as PurpleJay has stressed, it's all about the care you give your fish. A well cared for and beloved pet will live up to or even beyond the predictable lifespan. All of these things are relevant to a fish's lifespan. Of course, even in the best of circumstances, tragedies can occur. 
With that in mind, I think it's best to just love your betta, and to treat them with the utmost kindness while they are here with you.


----------



## LittleBettaFish (Oct 2, 2010)

I think genetics/hardiness of the fish itself matters as much, if not more than the level of care the fish receives when it comes to determining longevity. 

I have never had a fancy betta live beyond 2-2.5 years even though I was pedantic with my maintenance, and ensured that they were fed a good diet, never exposed to poor water quality, and kept within the recommended temperature range. This included AB imports, Australian bred fish, as well as fish/pet store fish. 

Yet you have a number of fish that live for years and years even being exposed to conditions that any hobbyist would say were toxic. It's like how there are people who eat healthy, run marathons on weekends, and don't smoke or drink, and they drop dead from a heart attack at forty. While you have people who eat unhealthily, and smoke a pack a day, who manage to live into their nineties. 

I do think that VTs seem to be one of the hardiest/healthiest of all the tail types. PKs as well, particularly fighting bred fish. 

I truly think it's the luck of the draw trying to choose a betta with the potential to live a long life.


----------



## PurpleJay (Jan 4, 2015)

LittleBettaFish, that is true. 

So if, I understand correct, good genes + good care = relatively long-lived betta?


----------



## Cthulhu (Jan 24, 2015)

I agree with TheLittleBettaFish 100%, I will elaborate

HM: Exaggerated HMs are more susceptible to fin rot and tail biting. Their heavy tail weights them down, so they may not be as active compared to other breeds such as PKs.

CT: I have heard that a CT's tail is harder to maintain. Early symptoms of fin rot and tail biting can be easily missed by amateur hobbyists because of their ragged looking fins.

True Dragonscale: As a dragon ages, sometimes their scales will grow to cover their eyes and blind them.

Now time for three infamous breeds that I think shouldn't even be allowed on the market. 

Rosetail/Feathertail: These fish are absolute genetic debacles. Their heavily branched fin rays ten to collapse when they pass their prime. This will contribute to lethargy, fin rot, tail biting, and a plethora of other problems that can lead to their premature deaths. Most breeders agree that RT/FTs have a weaker immune system than most breeds of betta. 

Doubletail: Doubletails are known for swim bladder disease, a (often genetical) problem that results from their shortened bodies and/or deformed spines. A fish with swin bladder disease will not be able to swim properly. 

Elephant Ears: Rosetails were bad enough and breeders recently decided that bettas need "more baggage". Elephant ears are prone to torn pectoral fins, fin biting, fin rot, and lethargy. 

The only two breeds that I would really recommend are plakats (especially plakats), non-exaggerated halfmoons, delt tails, and your plain old VTs.

PS. I would personally stay away from albino and melano fish


----------



## Aqua Aurora (Oct 4, 2013)

I recall this subject being discussed in a thread a few months ago about betta keeps that have been in the hobby 20-30 or more years. I can't give any personal experience feed back as all my bettas have been with me for less than a year and are still alive. From what I recall from the "old timer" (in no way meant as an insult) discussions, veil tails and very thoroughly documented professional breeder lines do best for longevity rather than mass produced fish farm style bettas and many of the newer varieties.
If you think about bettas and how they've been bred into these several breeds (tail types and the elephant ear) like wolves being selectively bred into the original (oldest) dog breeds (equivalent to 'first' betta splendids), and then further selective breeding into the many hundreds of breeds there are now.. all the selective breeding for traits and inbreeding ends up causing health issues and defects. Example labs are prone to hip dysplasia, basets to major ear infections, pugs and other smashed faced dogs have breathing issues.. The huge breeds have shorter lives as their size was bred into them as the cost of immune system or other issues. Same stuff is happening with bettas and the selective breeding to get the various tail types and new colors.


----------



## jadaBlu (Feb 14, 2013)

I agreed that veiltails if any are likely to live longer. Few are really very interested in breeding them for show these days so the breeding is probably going to be more random thus less inbreeding. Now I am not a breeder so I can't say that is fact but inbreeding does not increase health IMO. Personally I would be happier with a less perfect fish that is just pretty if it lives longer. I try to select for thick non opaque fins because they are less prone to rot. I look for a lively responsive fish. Petco will call you when they get fresh shipment of fish so you can get fish that has not been sitting around. You can also treat the fish for parasites just like you would a dog or cat as a preventative first with Paraguard for external and Praziquel for internals in attempt help it live a longer life. You could also consider a female betta as I've seen people report longer lives for them.


----------



## LolaQuigs (Mar 28, 2010)

Cthulhu said:


> Doubletail: Doubletails are known for swim bladder disease, a (often genetical) problem that results from their shortened bodies and/or deformed spines. A fish with swin bladder disease will not be able to swim properly.


I'm not so sure I agree with this one. Yes, the stouter body of DTs can lead to swim bladder issues, but as long as you're careful not to overfeed, I don't think they're that much more susceptible than other types. My bettas have almost exclusively been HMDTs, not a single one of which has ever had a swim bladder issue. I feed them less and fast them more often than other tail types, so maybe that is why. However, as you mentioned about HMs and tailbiting--almost all of my HMs and HMDTs have--at one point or another--bitten their fins, so I definitely agree about the HM tailbiting issue. The only betta I've owned that ever did have chronic (or *any*, actually) swim bladder issues was a female veiltail. This has been my experience; I don't know, maybe I've just been lucky with all of my DTs. :-?


----------



## Crossroads (Jun 28, 2014)

LolaQuigs said:


> I'm not so sure I agree with this one. Yes, the stouter body of DTs can lead to swim bladder issues, but as long as you're careful not to overfeed, I don't think they're that much more susceptible than other types. My bettas have almost exclusively been HMDTs, not a single one of which has ever had a swim bladder issue. I feed them less and fast them more often than other tail types, so maybe that is why. However, as you mentioned about HMs and tailbiting--almost all of my HMs and HMDTs have--at one point or another--bitten their fins, so I definitely agree about the HM tailbiting issue. The only betta I've owned that ever did have chronic (or *any*, actually) swim bladder issues was a female veiltail. This has been my experience; I don't know, maybe I've just been lucky with all of my DTs. :-?


Long-bodied DTs are less susceptible than short-body IME. I have a shorter bodied guy that has a heck of a time swimming, but my DTPK, and my huge finned DT guy are fine. Short bodied guys are more susceptible due to their internal organs being closer together thus overfeeding does indeed cause problems. Orion is my only chronic sufferer (shorter-bodied guy from above)


----------

