# drunken betta's!!!!



## stangant (Dec 3, 2012)

Went to a pet store looking for some females for the sorority we are building and found they were selling betta's and calling them "drunken betta's" they apparently emptied bottles like grey goose and put the fish in. These were being sold as buy one bottle and get one free with fish for 19.99$. Other then not having females they were selling hm's for 20$ alone! Sorry no pics but just picture the grey goose bottle with a vt peeping through the only clear part of the bottle. 

This was at petland over in Orlando, Fl.


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## FishFriend9292 (Oct 14, 2012)

Thats ridiculos. How on earth did they get the fish IN the bottle? And I doubt the betta is getting ANY air in there.


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## stangant (Dec 3, 2012)

they shoved them through the top of course and the air gets in the same way. so disturbing.


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## Phaydra (Nov 20, 2012)

I would report them to the local Humane Society. They are pretty good at prosecuting cases of animal cruelty. Inadequate housing such as a Betta in a bottle would fall under that considering getting the Betta in there most likey recieve physical damage to get them in the bottle. I would also call a local news station. Nothing sways public attitude more then the media.


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## Myates (Aug 2, 2011)

Happens all the time - if the bottle is big enough I don't see a problem with it, just like a gallon tank - just use a smaller hose to siphon out the water for changes.
Lots of breeders overseas use small bottles such as that to hold their stock in..


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## SnowySurface (Apr 25, 2011)

THat may work for breeders, but breeders are keeping a large number of bettas for a short period of time. There are differences between how you keep a betta when you are breeding and how you keep a betta once it has found a permanent home. 

Also, alcohol is poisonous to fish. If the bottle was not 100% cleaned before adding the fish, alcohol can leech out into the water. The breeder photo looks like whoever is breeding the fish is using generic flask that probably arrived empty. If the bottles never held anything toxic that can leech out later, it's fine for temporary housing. But I would never suggest keeping a betta in a bottle for the duration of its life.


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## Myates (Aug 2, 2011)

My breeding fish are permanently in .33 - .66g keepers. 

It's about water quality when it comes to keeping them - can keep them in old bottles all their life just fine as long as they are getting appropriate water changes, food, etc. To me this store is just using an overpriced gimmick, and I wouldn't recommend it for new owners or people who just want a fish or two for a pet. But as far as it being in the bottle - again, there are ways to clean it so it can work.


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## Phaydra (Nov 20, 2012)

Myates said:


> My breeding fish are permanently in .33 - .66g keepers.
> 
> It's about water quality when it comes to keeping them - can keep them in old bottles all their life just fine as long as they are getting appropriate water changes, food, etc. To me this store is just using an overpriced gimmick, and I wouldn't recommend it for new owners or people who just want a fish or two for a pet. But as far as it being in the bottle - again, there are ways to clean it so it can work.


Breeders know what they are doing. In reality 9 out of 10 of those "drunken" bettas sold will die in the first week because people new to bettas will buy them. Knowing that alone makes me want to stuff the person who thought of this idea to boost sales in one of those bottles. 

I do realize this is the case with or without the bottle to new owners but things like this cropping up only further misconceptions about betta habitats.


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## Myates (Aug 2, 2011)

I agree - like I said, new owners especially I wouldn't recommend them at all. I was just referring to it's not the fact they are in bottles, but rather it's the care they need to be healthy while in them - something which isn't known among new owners or people who do not research.

I think it's an utterly stupid idea for the store to do this gimmick - these are living animals and require a degree of care to live healthy.


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## SnowySurface (Apr 25, 2011)

That's the problem. I could only see new owners impulse buying this because it looks easy, cute, and like it won't take up much room. As I mentioned earlier, I don't see a problem with breeders holding fish in bottles because some breeders breed to sell to permanent homes and the ones who don't sell the fish at least know what they are doing as far as water quality is concerned. Like Phaydra said, a new owner would kill a betta in one of these in a week-month time frame. Since this is being sold as a gimmick to people who want a novelty item that moves instead of a pet, I think it's bad.

Also, while this may sound like I'm getting on my high horse that is standing on a soap box XD, I don't think "keeping a pet alive" is good enough. I wouldn't expect a breeder to have 5 gallon tanks for each of his/her 100+ fish. However, I would expect a pet owner to be able to do a bit more than the bare minimum for 2-3 fish. My set up on campus was a 1 gallon tank, 3i Whisper filter, thermometer (heater came later when I wasn't in a constantly hot dorm room), a castle to hide in, and a small silk plant at a time when I was bappy to see more than $5 in my checking account.

I don't have pictures of it on my work computer, but the person who can afford that gimmick can afford the proper 1 gallon set up I used on campus. I don't think this is a bad idea because of the bottle's size. I think it's a bad idea because I think it's stupid. XD


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