# Watch my baby betta grow!! ("Lil squirt" 2-3 weeks old starting)



## LainaLynn84 (May 10, 2016)

I am very excited to raise my first baby fry!! I named him "Lil Squirt" and I am guessing he was about 2-3 weeks old when I bought him. I hope he grows up to be beautiful...enjoy watching him grow like I have been!! 

(These pictures are from the first day I picked him up!!)


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## LainaLynn84 (May 10, 2016)

*Lil squirt-1 week later!!*

This are his most updated pictures so far...I added some more greenery to his tank and he is LOVING it!! I learned as well that he isn't a big fan of the micro-pellets, BUT he will eat a couple if I mix it in with crushed up freeze-dried blood worms!! He is SO active at meal time and everytime the light catches him he is a dark royal blue (I thought/hoped he was green when I got him at the pet store!!)


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## JawsandChess (Apr 16, 2016)

Awww, he's cute!


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## LainaLynn84 (May 10, 2016)

Thank you!! It's a little intimidating because I have never raised such a small fish before!! I wanna see him grow up to be a big guy!! I'm so curious to know what kind of a tail he is going to have and what color he will be :-D


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## JawsandChess (Apr 16, 2016)

Oh, yes! Keep me informed! I wanted to do that, but I didn't have the space until I got Chess (Darn you, pretty fishy), and I still want to raise a baby betta, only my want for a female (or two) has overcome my desire to raise a baby. *Flails* I had the opportunity and I didn't jump for it


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## LainaLynn84 (May 10, 2016)

Female bettas are fun  I have my single female and she has grown SO much since I have gotten her. She is such a chunk...but I love her!! (Somedays I feel like I am crazy for having 8 total fish!) 

This is my only female fish Rosemary!!

The first day I got her / 2nd picture was taken yesterday / UP CLOSE!!


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## JawsandChess (Apr 16, 2016)

Aww, she's cute! I have three and I want another one before my mom can protest. If you count all the bettas we have (including my mom's one and my brother's one), we have five total males in our house XD I think my boys are being treated like princes some days. They're my absolute favorite things in the world.


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## LainaLynn84 (May 10, 2016)

They are definately a very addictive animal to have  I never thought that they would be so time consuming but I wouldn't change it for the world! I constantly keep buying new stuff to re-decorate their tanks!! It's hard to stop myself sometimes!


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## JawsandChess (Apr 16, 2016)

I know the feeling. I just got ten dollars and I'm sitting here like "I could get a female betta. I could get /two/ female bettas. I could get a new tail type. I could get a new plant. OOH! I could get a new betta!" I really need help XD


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## ThatFishThough (Jan 15, 2016)

Yass. Literally everywhere I look in my room, I'm constantly calculating dimensions, spaces for a new tank/rack, gallons, etc. Every dollar I get goes to my fish. [Im only 14]


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## JawsandChess (Apr 16, 2016)

Haha! I'm 17 almost 18, looking to go to college this fall, and I have three (but I'm hoping to spontaneously get another without my mother's consent since I had to beg to get Frankie) and I actually want to move out, so moving out with three bettas, two cats, and a bunny is going to be "great" XDD We need help


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## ThatFishThough (Jan 15, 2016)

Lol try 18 fish, two cats, and two gerbils.


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## MysticSky22301 (Apr 16, 2016)

I got 2 tiny babies from Petco one for sure is female she's a stunning royal blue with red wash the other looks to be wild body Color with red fins the first couple of weeks I had them I fed them small meal worms broken up its my little secret to getting even the adults true colors to come out <3


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## MysticSky22301 (Apr 16, 2016)

By the way I'm 24 with 3 dogs 5 cats and I have no clue how many fish x.x I also have a 1yr old daughter

a HUGE colony of mealworms and a frog (these guys are almost no work) I still have to ask permission to get Bettas lol


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## ThatFishThough (Jan 15, 2016)

Ahahaha, same. I always love catching toads in the garden and keeping them for a few weeks.


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## JawsandChess (Apr 16, 2016)

Oh, did you just tempt me?
I have one Dwarf rabbit, a hamster, a guinea pig, 13 cats, five betta boys, a Pomeranian, one hand-fed koi, two Jack Dempseys, around three dozen goldfish, two Budgies...it's a good thing we live in the country XD The only things we're missing are cows and horses. We almost got a duck, but we didn't know what to do with one when we got one, which is fine. XD I wasn't sure I was ready for a duck


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## ThatFishThough (Jan 15, 2016)

Muhahaha! Lucky. Stupid City Limits. ;-;


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## JawsandChess (Apr 16, 2016)

I don't want to live in the city. I'd never be able to keep my wittle aminals. ;-; I haz too many. When I move out, I'm taking Chess, Jaws, Frankie, my three-legged cat Tripod, Church the Death Cat, and maybe Moxie if she doesn't hate me by then, and if my Dwarf rabbit wants to continue living and continue to baffle her vets, I'm taking her with me XD Oh, it'll be great.


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## ThatFishThough (Jan 15, 2016)

You have some interesting pets, my friend.


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## JawsandChess (Apr 16, 2016)

XD Yeah. It's pretty interesting. But I think your bettas take the cake XD


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## LainaLynn84 (May 10, 2016)

Newest update...lil baby squirt's colors are starting to develop!! He is a hungry lil sucker and his diet includes: Crushed baby shrimp, micro-pellets and crushed bloodworms!! I changed his water yesterday and later in the evening he started becoming darker/bluer. Over the weekend I will be updating all of my tanks with some new silk plants I bought yesterday...all 8 of my fish will have an update over the weekend!!


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## JawsandChess (Apr 16, 2016)

Oh, that's so cool to watch a baby betta's color come through!


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## LainaLynn84 (May 10, 2016)

*May 22nd 2016*

Baby squirts true colors!!!


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## MysticSky22301 (Apr 16, 2016)

Pretty! My girl did that over 3 das from bland with blue fins to blue body


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## LainaLynn84 (May 10, 2016)

He had a green sheen to him when the light hit him when I first saw him at the store...then he was kinda blah in color for a few weeks then BAM!! Dark Royal blue...even though I really wanted a green boy, he's too cute...I will take blue


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## LainaLynn84 (May 10, 2016)

Sad to say this is the end of this post. Squirt was getting bigger, very active and a very healthy... but he managed to leap out of the opening of his tank and died on the carpet. Needless to say, this makes me very sad. RIP Squirt.


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## kitkat67 (Mar 10, 2015)

LainaLynn84 said:


> I am very excited to raise my first baby fry!! I named him "Lil Squirt" and I am guessing he was about 2-3 weeks old when I bought him. I hope he grows up to be beautiful...enjoy watching him grow like I have been!!
> 
> (These pictures are from the first day I picked him up!!)


Stumbled across this thread and just wan to let you know there is no way you got him 2-3 weeks old. More like 2-3 months old.


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## MysticSky22301 (Apr 16, 2016)

Oh no!


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## LainaLynn84 (May 10, 2016)

kitkat67 said:


> Stumbled across this thread and just wan to let you know there is no way you got him 2-3 weeks old. More like 2-3 months old.


Umm thanks? He was 3/4 inch and I thought he was younger then 2-3 months. Thanks for the "constructive critism"...that's going to do me a lot of good.


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## Amberjp (Apr 28, 2016)

Really cute! Only thing is that you shouldn't be giving him bloodworms often as it should only be used as a occasional treat


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## LainaLynn84 (May 10, 2016)

His food mix was 85% micro pellets, 15% crushed bloodworms...he wouldn't eat the micro pellets so I had to sneak the bloodworms in there to trick him. Unfortunately baby betta jumped out of his tank and died  he would always jump at meal time...and I think he was hungry. He was very healthy and active...it was a sad sad accident. It bums me out because his brand new fish tank is supposed to arrive tomorrow!! GRR!!! 

(The last photos I took of the lil guy!!)


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## Amberjp (Apr 28, 2016)

Oh I'm so sorry to hear about that  I'm guessing the tank he was in didn't have a lid? 

I had troubles with my betta not eating pellets and only eating bloodworms, I fasted him for about a week and he started eating pellets while he gets 1-2 bloodworms a week as a treat


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## LainaLynn84 (May 10, 2016)

Amberjp said:


> Oh I'm so sorry to hear about that  I'm guessing the tank he was in didn't have a lid?
> 
> I had troubles with my betta not eating pellets and only eating bloodworms, I fasted him for about a week and he started eating pellets while he gets 1-2 bloodworms a week as a treat


Yep...he had a 1 gallon tank (a starter tank) that had a pretty big opening on the lid of the tank. Which was half the reason why I wanted to upgrade his tank...go figure, I was 5 days too late.


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## Crash (Jul 19, 2015)

Awww lame  I wasn't expecting him to pass so early. Unfortunately bettas are crazy jumpers and can get out of any little gap, SIP Squirt <3


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## LainaLynn84 (May 10, 2016)

Crash said:


> Awww lame  I wasn't expecting him to pass so early. Unfortunately bettas are crazy jumpers and can get out of any little gap, SIP Squirt <3


Lesson learned!! He was growing so well too (at least I thought)...these pictures are from his first day, mid-way and the day when he jumped out of his stinkin tank!! Poor lil guy...he was really fun to have too.


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## Crash (Jul 19, 2015)

LainaLynn84 said:


> Lesson learned!! He was growing so well too (at least I thought)...these pictures are from his first day, mid-way and the day when he jumped out of his stinkin tank!! Poor lil guy...he was really fun to have too.


I know it's super early but do you plan to get another baby betta in his stead? I always feel bad for the little guys when I see them, they're so tiny and normally go to terrible homes with kids who put them in like .5 gallon or less bowls


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## LainaLynn84 (May 10, 2016)

Crash said:


> I know it's super early but do you plan to get another baby betta in his stead? I always feel bad for the little guys when I see them, they're so tiny and normally go to terrible homes with kids who put them in like .5 gallon or less bowls


I just start them off in 1 gallon tanks until they feel comfortable in their surroundings...then (like I planned) I was going to put him in a bigger tank so he could really grow! I just never took into account that he would swan dive out of his tank to the carpet lol. To answer your question on if I am going to get another fish...not right away, I'll probably just stick to my 6 happy/healthy ones that I have now. I will for sure in the future though!! At my house I have like five 1-gallon tanks that I wanna just throw away. (They were my starter tanks because in the begining I had zero idea on what I was doing with bettas!) I don't even wanna give them away...because they are cruel little tanks!! My 3 original fish from November 2015 (still alive and kickin!) I had in that betta falls fish tank...with no heater...ugh, I feel bad at how I treated them (I thought I was doing everything right) now that I have done TONS of reaserch on Bettas...but I am happy to say that those 3 are my most healthy fish that I own!! 

(Scarlet Fever (red), Buddy (pink) and Grumpy Pants(blue))


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## Crash (Jul 19, 2015)

LainaLynn84 said:


> I just start them off in 1 gallon tanks until they feel comfortable in their surroundings...then (like I planned) I was going to put him in a bigger tank so he could really grow! I just never took into account that he would swan dive out of his tank to the carpet lol. To answer your question on if I am going to get another fish...not right away, I'll probably just stick to my 6 happy/healthy ones that I have now. I will for sure in the future though!! At my house I have like five 1-gallon tanks that I wanna just throw away. (They were my starter tanks because in the begining I had zero idea on what I was doing with bettas!) I don't even wanna give them away...because they are cruel little tanks!! My 3 original fish from November 2015 (still alive and kickin!) I had in that betta falls fish tank...with no heater...ugh, I feel bad at how I treated them (I thought I was doing everything right) now that I have done TONS of reaserch on Bettas...but I am happy to say that those 3 are my most healthy fish that I own!!
> 
> (Scarlet Fever (red), Buddy (pink) and Grumpy Pants(blue))


Ugh that waterfall tank is so atrocious! my LFS has it set up on display with 3 bettas in it and my parents told me I should get one cause it's "so cool" :roll: I would keep the one gallons in case of an emergency though! Might make okay QT or hospital tanks, you never know!


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## LainaLynn84 (May 10, 2016)

It's a horrible invention!! You can't put heaters in them...the filter is WAY to strong for bettas and there is next to ZERO room for them to swim!! I am almost ashamed that I once was proud of that stupid tank!! Yeah I am keeping 2 of the newer 1 gallon tanks for back ups and QT tanks but that's it...for sure!!


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## Amberjp (Apr 28, 2016)

I guess next time if you have a betta in a tank that doesn't have a lid, either put mesh over top or lower the water


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## Crash (Jul 19, 2015)

Amberjp said:


> I guess next time if you have a betta in a tank that doesn't have a lid, either put mesh over top or lower the water


^This. Plastic craft mesh is super handy to have as an aquarist, and is super cheap too!


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## LainaLynn84 (May 10, 2016)

Amberjp said:


> I guess next time if you have a betta in a tank that doesn't have a lid, either put mesh over top or lower the water


Actually the tank had a lid...just an oversized feeding hole. I tried to not have the water be so close to the top, but the water gets too warm if I don't keep it relatively full...(I know it's a big no no to have heaters in small non-filtered tanks) BUT reason #875 why I ordered him a new tank lol...good call on that mesh though!! I will definately have to give that a try next time!!


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## Amberjp (Apr 28, 2016)

Oh it did have a lid? sorry for my mistake, the feeding hole must have been a decent size, I've never seen a baby betta before so I don't know how small they generally are but from looking at your previous pictures I'm guessing they're tiny little things 

Glad my comment could be of some use at least


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## MysticSky22301 (Apr 16, 2016)

Craft mesh would have helped with the hole too


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## LainaLynn84 (May 10, 2016)

MysticSky22301 said:


> Craft mesh would have helped with the hole too


Sad thing is that I have lots of craft mesh at home in a drawer...but none of my past fish had ever been jumpers...yep, hard way to learn a lesson!! I just try to keep telling myself that he had little chance in that little cup at PetCo...so at least he lived a happy short lived life!! I just now know how important it is to take all pre-cautions!!


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## MysticSky22301 (Apr 16, 2016)

Only my original Betta Mr Betta jumped and that was out of a cup while I was scrubbing his tank from an algae outbreak the only reason I caught it so quickly? I saw a cat stalking my feet and look down he didn't like the carpet and never jumped again 

In fact most of my Betta tanks have no lid at all!


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