# Does your betta recognize you vs. other people?



## Phoenix777 (May 14, 2017)

Just wondering because I normally wear glasses and Ananda had never seen me without them... Until yesterday. And when I came up close to the tank he stayed back in his plants instead of his usual happy dance greeting at the front of his tank. At first I thought something was wrong with him... Then I started talking to him and he came right out and I realized he didn't recognize me at first! Lol I am simply amazed at how intelligent bettas are! With every thing I am learning and experiencing I am more and impressed. I never thought a fish would have so much personality!


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## bambii (Feb 20, 2017)

Bob and sally does that, it's interesting how these solitary territorial fish actually more social with humans that their own species, unlike the rasbora which is a social schooling fish, but doesn't really care for human


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## Phoenix777 (May 14, 2017)

bambii said:


> Bob and sally does that, it's interesting how these solitary territorial fish actually more social with humans that their own species, unlike the rasbora which is a social schooling fish, but doesn't really care for human
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


Exactly! It's amazing how they are ficious and will fight to the death with their own but so darn sweet with humans 0


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## Kevinthefish (Apr 21, 2017)

That's so funny!


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## RMKelly (Jan 17, 2016)

My best friend made friends with my bettas, they were used to seeing her with blonde hair and when I coloured it for her, they started flaring at her and freaking out until she spoke to them and called them by their nicknames she had for them, then they calmed down. Artemis did the same thing to me a while ago when I coloured my own hair, she freaked out until I spoke to her.


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## dennythebetta (Mar 8, 2017)

Denny, my favorite, will do the special little thing with his fins that he only does for me. If anyone he has never seen comes near his tank, he'll either hide or start flaring.


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## stellenternet (Dec 3, 2014)

Harley for some reason hates my mom and flares every time my mom goes to the tank. :/ She's friendly with everyone else though!


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## Fishingforcats (Mar 1, 2017)

My bettas don't care who approaches them. As long as they have food, that person is their best friend as far as their concerned. To be fair only my mom sees them. I have noticed Cupid will approach her/me without glasses a little slower or doesn't do his "feed me" dance than if I approached him with my glasses but that's about it.


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## elizabethdean (Apr 5, 2017)

My betta, George Washing-fin, does not seem to do a happy dance when I show up Although he does swim up to me and my husband. He is a rosetail and swimming is an effort (I would not get another rosetail if I get another fish). However, his tank is a few feet from my recliner and sometimes I catch him 'starring' at me. It makes me wonder, how far can they see?


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## Baelenn (Apr 22, 2017)

Yes, my betta swims over to me goes back and forth a bit then just hangs in the water, his tail opening up fully (double tail) and he just hangs in front of me with a 'look at me, how gorgeous am I' vibe lol


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## Rainbo (Nov 23, 2015)

Honestly I'm not sure if Monet recognizes me or not. When I stand or sit by his tank he'll swim over and watch me, but I'm pretty sure he's hoping for food.


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## Aqua Aurora (Oct 4, 2013)

Yes they can tell the difference between people, some just react to main provider (feeder) vrs others in different ways.
One of my passed bettas, Magnus, I was the food person but he LOVED my husband-always enjoyed interacting with him, not me.
My least aggressive betta ever (sadly also passed away), Alastor, LOVED EVERYONE, always wanted attention from strangers or my husband and I, but he preferred faces and kisses at glass not fingers.
My husband's girl, Chiyome, loves him and gets jealous when she sees him giving attention of the other betta tanks in the office-she'll thrash around trying to get his attention then pout and ignore him when he comes back over... She also flares at me/my finger but never him.


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## fleetfish (Jun 29, 2010)

Sapphire loves me, hates everyone else. I was away for four days and he's used to only ME feeding him, but my mum was taking care of my cat and him. She has no experience with bettas or fish in general so I had to write precise instructions on Saph's care. So she followed everything to a T, turning on the aquarium light in the morning, feeding him, and (I assume) playing with him a little. He flared the moment she turned the light on and wouldn't stop until she went away or turned the light off for the night or until he got his nummies. He's usually a gentleman when I'm around and flares only when I stimulate him ... but he wouldn't stop with her. It was very out of character with him, lol. As for Anubis, I just picked him up today, but when I see a betta eating just after coming home that's a good thing -- I know then that he's healthy and hungry, and so the bonding/training can begin, in a way.


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## RuneFell (Mar 25, 2016)

My Grandma lives in assisted living, and has a betta. Twice a week, I come over to do water changes and check him over. He's always really relaxed and friendly with her, but as soon as he sees me, he always flares and gets so angry. 

Which makes sense. She feeds him. I'm the one who is always (unavoidably) disturbing his bubble nests. 

It's funny he dislikes me so much, because when she first got him, she was planning on just putting him in a vase with a plant in it. I'm the one who convinced her to get a 3 gallon tank with a filter and heater. Seeing him go from skinny rusty orange red to a feisty, gorgeous blood red with iridescent blue-green streaks in his fins amazed her.


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## Aqua Aurora (Oct 4, 2013)

RuneFell said:


> My Grandma lives in assisted living, and has a betta. Twice a week, I come over to do water changes and check him over. He's always really relaxed and friendly with her, but as soon as he sees me, he always flares and gets so angry.
> 
> Which makes sense. She feeds him. I'm the one who is always (unavoidably) disturbing his bubble nests.
> 
> It's funny he dislikes me so much, because when she first got him, she was planning on just putting him in a vase with a plant in it. I'm the one who convinced her to get a 3 gallon tank with a filter and heater. Seeing him go from skinny rusty orange red to a feisty, gorgeous blood red with iridescent blue-green streaks in his fins amazed her.


I'm so glad to hear you encouraged a better set up for the fish, your grandmother enjoys it more since the Betta is healthier/more vibrant, and you tend the fish + visit. So many in assisted living are just left and forgotten.


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## RuneFell (Mar 25, 2016)

Aqua Aurora said:


> I'm so glad to hear you encouraged a better set up for the fish, your grandmother enjoys it more since the Betta is healthier/more vibrant, and you tend the fish + visit. So many in assisted living are just left and forgotten.


The betta was actually a housewarming gift to my grandma from one of my aunts, who kept a bunch of them in vases, and gave it to her in one to put on her sewing desk. When my aunt saw how much my Grandma's Yotzee had changed, she went out and put her own betta in better setups as well, so I managed to convert at least one other person.

I had to chuckle, though, when I came over one day shortly after setting everything up, and my Grandma told me that she was convinced there was something wrong with the tank. There were constantly large clumps of foam forming at the top! She kept carefully spooning it out, but the clump of bubbles would be back shortly. Took Yotzee a long time to forgive her for that. It's been almost two years, and he's still trying to perfect those bubble nests. None of my own betta at home make them nearly as often or as big as he does.


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## Phoenix777 (May 14, 2017)

Aqua Aurora said:


> Yes they can tell the difference between people, some just react to main provider (feeder) vrs others in different ways.
> One of my passed bettas, Magnus, I was the food person but he LOVED my husband-always enjoyed interacting with him, not me.
> My least aggressive betta ever (sadly also passed away), Alastor, LOVED EVERYONE, always wanted attention from strangers or my husband and I, but he preferred faces and kisses at glass not fingers.
> My husband's girl, Chiyome, loves him and gets jealous when she sees him giving attention of the other betta tanks in the office-she'll thrash around trying to get his attention then pout and ignore him when he comes back over... She also flares at me/my finger but never him.


lol Awesome post! And refutes the theory that "bettas only interact/recognize people because they associate them with food." :grin2:


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## RussellTheShihTzu (Mar 19, 2013)

Betta usually react most strongly with those who interact with them which is most often the person who feeds them and changes their water. In my house that's me because my husband couldn't care any less about aquariums. But...all of my fish (and frogs) react to him, too, not just the Betta. 

My fish also respond to the sight of our English Setter, Boo, and to both Shih Tzu, Russell and Edward. I would think that Shih Tzu vocals would reverberate though water which may be why the Betta react when they bark, too. Ugh.


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## DangerousAngel (Mar 26, 2015)

Mine know me, and know when it's feeding time, and when I'm just spending time with them, it's so fun watching them interact with me, I do different things with each of them, some get more of an energetic response from me because that's what their personality is like (Kenai), and others get more calm and loving reactions (Ollie, because he's older, and has slowed down a bit), they even recognize and react to my mom, who feeds them on the weekends when I'm with my BF.


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