# what causes shovel head?



## Luimeril (Dec 29, 2010)

so, i've heard alot about not wanting to breed shovel-headed bettas. shovel head, bad dips, whatever you wanna call them. but, i've never heard about what causes it. o.o is it a skull deformity, a spine issue, what? i've also never actually SEEN one, so if someone has a pic of a betta with a bad 'shovel head', please show me. i THINK my walmart boy, Remy, had one, but, as i said, i've never actually SEEN one, so~

anyways, what is it, what causes it, why is it bad to breed bettas with it, can it be bred out of a line? o.o no worries, i don't plan on breeding any time soon, and when i do, it'll probably be an orange dal line, so~


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## indjo (Jun 6, 2010)

It's when the head curves down/in ward instead of out (between the eyes and mouth). It is considered as a fault in shows thus unwanted in breeding. I'm not sure, but it seems genetic and difficult to erase. Some offspring will always have these dips. 

Another unwanted feature is a straight spine - between the mouth and tail is rather straight. This may also be genetic. IDK. But I've had some fry turn out like that though the parents had desired spines.


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## Dragonlady (Nov 29, 2010)

Although I do not condone fighting bettas, there is a certain type of plakat bred for fighting in Thailand that has a distinctive spoon head or shovel head and also extremely sharp teeth.


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## Luimeril (Dec 29, 2010)

aahh. yeah, i've seen videos of fighting bettas, with dippy heads. x-X i hate watching those things.

so, it's just a fault in shows? does it hurt them in any way? o.o


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## indjo (Jun 6, 2010)

IMO, dippy heads doesn't hurt them. Though I'm not into shows, never the less I still wouldn't breed the ones with more extreme dips, if I had a choice. 

Although PK's ancestors were fighters, they're a totally different breed - they're not bred to be killing machines. Here, we differentiate PK's (show) and fighters. Fighters are more natural - wild like, while PK's fins and colors have evolved quite a bit.


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## PewPewPew (Nov 26, 2010)

Good luck with a dal line...Heh, its like a 1 in 100 change per spawn to get ^^;;;;;

Ive heard a breeder who shows say that if not too too bad, it wint be considered a fault. But I know if its severe, it would be.


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## BlakbirdxGyarados (Feb 10, 2011)

Dragonlady said:


> Although I do not condone fighting bettas, there is a certain type of plakat bred for fighting in Thailand that has a distinctive spoon head or shovel head and also extremely sharp teeth.


Bettas with sharp teeth... now that is a scary picture.


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## PewPewPew (Nov 26, 2010)

It hurts quite a little bit when mine bites me...I cant imagine ugh!~


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