# My Beta is so smart



## chicklette (Jan 27, 2013)

Hi
This is my first thread. I have a female Beta fish named Jewel. I first taught her to follow a toothbrush around her tank, both inside and out. I figured this was a good way for her to get exercise. She learned this in just 2 or 3 days, if I remember correctly. After she mastered that, I taught her to swim through a hoop I made out of pipe cleaners, but after a couple days, I was worried about the metal in the pipe cleaners corroding, so I bought one of those hoops for a pet bird, put a plant weight one one end, and suspended the hoop across the top of her tank with a stick. She goes crazy when she sees me coming towards her with her hoops. When I first started to show her how to swim through the hoop, I placed the hoop between her and her toothbrush. Since she already knew to swim to her toothbrush, it was quite simple. After she swam through the hoop, I rewarded her with 1 pellet. I did this just once a day, careful not to give her too many pellets, so the training sessions took place during feeding time. Even after I was sick, and wasn't training her for close to a week, she still remembered how to swim through her hoop when we started up again. I am an animal lover, so when I am trying to get an animals attention, I blow kisses at them. Jewel is no different. After a while of sitting next to her tank, blowing kisses to her several times a day, I noticed that she was kissing me back. It is so cute, but she won't blow kisses when someone else is in the room with us. When I find out how to post a video of her doing this, I, 'll post it.


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## brookeandbubba (Feb 8, 2013)

my fish is dumb and lazy XD , he wont move around he doesnt make bubble nests , he only follows me when i have food , and he sleeps on the sucktion cup that holds his (bed) leaf XD bubba is dumb lazy and cute


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## Saphira101 (Nov 14, 2012)

Every fish is different, brookeandbubba. One of my Bettas will jump several inches to get a pellet from my finger, and another refuses to use his hammock. I don't think your Betta is dumb, he just has personality.

Congrats chicklette for teaching your fishy tricks!!


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## MattsBettas (Dec 18, 2012)

That's great! You must have a very happy fish! And I can relate to the jumping thing, my pk once jumped and bit my finger!


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## paris38 (Oct 12, 2012)

She does sound smart!Females usually have a lot of personality!


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## Saphira101 (Nov 14, 2012)

No kidding. My only fishies that will jump are female.


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## paris38 (Oct 12, 2012)

Ya I have a female that will get out off any container you float her in.She was once floating in the tank in a petsmart container with a lid and it was tightly on, and got out.I think she tipped it over and swam through the hole in the top.lol.Good luck training your betta.


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## Crowntails (Feb 12, 2013)

My betta Fury would follow my finger. It was so cute! And play with my cat. My cat would come up to the tank and would light tap the tank with his paw. Fury would swim back and forth to taunt him haha.


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## chicklette (Jan 27, 2013)

I used to pat Jewel, but then I remembered an episode of Mystery Diagnosis where a guy nearly lost both his arm AND his life after putting his bare hand into an aquarium with tropical fish. 
I love my beta fish so much. I would love to get another one, but I don't have enough room to put another aquarium in, also, I use a wheelchair most of the time because of extreme pain. I would be devastated if one of the fish died because I was in too much pain to clean it's aquarium. Jewel is my second beta. I got her October 3, 2012. She seems to recognize when my pain is too severe because when the pain gets better, I will talk to her. She absolutely LOVES it when I talk to her.
Last week, I soaked a cork in water for 12 hours. I put it in her tank (hoping she''ll play with it). At first, she investigated it, but she doesn't seem to be interested in it. I have tried to get her interested in it by moving it around her aquarium with her toothbrush. It has been in her tank for 5 days. Maybe I should just throw the cork out. I think she likes interactive toys the most.


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## BlueBlazeSilverHeart (Feb 1, 2013)

My little blaze can identify me. the other day he built me a beautiful bubble nest and wouldn't let anyone else approach his tank without flaring and "freaking" out^^


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## chicklette (Jan 27, 2013)

Jewel won't flare, neither did DB, who was a male. I even held a cosmetic mirror against each of their tanks. Is it obvious to see betas flare? When I went to the store to buy them, they weren't reacting to each other, they could see each other when they were still at the store.
Some betas bite, Jewel hasn't even attempted to bite me, or anyone else who had their hand in her tank. I guess she's a lover, not a biter...hehehe


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## Hadoken Kitty (Jan 24, 2013)

Hey! I've taught my boy Dovahkiin something similar. He blows kisses as well! Anyways, I wanted to say that he kisses my finger when I put it in the water. It's so cute. :3 Also, he knows how to wave. If I wave with one hand he'll flap both pectoral fins and then clamp one down against his body, but keep flapping the other. These bettas are so darn cute!!!


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## Hadoken Kitty (Jan 24, 2013)

chicklette said:


> Jewel won't flare, neither did DB, who was a male. I even held a cosmetic mirror against each of their tanks. Is it obvious to see betas flare? When I went to the store to buy them, they weren't reacting to each other, they could see each other when they were still at the store.
> Some betas bite, Jewel hasn't even attempted to bite me, or anyone else who had their hand in her tank. I guess she's a lover, not a biter...hehehe


Flaring is obvious with bettas. Their gill cover will come forward and the males will have a small "beard" that will slide out and appear under their chins when full on flaring. All of their fins will be completely erect as well. There is an attentive flare that includes the fins being erect, but the gill flaps don't lift.


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## Kuronue (Oct 12, 2012)

My betta will follow your movement across his tank. Either your body or a finger. He will do free willy stunts for food and leap at your fingers. He's never bitten anyone, he's a good boy and prefers hand feeding to off the surface of the water.

I think I might try the hoops. He might have fun with that. Especially if I involve his food.


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