# Aluyasha's Journal Attempt.



## Aluyasha (Sep 2, 2010)

Thought I would try out one of these. lol
Hmmm, where to start? Well besides having a few bettas as a child I did not get my first betta as an adult until I was about 19, same year I got married to my childhood best friend. I had just moved to the middle of nowhere in Idaho and decided to visit my aunt in Washington. While we were there I went to the local Walmart and started wandering around the fish section. In the back corner I found a solid red VT, I never impulse buy pets but just had to get him. His name was Abacus.

After him my addiction began, along with my more bettas:
Cannibal Johnson:

Beau:

Augustus:

Atlas:

Caligula:

Finger:

Ferret:

Darcia:

Claudius:

Caracalla:

Julius:

Hadrian:

Herndon:

Gyger:

Gordon:

Hong Ki:

Jace:

Melvin:

Man O' War:

Mandala:

Maxwell:

Nero:

Monster:

M'iaq:

Onion:

Sejanus:

Pug:

Plum D:

Norman:

Pinkerton:

Vitellius:

Vespasian:

Speed:

Trajan:

Stahl:

Tiberius:


About two years ago I had to give up my fish and move. I have since had two kids, a son (almost 2yr) and a daughter (2 1/2 months). In october I finally was able to get fish again. And of course I chose a betta. Ruger.

He passed away about two months ago and I now have three bettas.
Weatherby in a 10g:

Giovanni in a 5g:

Burly in a 38g:

Wow that was a long post. lol


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## Aluyasha (Sep 2, 2010)

Been messing with the layout of everyone's tanks alot. Here is what I have right now.
Giovanni's Fluval 5g:

Weatherby's 10g:

Burly's 38g:


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## Aluyasha (Sep 2, 2010)

Just took some new pictures of the fish. 
Giovanni always takes great photos:


Weatherby and his mustache:



Burly on the other hand is near impossible to get a clear photo of:


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## Aluyasha (Sep 2, 2010)

Updates. The 10g that Weatherby is in is actually my mother's tank, she currently lives with me and how I got back into bettas was me just deciding to get one for her tank as it was empty. Soon she will be moving out so I began looking for a tank to put Weatherby in when she leaves with her 10g. Luckily I found a Fluval Spec V on CL for only $25 (with heater and filter media refills). It came with gravel and a decoration but I like more of a natural look so I will be tossing those. 
In anticipation for setting up the new spec I have been buying things for it, one being a piece of driftwood with an anubias tied to it. I put it in Burly's tank for now (I have to wait for the move into our new house before I can set the spec up).


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## mingking (Mar 7, 2016)

Whoa, you got a great deal on the spec!!! The things you can find on Craigslist...

Love all the names! 


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## Nazasaki (Jun 19, 2016)

Yupp I'm in love with all of them! What wonderful bettas! I like little Jace pictured above, I have a thing for gray coloration. Now you said one of your newer bettas was a giant? Ive heard of giants (I have a big King male) but how big is he?

Also, how often do you do water changes in the 38? I recently moved my King from a 5.5 to a 29 gallon all by himself with bout 5 nerite snails. I have alot of plants and dual filtration. I'm thinking weekly 10% or a biweekly 25%?


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## mingking (Mar 7, 2016)

Oh yes! I forgot to mention too that Jace really caught my eye. He's beautiful 


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## Aluyasha (Sep 2, 2010)

My giant has about a 3.5 inch body, almost 4 inches with his fins.
I have the same cleaning schedule for all my tanks, it is easier for me to keep track if I do them all at once. I siphon about every 2-3 days, 25% water change for the 38g and 50% for the 10g and 5g. Hard to stay consistent with little kids running around me. lol


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## Aluyasha (Sep 2, 2010)

Busy and stressful week. We have to move out by the end of July and have not been looking for rentals because we were waiting on a home loan approval. Well we got the loan but it is for such a low amount that we cannot get any house for that price, so back to scrambling for a rental we can't afford. And because I have to rent, I have to rehome my nine year old cats. There are literally NO rentals that allow pets where I live. Now I am running around trying to find them homes before the end of the month or they will end up at the shelter. To make all this sting more the person telling us to get out of our current house is a family member. Not even sure if I can keep my 38g. :/
A few days ago I went to the petstore for some things and found a betta in really bad shape. He had to have only been there for a few days because I look at the fish everytime I am there and did not see him last weekend. He was floating nose down and his water had all kinds of things in it. I thought it would help take my mind off of other things if I could help him so I called over the manager and got him down to almost half off. He had two different labels on his cup, HM giant and HMPK, I think he was deformed because his head was huge like a giant but he was the size of a normal betta. The betta didn't look good, I tried to hurry home with him but he died in my hands a few blocks from home... I am still upset over it, he was beautiful and I wanted at the very least for him to die in clean water.


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## Aluyasha (Sep 2, 2010)

I cleaned the fish tanks, had to scrub slimy algae off of leaves and such. I also changed the layout in the 10g and 5g.


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## mingking (Mar 7, 2016)

I'm so sorry this is all happening to you. So much stress... I'm sending you good vibes, in hopes that everything works out the best it can. 


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## Aluyasha (Sep 2, 2010)

Thanks, it is just so much hardship coming from different directions and I still can do nothing but sit and wait. I will be making ads and such today for my cats, I hope I can find them good homes.


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## Aluyasha (Sep 2, 2010)

Took some pictures of the fish. Trying to cheer myself up.
Weatherby:






Giovanni, he so loves the camera:






Burly, you can see his blindness better in these pictures:


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## mingking (Mar 7, 2016)

Giovanni is so beautiful! And Burly's take ripples so nicely. I love it!


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## Aluyasha (Sep 2, 2010)

This back and forth weather is really taking a toll on the fish. This month has been unpredictable. For a few days it is really hot, then a few days of cool, then a few days hot again, and so on. I have been having a battle keeping the fish tanks at normal temperatures and it is starting to get to Weatherby. The past few days he has just been sitting on the bottom of the tank. No eating, no swimming. He looks fine, I think it is the summer heat. Luckily the next week is supposed to be cool out. Hopefully that will perk him up before anything bad happens.


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## Eduielil (Jun 29, 2016)

I'm so sorry to hear about your cats, Aluyasha. I can imagine this is a very difficult time for you. You and your family will be in my thoughts and prayers.

Your fish are really beautiful, too. Weatherby looks so distinguished and Giovanni is nothing short of elegant. I love his tail. And Burly is quite a handsome boy as well!


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## Aluyasha (Sep 2, 2010)

Thanks, at least I might have good news for the cats. One of my husband's aunts is considering taking all three of them. She is a real animal lover and would take good care of them.


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## Aluyasha (Sep 2, 2010)

Got some Mopani driftwood for the second Spec V when I move and am able to set it up. It was labeled a small so I think I got a good deal.


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## mingking (Mar 7, 2016)

That's great news about the cats!! Hopefully then you can visit them  

The wood looks amazing! Very pretty. Can't wait to see what it looks like in the tank 


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## Aluyasha (Sep 2, 2010)

Giovanni must have been a model in his past life. This boy loves the camera and the camera loves him! lol


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## Eduielil (Jun 29, 2016)

I'm so glad to hear about the cats! That's wonderful news. I hope everything continues to go well for your and your family.

And I love the pics of Giovanni "posing". He's so cute and I just love his marbling.


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## Aluyasha (Sep 2, 2010)

Still cannot seem to find a house to live in and the end of the month is getting closer. We have been looking at places and either cannot afford them, or am being judged for how I look. And if we do get a place there is still a chance I have to sell my 38g Burly is currently in. Just in case I bought a Fluval Spec III during the Petco sale (not for Burly of course, he would have to go in a Spec V and Weatherby go in the Spec III). On top of all this Weatherby is still mysteriously sick. He has only eaten once in almost two weeks and will not move from the bottom of the tank.


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## Aluyasha (Sep 2, 2010)

Turns out I will be selling the 38g. I need the money and to get rid of as much stuff as possible. My life is not going so great right now. We still have no where to go and need to be out by the 1st of August. The person that was going to take my cats backed out. Then a few days ago we got a letter in the mail from the IRS that our taxes were done wrong and our Honda Civic got a flat tire (on the same day). And today, after driving all over town looking for a place to live our one remaining car (the one that drives the kids around) starts making a weird noise. We pull into our driveway and open the hood to find motor oil soaking everything...


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## Aluyasha (Sep 2, 2010)

Weatherby died today. Still have no idea what was wrong with him, he had great color and beautiful finnage through all of it. I am pretty sure the starvation finally got him. :/
In other news I got my Spec III in the mail a few days ago. Of course the bottom corner of plastic was cracked. But it still holds water and returning online is such a pain I decided to keep it. The mopani driftwood a bought a while ago looks amazing, this is my first try with this type of wood and I love it.
The Spec III:


Burly was moved into my mom's 10 gallon. He will be going with her when she moves into her own place and I cannot care for him for various reasons. He does love the tank already though, better for his poor poor eyesight and he loves the attention the kitchen counter gets.
Burly's 10g:

Finally I need to buy new gravel for Giovanni's tank. I had big stones in there but have come to discover there is some type of polish on them that was coming off into the water. I always wondered why his tank seems dirtier than it should have been, they were the reason. So right now he has bare bottom.
Giovanni's Spec V:


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## Aluyasha (Sep 2, 2010)

Picked up some gravel yesterday for Giovanni's tank. I also swapped out his unusually dirty driftwood for a large piece of mopani. I like this layout much better. I am going to add more tall plants soon though.


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## Autumncrossing (May 2, 2016)

Really like that gravel, looks very natural like a river bottom .


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## Aluyasha (Sep 2, 2010)

I always go for natural uncolored gravel so I don't have to worry about the color chipping off.


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## Aluyasha (Sep 2, 2010)

Finally found a betta for my Spec III. My first EE! And, he is number 50 on the list of how many bettas I have ever owned.
Meet Potato:

I also picked up another tall plant for Giovanni's Tank.

His marbling is picking up speed.


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## mingking (Mar 7, 2016)

Potato is so BEAUTIFUL!!!! I really want an EE too! For now, I'll admire Potato. 


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## ShadeSlayer (Jul 20, 2015)

*The beauty*


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## Aluyasha (Sep 2, 2010)

So I picked up an unplanned rescue betta. I was browsing a local fb page where people sell and buy things and came across a tank with fish for sale. It was a dirty 20 gallon with no light, too small of a filter and heater. no plants and only one cave. I was not interested in the tank and was going to scroll passed the ad but then read it came with fish. The fish were 1 tiger Oscar (about hand sized), 1 African cichlid (3 inch), 1 single tail goldfish (4 inch), 1 pleco (6 inch), and 1 male betta. All living together! I was worried the betta would not survive long so I asked if I could take just the betta as I have an empty Spec V. I picked him up yesterday. His fins are torn up but he looks good overall (she said she bred him recently).
His name is Frank, my son loves the fire truck on the Tayo cartoon so that is what I named him.


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## mingking (Mar 7, 2016)

I have no words for that fish owner and their choice of fish. But so glad you saved Frank! 

I wonder how they were able to breed bettas but not able to care for bettas properly. 


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## Aluyasha (Sep 2, 2010)

mingking said:


> I have no words for that fish owner and their choice of fish. But so glad you saved Frank!
> 
> I wonder how they were able to breed bettas but not able to care for bettas properly.
> 
> ...


I don't think she knew how to breed either. She told me she bred him the day before I took him. I am no expert but I am pretty sure you are supposed to leave the male in to care for the nest, instead she left the female in. She also told me I could house him with another male if I wanted to, that it was a 'common misconception' that they do not like eachother. She also told me she had another betta but it died because her dad accidentally closed her bedroom door and it caused the betta to suffocate (?).She was also trying to pet him when I walked into the restaurant we were meeting at.
Her reason for rehoming was she was more of an expert on cichlids. Guess her knowledge didn't include the part where you cannot house african cichlids with Oscars, and that neither should be in a tank that small.


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## Aluyasha (Sep 2, 2010)

So Frank died last night. Honestly I think he starved. When I got him he was just as wide as his spine (probably from the other giant fish eating all the food) and I think he was just too far into not eating that he could not recover. I wish I could have done more for him and let him enjoy his life for a little bit.


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## Aluyasha (Sep 2, 2010)

I also had to remove the large piece of driftwood in Giovanni's tank. When it absorbed water it got a little too big for the tank and was pushing against the sides. I put in a smaller one and will be getting more plants soon.


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## Aluyasha (Sep 2, 2010)

Just got a new Betta, he is a solid black HMPK. Here is his setup though it needs more plants:

Here he is:


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## Aluyasha (Sep 2, 2010)

Redid all my tanks. Got some amazing plants from JDAquatics for all the Fluvals.
Giovanni and his Spec V:


Potato and his Spec III:


Vesper and his Spec V:


Burly and his 10g:


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