# I think my fish is lonely



## Ceviche (Aug 23, 2013)

I've had him about 2 weeks, maybe a little longer. He gets really excited when I come home from school, and I wonder if he's really bored all day when I'm gone. His tank is 3 gallons, I think (it might be slightly bigger, but I think it's 3). Can any other fish be in there? I think that'd be too crowded. The lady at the store said a FROG can be in there with him. I think she has never housed a frog with another species, because one ate my newt before. Maybe little shrimp? Or would they get eaten?

Any suggestions would be great. ;-)


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## Torla (Aug 15, 2013)

Three gallons is too small to put anything else in there. I think as long as you have periods of stimulation for your betta when you're home, he'll be fine.


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## DreamerHorse (Dec 22, 2012)

Your fish will be fine without companions. Trust me, unlike some fish, Betta fish don't have social needs. If you give him a male betta as a friend they'll fight. If you give him a female betta as a friend he'll harass her.

I doubt you can find a species of fish to keep with a male betta in a 3g. Most people suggest 10g for adding companions. BTW, I've tried shimp and they all jumped out and died when I did a 100% water change.


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## sugarunicorn (Aug 20, 2013)

I think he's probably bored, not lonely! 

What sorts of decorations do you have in there? I have a spray bar on my filter to calm down the flow that seems to keep mine pretty entertained. He also loves darting around and exploring in the little crevices of his driftwood and tall plants, and pushing his marimo moss ball around. You can also try giving him a little exercise with a mirror a few minutes a day. Floating logs/betta hammocks are nice too.

Pico is SUPER curious about anything outside his aquarium, so I put a little toy tokidoki unicorn figure beside it that he likes to inspect. I switch it out every now and then for something different. 

I tried shrimp and he was pretty docile for a while until one died thanks to cooking himself inside the old air pump. When I went to pull him out, the dead shrimp flew out and Pico went after it like a tiny little shark and bit off its head. Since then.. shrimp are just very expensive treats to him. Guess he got a taste of blood and liked it, lol.


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## Ceviche (Aug 23, 2013)

sugarunicorn said:


> I think he's probably bored, not lonely!
> 
> What sorts of decorations do you have in there?


He has a fake plant that I'm going to take out once his real plants grow, they're just bulbs right now and he's been biting at them. He has a spongebob house. And he's in front of a mirror. There's not a lot of room for decorations, but I might try to find him a moss ball.


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## Moonshine357 (Jul 18, 2013)

I tried ping pong balls, they weren't interested. I found mini wiffle balls at the dollar tree which are less buoyant. Inferno loves/hates it. He attacks it and moves it around the tank. I put it in his tank maybe once or twice a week.


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## jadaBlu (Feb 14, 2013)

If you have the time for cleaning, the room and the money for another tank you could put another male betta (definitely not a female) near him. However, not all bettas like seeing other betta it depends on each bettas personality. Some of my see each other all the time others are carded because they get too worked up at the sight of another male. For some I pull the card for 5-10 minutes a few times a week for exercise and to alleviate boredom.


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## miscanon (Jul 6, 2013)

@sugarunicorn: What do you mean by a "spray bar"?


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## sugarunicorn (Aug 20, 2013)

miscanon said:


> @sugarunicorn: What do you mean by a "spray bar"?


Like these: http://www.amazon.com/Aquarium-Internal-Filter-45gph-adjustable/dp/B00176GKM8/ref=cm_cr_pr_pb_t

Rather than have the water come out so forcefully over one opening, it is spread over several openings along the tube. You can spin the tube around as well - I have mine pointed upwards out of the water, so its just a gentle trickle of water rather than a forceful underwater blast.


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## Ceviche (Aug 23, 2013)

I bought him a moss ball, but of course he won't even go near it. XD


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## sugarunicorn (Aug 20, 2013)

Ceviche said:


> I bought him a moss ball, but of course he won't even go near it. XD


give him some time - pico ignored it until a frozen bloodworm landed on it. since then he's been quite interested.


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