# baby bettas from petco



## rosy delta (Jul 17, 2012)

i was at petco yesterday and they had the little 7 or 8 week old baby bettas. Of course, i bought 5... after all, they are only 2$ each. Now i want to make sure i care for them correctly. i ground up pellets for them to eat tho they are not all interested. i have frozen brine shrimp and frozen blood worms i could grind up. i have no live food. will these little guys be ok?? i am attached already


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## BumbleT (Jul 17, 2012)

My little guy wasn't a fan of the pellets at first either so i started him on some very finely sliced up frozen blood worms and alternated with the crushed pellets once he started eating better.


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## tpocicat (Aug 8, 2011)

Baby bettas eat live food more easily, but with patience you can get them to eat smaller (ground up) foods. If you can't get any live foods, frozen is second best.


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## rosy delta (Jul 17, 2012)

Thanks. most of them are eating the ground pellets as long as i give them pellet dust. i will try mushing some blood worms, or slicing them up. every body else LOVES those. the smallest one is iffy and the blackish one is still stressed. poor little things.


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## dramaqueen (Jul 7, 2008)

Make sure theyre kept in warm, clean water.


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## rosy delta (Jul 17, 2012)

*petco babies*

They are doing very well, and i am seeing color on the previously colorless ones. the little red has a white spot just behind her gill. not sure if this is an egg spot or maybe the beginnings of ick? sure hope not, being so small it may not survive treatment. they have all learned how to beg already and they all just love the bloodworms. a couple of them are real hams. need to try to get some pictures, but it's tough when they are so small and active. thanks for all the advice!


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## GreyHounD (May 11, 2012)

Don't forget to change water ok ^^ your babies are in your hands!


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## rosy delta (Jul 17, 2012)

I give a partial change every day they are doing great, and ive noticed the same spot on all of them so must not be anything bad. growing already, happy, feisty little fish!


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## megacoolguy10 (Jul 11, 2012)

Wow keep up the great work!!


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## teeneythebetta (Apr 29, 2012)

go here to learn about baby betta care: http://bettacarecentral.weebly.com/baby-betta-care.html

Babies are A LOT of work. good luck.


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## JackisLost (Feb 26, 2011)

my baby betta wouldn't eat the expensive pellets i bought at first so i tried feeding it shrimp food and algae wafers. my baby ate the algae wafers like nobodies business


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## Coppermoon (May 8, 2012)

I'm gonna step on some toes here, but those "babies" are the runts of the spawn. I have a 3 month old that is the size of the babies I've seen at Petco. He/she gets the same care as all my other fry, but it is just growing MUCH slower. I'd suggest if you get one, feed it grindals that are gut loaded with a high protein food.


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## rosy delta (Jul 17, 2012)

I agree on the runts. I love them, but they are still quite small and i've had them over a month. oh well, for 2$ what can you expect. fun to watch them grow (slowly) anyway


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## teeneythebetta (Apr 29, 2012)

They're probably also small because of the horrible care they're subjected to at a young age.


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## EvilVOG (Nov 23, 2011)

They end up not being fed or having clean water at a critical point in their development, i suspect most that survive will never grow to a normal size.


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## Delta (May 18, 2012)

I agree with pretty much all that was said above. They sure aren't show bettas, but my Pammy is the sweetest fish I could ask for. She was tiny when I got her, and hasn't grown much. 

Don't expect them to grow more than half a centimeter from the size they already are, at most a centimeter.


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## Imagine (Sep 14, 2012)

I have had my 2 little guys for a month, and they're coloring up really nicely


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## rosy delta (Jul 17, 2012)

Teenythebetta, I see your puppy passed away. Im so sorry. 14 is a nice long life but it is so very hard to see them go. my rottie lived to be 14 also. i miss her still


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## teeneythebetta (Apr 29, 2012)

rosy delta said:


> Teenythebetta, I see your puppy passed away. Im so sorry. 14 is a nice long life but it is so very hard to see them go. my rottie lived to be 14 also. i miss her still


Thank you. I miss him a lot, but at least he's not in pain any more 
My 8 year old who acts like a puppy is here for me, as well as my 2 kitties for comfort ^.^

I'm sorry about your rottie


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## BettaQi (Jul 26, 2012)

teeneythebetta said:


> Thank you. I miss him a lot, but at least he's not in pain any more
> My 8 year old who acts like a puppy is here for me, as well as my 2 kitties for comfort ^.^
> 
> I'm sorry about your rottie


I am glad you had such a long time with Massive. I am sure he loved you very much!


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## dramaqueen (Jul 7, 2008)

Rosy delta, are your babies together or in separate containers?


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## rosy delta (Jul 17, 2012)

oh all separate right now. I am trying to get a divided tank set up (soon as i figure out where i can put it) and will put them together then - as long as everyone is healthy. it will be much easier to take care of one tank rather than all those water changes!!!


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## rosy delta (Jul 17, 2012)

Also, they are probably double the size they were when i got them. It's hard because you really dont know how old they are, but they are growing, slowly.... they are all active little guys who love to eat and are professional beggars. it's hard to say no!


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## Legendary (Mar 31, 2010)

any pics?


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## bettababe89 (Sep 19, 2012)

*my petco baby betta....wonder how old he/she is*

I didn't want to feed this tiny girl( i assume) pellets or flakes so i made a mash of brine shrimp two blood worms a few egg yoke flakes and a tinsy smidge of boiled pea which i diluted with water and froze. now i scrape a tiny bit and mix with water in a clean Gatorade cap and deposit with a ( clean) needless syringe.
she has a hint of blue in the light but mostly colorless. she is in a holding bowl (almost one gallon) with a plant until I know she is going to make it. 

how old do you think he/she is? the sad little Tupperware ( at least it as clean)
was not specific to age.


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## teeneythebetta (Apr 29, 2012)

She's cute!
Defenitely don't feed her pea! That is bad for them. 
I would stick to only feeding baby brine shrimp or frozen daphnia. You could also mash up pellets, preferably a High quality brand, like new life spectrum or new life spectrum growth formula.

Go here, there's a link to a growth chart to determine age as well: http://bettacarecentral.weebly.com/baby-betta-care.html

Make sure her water is at least 80* F


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## magnum (May 7, 2012)

Ace was also tiny. In fact, I'm not sure how old he was to begin with, but he always remained small, no matter what. He was a very feisty guy though, booming with personality.


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## ktlelia (Jun 27, 2012)

Lychee Berry was a baby betta I got from petco over the summer. He was around 3-4 months when I got him, and is now around 5-6 months. (guess his age with the power of the internet, haha.) He just made his first bubble nest this week, yaaaay! He's still sorta a small guy, though he's changed a lot.
The only thing I've notice on him that worried me a lot was that his dorsal fin was messed up hardcore. It's rays were bent and sticking off to the side. He's 100% fine though and has been healthy little man.

This pic was his baby pic- first day home:








**his tank's rocks are big

Here's him now:








and flaring:


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## tpocicat (Aug 8, 2011)

You two are doing great with your baby bettas. 
The ones I've seen at my local Petco are about 3 months old I guess. The last time I was there, there were only 3. One was dead, and the other two didn't look very good.


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## Katrina S (Sep 2, 2012)

*Baby babies*

I had a 'baby betta' that was real tiny when I got him. I had to try A LOT of different foods before I could get him to eat at first. He never really grew and stayed real little. He was in a 3 gallon tank eventually so you would have thought he would have grown but he didn't. He lived 5 years though so no compliants. I had gotten him originally because he was in a tank with a huge guy in Maine and was totally about to die. I asked if I could have them because they had planned to flush him after I pointed him out as being in there by accident. They gave him to me for free with the agreement that when he died, I couldn't come back to exchange him. After 5 years with Peanut I wasn't about to try to bring him back anyway


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## a123andpoof (Apr 10, 2010)

I have a baby and I have no idea how old he/she was when I got her. maybe someone can tell me? I think its a she but still a little to early to tell. But she is slowly coloring up and just got upgraded to a 2.5g. This picture is from the day I bought her/him so if anyone has a guess i can get a estimate based on how long iv had her.


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## Coppermoon (May 8, 2012)

a123andpoof said:


> I have a baby and I have no idea how old he/she was when I got her. maybe someone can tell me? I think its a she but still a little to early to tell. But she is slowly coloring up and just got upgraded to a 2.5g. This picture is from the day I bought her/him so if anyone has a guess i can get a estimate based on how long iv had her.


I would guess when you got him/her "she" was about 3 months old. Any younger and "she" wouldn't survive the trip. Because these are the runts, it is really hard to guess a true age.


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## a123andpoof (Apr 10, 2010)

Okay so she is probably around 4 months now. Cool how long about till she starts to show the gender? I am pretty sure it is a she but I could be wrong.


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## Coppermoon (May 8, 2012)

By the pix you posted, "she" looks clear bodied. Shine a light behind her (you want to be looking "through" her). You may be able to see the egg sack. Most likely it is a boy, but you really can't tell. I had a dt female show for 2 months as a female only to turn out to be a male. I also had a short finned HM girl end up being a male and won his class at Convention......and I'm an experienced breeder!!! LMAO.

NLS Grow was mentioned as a good source of food...I totally agree!!! The pellets are actually small enough for them to eat early on. The problem is getting them to eat them if they are not used to it. I have ADULT imports that won't touch pellets yet. They are getting white worms (not grindals...) and offered pellets daily first.


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## teeneythebetta (Apr 29, 2012)

a123 poof, approx how long is she?


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## bettababe89 (Sep 19, 2012)

My baby was floating weird the first day and all the breeders I asked said mashed pea flake for swim bladder or bloating .i didnt know it wasnt good. I let it try a nibble of raw salmon (mega tiny) and it was game on. I just posted about being a walmart employee and caring for bettas . can any of you give me advise on my post? it'd mean so much.


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## bettababe89 (Sep 19, 2012)

WOW ktlelia, what a hunk you have! i lovvvvvve the colors . there were no white babies at this store. what did you feed him as a tiny tot and what are you feeding him now? if you dont mind sharing your success


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## teeneythebetta (Apr 29, 2012)

bettababe89 said:


> My baby was floating weird the first day and all the breeders I asked said mashed pea flake for swim bladder or bloating .i didnt know it wasnt good. I let it try a nibble of raw salmon (mega tiny) and it was game on. I just posted about being a walmart employee and caring for bettas . can any of you give me advise on my post? it'd mean so much.


No don't do that! For bloating you can feed frozen daphnia, which is a natural laxative.


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