# Betta Abuse on Etsy.com



## tngirl92 (Jul 16, 2012)

Was browsing Etsy tonight, a website where you can purchase custom crafts from vendors, for betta fish art and jewelry. I am a complete betta nerd, lol. 

Anyway, during my search I came across a seller advertising empty liquor bottles as "custom betta bowls" and such. I shudder to think about a betta in that tiny bottle, and how in the world do you get him in and out of the neck of the bottle much less do routine cleanings? Very VERY angry about this advertising. I would hate for some ignorant person to purchase this and try to make their betta live in it. 

Examples:
http://www.etsy.com/shop/SimplyGlas...r=date_desc&view_type=gallery&ref=shop_search


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## lilnaugrim (Mar 27, 2013)

Have you contacted the owner of those...things? I see there was a little "contact" button on the side, I wouldn't mind sending an email to them if you didn't want to. The only thing that would be good for is refiling with liquor, perhaps a flower vase or to go into recycling.


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## Wildbetta (Mar 26, 2013)

The horrible thing is I have seen a youtube video where someone had a betta in one of those bottles. It was aweful although it did look like he kept it clean, the betta could hardly turn around much less really swim.


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## Darth (Nov 19, 2012)

Most Breeders in Thailand use whiskey bottles to raise their fish because the stack uniformly and when dealing with thousands of fish that seems to be how they do it.


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## Catw0man (Jan 24, 2013)

tngirl92 said:


> Was browsing Etsy tonight, a website where you can purchase custom crafts from vendors, for betta fish art and jewelry. I am a complete betta nerd, lol.
> 
> Anyway, during my search I came across a seller advertising empty liquor bottles as "custom betta bowls" and such. I shudder to think about a betta in that tiny bottle, and how in the world do you get him in and out of the neck of the bottle much less do routine cleanings? Very VERY angry about this advertising. I would hate for some ignorant person to purchase this and try to make their betta live in it.
> 
> ...


I just sent a message to the owners...here's what I said:

"Hello, I have a concern about these bottles being marketed as "betta bowls". As a long-time betta owner who loves their fish, I can tell you that a bottle like this is definitely NOT a healthy habitat for a betta. Any knowledgeable fish owner would never put a fish in a bottle like this....so many of the things that responsible betta-owners do to keep their fish healthy and happy would be difficult if not impossible in these bottles. Bettas need clean, warm water (they are tropical fish and do best in water between 76 to 82 degrees) and sufficient surface area to breath (they are labyrinth fish which must get oxygen from the water's surface). They also do much better in more water, not the tiny little bowls and tanks often marketed as betta bowls.

This type of advertising ends up promoting cruelty to these beautiful fish by people who don't bother to research what these fish need to be healthy and happy. Then these same people will wonder why their fish died a week or a month later.

On behalf of caring, knowledgeable betta lovers, please adjust your advertising and remove the "fish bowl betta bottle" references."

If Thailand breeders use bottles, well, so be it....they know more about raising bettas than I will ever know. But I still wouldn't want bottles marketed to ignorant customers as a novelty betta bowl.


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## Fin Fancier (Aug 11, 2012)

Well at least the person isn't selling the fish with the bottle. It's more of a suggested use. All you're getting if you order is a cleaned, empty, liquor bottle for roughly the price of getting it full... 
By the time they get it and go to pick up a betta they'd be able to see they could have gotten a .5 gallon tank for less... Heck if they got a glass 2.5 gallon tank it would still cost less. I'm surprised this sells at all, if it does.


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## Wildbetta (Mar 26, 2013)

It is always surprising what people will pay for a "novelty". LOL At least to me it is. I always try to see if I can make the same thing for less.


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## registereduser (Jul 30, 2010)

poor guy: http://www.etsy.com/listing/1101937...ta?ref=shop_home_active&ga_search_query=betta


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## 10asartin (Mar 28, 2013)

The best way to combat this type of cruelty is through unity and education. It is up to people like us to tell others the truth about the beautiful betta, and hopefully people will stop treating them like things and start treating them like living creatures.


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## erinbirdsong (Jan 16, 2013)

Contact Etsy and complain


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## 10asartin (Mar 28, 2013)

I contacted the seller directly, but remained very polite. People don't respond well to anger


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## Catw0man (Jan 24, 2013)

The seller contacted me after my communication with her and said:

"Thank you for the information..I will changing my listing. I was unaware because my daughter uses them for her fish all the time."

I thanked her and suggested that her daughter join us here on the forum to get some better information on caring for bettas. She sounds like a caring person who just didn't know.


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## lilnaugrim (Mar 27, 2013)

Oh that's wonderful! I'm glad to hear this turned out well! And I hope her daughter does join us! It would be a pleasure I think


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## SwayLocks (Sep 5, 2011)

tngirl92 said:


> Was browsing Etsy tonight, a website where you can purchase custom crafts from vendors, for betta fish art and jewelry. I am a complete betta nerd, lol.
> 
> Anyway, during my search I came across a seller advertising empty liquor bottles as "custom betta bowls" and such. I shudder to think about a betta in that tiny bottle, and how in the world do you get him in and out of the neck of the bottle much less do routine cleanings? Very VERY angry about this advertising. I would hate for some ignorant person to purchase this and try to make their betta live in it.
> 
> ...


Yeah it's pretty dumb that people put fish in bottles. Doing that is a novelty for them


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## isochronism (Nov 24, 2012)

If the person selling these is drinking all of the alcohol to ready the bottles for sale, she may not be thinking very clearly. (no joke intended)


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## LillieCharlotte (Mar 20, 2013)

I would imagine breeders use bottles with the intent to sell or rehome those bettas rather than as a permanent habitat. It's a step up from petstore cups i guess?


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## percyfyshshelley (Feb 26, 2013)

Good job Catw0man!


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## Spike34 (Apr 22, 2013)

Hi there, 

Hope I haven't treaded on any toes as the listing is still up (2 days later) and thought it might be best to gently nudge in numbers. I have contacted Etsy asking them to re-assess whether the listing is indeed a suitable one for their site as it is one that really goes against the spirit of Etsy as it just reeks of cruelty. I basically phrased it as a question as to whether they wish to be viewed as a group which advocates the storage of Betta fish in liquor bottles. Hopefully it'll be withdrawn but I'm not holding my breath. 

Spike


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## MattsBettas (Dec 18, 2012)

I just sent the following complaint to the shop owner-

Listing: http://www.etsy.com/listing/110194900/jim-beam-bottle-fish-bowl-betta-bottle

Dear Mr and Mrs Smith,

I contacted you to inform you about the "betta bottles" that you sell. You suggest that these less then 1/2 gallon bottles be used for fish, but these do not make suitable homes for them. I am a betta breeder, keeper, and hobbyist, and I own over 100 bettas.
Bettas are native to Thailand, where the water temperature stays between 76 and 86 degrees fahrenheit. To maintain this temperature, a heater is required. There is no where or way to put a heater in these bottles. If bettas are to cold, their immunity is compromised, leaving them susceptible to disease. Keeping bettas in cold water dramatically decreases their lifespan. 
In a container this small, a toxic substance called ammonia (which all fish excrete) will build up very rapidly. Ammonia burns and eventually kills the fish in a very painful manner. 
Bettas are anabantoids, meaning they use a special organ called the labyrinth to breath air from the surface. To do this, there must be sufficient amounts of oxygen available to them. In these bottles, the airflow is not enough. A betta could potentially suffocate living in one of these.
There are many, many things wrong with keeping an animal in one of these liquor bottles. The betta in the picture that you show is very unhealthy and close to death. Advertising improper betta habitats like this only increases the incidence of animal cruelty committed by people who do not do their own proper research. I know I am not the first to file a complaint against this product. Please change this advertisement and remove the false information about keeping bettas like this. I am prepared to contact etsy if this does not change.

Thank you.

I would suggest that more people contact them with a similar message. The more pressure they receive, the more likely they are to remove it.


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## royal (Jan 23, 2013)

that bottle is $58! I got a 2 gallon bowl and all its contents for less! but seriously, who would buy that, when you could just buy your own 1 g vase from dollarama for $1.25?


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## Raincloud (Apr 10, 2013)

Darth said:


> Most Breeders in Thailand use whiskey bottles to raise their fish because the stack uniformly and when dealing with thousands of fish that seems to be how they do it.


I have seen this too, but I like to imagine these are juvenile fish in a temporary home rather than a full grown adult in a permanent home...I could be wrong though.


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## HeroicPoison (Feb 27, 2013)

I dont even use etsy and i made an account just to make a complaint


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## MattsBettas (Dec 18, 2012)

I did as well HeroicPoison!


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## XxxXnoodleXxxX (Dec 1, 2012)

I complained as well. To the seller and the site. Though my message to the seller was not very polite.


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## lilnaugrim (Mar 27, 2013)

The sellers seemed nice enough though, you don't want to bash them over the skull just to get the listing off the site. If anything, kill them with kindness! It works better than you think! Bashing just gets most people no where and you end up with more annoyed people than you started with.


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## JustinieBeanie (Apr 22, 2013)

There are two sellers doing it, I have contacted both, and I reported one of the listings from Mr & mrs smith's store, since Iknow you guys had already contacted her, she said shed fixed it, and several days later she hadn't. I plan on reporting the other listings, and if it still doesnt change, the store itself. I have also informed another seller I am in contact with who I know loves animals, she's horrified and asked me to link the care articles on this site and bettatalk, as well as the links to the sellers pages. Now if only I knew how to create a link! Anyone help? I am on an iPad and obviously not very technologically savvy


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## HeroicPoison (Feb 27, 2013)

Mine was surprisingly professional... way to go me!
I gave them basic betta caring info and asked them a few questions that i told them i was awaiting a reply to.


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