buying a betta?

[denimous]

hey there...
i am interested in getting two bettas, one for myself and one as a graduation gift. i read that the bettas at lfs are for the most part veil tailed, mutts, and often in poor health.

since one is a gift, and one i am considering on breeding, i am interested in one with higher quality finnage.

does anyone know of anywhere i may order or purchase a betta from a breeder?

or does anyone know of a store where i can purchase a betta that is not veil tailed, such as delta or halfmoon fins?

any help will be greatly appreciated...
please and thank you!

 

[colesea]

Okay...

I cannot personally vouch for the quality of the bettas from this breeder, but I have been an avid follower of her website for the past three years, as well as have actually seen the program she is so proud of, so I feel pretty confidant about recommending her.

Go to BettaTalk.com. Faith is an IBC breeder. The pictures of her fish that she posts are truely breath-taking, and I have found no site that compares. Her claims are that the fish she has are pedigrees and truely works of art. I'm sure if you wish to research her in the betta community circles, espeically the IBC circles, you'll find her reputation intact. Heck, if you even email her, she's really nice and will answer your questions herself.

Her fish are also minimum of $60 a pop. Pretty pricey for a fishy graduation gift. But that's what a pedigree betta of good outstanding quality is gonna cost you. I've been aspirering to own a Faith betta for three years now, but if $60 means buying a fish or paying my phone bill, well, you can see where the priorities lie.

Personally, I wouldn't recommend breeding your betta unless you are going to do it to the quality and consistancy that, well, Faith for example, does, which means showing them and really dedicating your breeding program to the improvement of the strain, and allowing yourself to be judged by your peers for the quality of the fry you produce. That is simply the animal welfare advocate in me speaking out against any form of backyard breeding, be it canine, feline, fish, fowl, or reptile. The fish you see in your LFS are products of mass produced bettas from "betta mills." Unless you plan to do something with the fry your fish produce, and provide for the 50+ offspring with a high quality of life, please refrain from bringing them into this world. If you do wish to bring baby fish into this world, please take responsiblity for said fish, and respect the fact that even as fish, they are life (I'll leave the soul issue to the theologians, IMO they have souls but I know not all religions think so *shrug*). Take pleasure in bonding with your betta, and trust me, they do not have to breed in order to be thriving. I've had bettas live for four to five years without ever having even seen the opposite sex once in their life.

~~Colesea

 

[denimous]

actually, the reason i was first interested in breeding bettas was as a result of faith's website. i have no intention of breeding to mass produce bettas. i have seen the animals at pets stores which were the result of "mills", it is truly disturbing what people will do for a buck. faith's website is another reason why i don't want to purchase a betta from a "betta mill". i would only decide to breed if i found a way to care for all the fry. there are many small fish stores in this area who might be interested in in the fry if i did decide to breed. (i would need to do considerable more research and i will take your words to heart).

however, as you stated, faith's bettas are on the pricey side. i would like to see if there were any other options. it might end up that i'll get a faith betta for the graduation fish and get an lfs betta for my self (i could rescue it! =b)...

thanks for your advice.

 

[colesea]

Can I kiss you? Wow, thank you so very much for your kind reply, and for being so, well, I don't know how else to put it except being really intelligent and caring. You're cool in my book, and I'm am truely heartened by your reply.

I work in a veternarians office and see the products of breeding mills all the time. The poor things have so many health problems it is scarey. And I know so many people who consider themselves "breeders" and yet do not allow their "products" to be judged by knowledgeable peers, which to me is the ultimate way to ensure quality control. Too many "breeders" are simply selling for profit because some sucker will buy an "AKC purebred" puppy for $1000 a pup.

And the AKC doesn't help matters either, giving papers to people who don't even show or can't prove AKC champions in the bloodlines for four generations. Disgusting.

But I will admit, I'm a sucker for the LFS betta as well. One year I was simply fascinated by the purple bettas, and at $3 a fish I couldn't resist bringing one home. He's still trucking, three years later, with 6 gallons and 2 cory roomies to himself. I have been dying for one of Faith's pastels, but because she has her minimum order requirement, I don't have room to house several fish, nor the money for several fish, even if I scrounged the $40 for a pastel. But I understand, she's been screwed one too many times.

Good luck finding your betta and in your breeding endevors.
~~Colesea

 

[amishfignewton]

goto http://fishforums.com and lookup Dogs n' Fish. He breeds bettas and has very nice show quality stock on auction and im sure he would give you a nice deal. Tell him amishfignewton sent ya

 

[animal lover]

I know the Bettas at the pet stores are mill fish but I have this thing with feelind bad for them being stuck in a little plastic container...They store where I get most of my fish treats them well and has them in larger containers but I get really upset whenever I go to Wal-Mart and tend to buy one every time I look at them....I currently have 3 males one in a 25 gallon with my platies one in a betta barraks thing and one in a 2 gallon goldfish bowl.....I change his water weekly because he has no filter....I wanted to get another but I have guppies in my 10 gallon and I don't really want to cram 4 bettas in the barrak thing because I think its cruel, do they really like to be in small places????I guess I'll just have to buy another tank and get more fish that are compatible with bettas so I can get another.....

 

[theeyrietrainer]

I have seen some VERY beautiful male bettas, but the place is very far away. They don't sell females but I seen some that do, and females don't have the perfect finnage. They look like rejects, i feel so sorry for them!