Last weekend, hubby and I went into our local Petco for dog and cat food. I’d been talking with some friends about what it’s like to keep hermit crabs as pets, so since this was on my mind, I wandered back to the aquarium area. No hermit crabs, thankfully. I found a short aisle with small containers - 1 liquid cup size - filled with water and one betta fish in each. There was a sign saying it was a sale on Bettas, with other salesy proclamations about how beautiful they were and wouldn’t you love to add one to your aquarium? Most were dead.
I walked to the end of the aisle and noticed the end cap with another stack of those 1-cup containers of betta fish. Again mostly dead. Looked the other way, another stack of mostly dead bettas in 1-cup containers. This kind of pisses me off, but I just rolled my eyes and went to find hubby again. But as I did, I walked by something like four more displays of mostly dead betta fish in 1-cup containers.
I didn’t say anything to the store staff, cynically musing that this is why pet stores shouldn’t sell animals - they’re just not responsible enough to care for them properly until they’re sold. But now, several days later, I wonder if I really should have reported them to corporate. What would you dopers do?
You could have notified the manager. It’s possible that they weren’t aware of the situation. Maybe the “fish person” had called in sick or had found a better paying job?
Good gods, why didn’t you tell a manager? I have been in many Petcos and Petsmarts over the years and while I don’t really like the bettas in the tiny bowls, they are always alive! You saw dozens of dead bettas and just decided it wasn’t your problem, and you didn’t even need to tell a manager?
They have fish guys there, sometimes. The fish guys are not completely stupid.
The manager should have been notified. He may not be aware of the situation. I don’t like the practice of keeping Bettas in little containers like that, but that’s not likely to end. However, the manager may have been unaware that the fish weren’t kept properly and had died. Maybe he’ll rethink the practice.
You guys have a point, but I don’t know how the manager couldn’t have known. There were so many displays of them all over the place.
I blame my lack of immediate action on my ignorance of fish. Are bettas the kind of tropical that needs well-oxygenated water? If so, then how could anybody stick them in little cups of water like that and NOT know they’d be dead in an hour? I’ll write to the company. Meanwhile, please educate me on this.
Also, I’m a bit sensitive about being accused of being an “animal rights wacko”. don’t want to make a fuss about something that might be completely normal or acceptable but I’m ignorant of.
Just on a whim I started to google for “dead bettas at petco”. I got as far as “dead bettas” before the autocomplete correctly finished it. Apparently it’s not an unusual problem!
Bettas are ‘gulpers’, they can inhale air at the surface if the water is insufficiently oxygenated. Their bright colors are to attract and find mates in their natural habitat of dark water that often has low oxygen levels. They’re called Siamese Fighting Fish, and they will fight each other if kept in the same tank so the easy way to keep them is individual bowls. I don’t like the practice of keeping fish in poor quality environments, but they are just fish, it’s no different than the millions of gold fish stuck in slightly larger bowls all over the world.
No, bettas are anabantoids; they have a special organ (labryinth) which lets them breathe air directly, and they can survive quite well in low-oxygen waters, or even briefly out of water altogether. The little cups aren’t great, but bettas will live in them (unlike most tropical fish). It sounds more likely that the water wasn’t changed regularly, and the buildup of waste products WILL kill them. Definitely speak to a manager, or to the district/regional corporate structure.
Anybody know how long they typically keep the bettas in those cups (assuming they don’t sell immediately)? Or really what I’m asking is how long a healthy betta can survive in a little cup? Are we talking hours or days?
I always wondered about the practice too, so I am happy to hear they can breathe by reaching the surface and gulping some air.
The first time I noticed this was over 30 years ago, so it has been going on for a long time. What was strange to me then (and would still be now, since they are still doing this), is I have never seen a beta in anyone’s fish tank. I have NEVER seen a healthy-looking beta… They are either floating (per the OP), or they are barely moving, which given their small containers is hardly surprising.
Every fish store I have ever been in has had those tiny bowls with one poor beta inside… And they always had a bunch, like there was a huge market for these fish.
Anyone ever buy a beta? How do they do at home? Do they live for a week or a few years? And do they need to be by themselves, or can they be introduced to any tank (assuming there isn’t another beta)?
Ok, your betta can live with other fishies as long as he is alpha. I had him in with angels, cory cats, and neons, in a large 10 gallon tank. Everyone was peaceful and happy, no one was bullying each other. Occasionally the angels would pick on one another but since they were fed often they didn’t do too much.
Then like an asshole I decided my male betta needed a girlfriend. He was so happy! And the boys and girls didn’t fight, did they?
The female betta apparently drove him crazy, and I have a theory on this. He murdered her, and ate part of her body, then he murdered the angels. He wrecked my beautiful tank and was never at peace again until I segregated him.
Years later I come to find out while the female betta lays the eggs, it’s the male who protects them, and sometimes mommy eats her babies. So I bet she laid eggs, went to eat them, and he killed her. Then the others tried to eat the eggs, so he beat the crap out of them, too.
Bettas are great. Just if you get peace, don’t ever change the status quo!
My understanding (I am not a beta expert) is that they naturally live in small pools, ditches, etc so they’re adapted to extreme conditions. This doesn’t mean that they aren’t “happier” (such as a fish can be) in a slightly larger tank but they’re antisocial and they do best in mildly acidic water that isn’t necessarily best for other fish so you’re better off with one in a specialized one gallon tank versus one in a 15 gal tank with a bunch of other tropical fish.
Kinda reminds me of the dead parrot sketch. You don’t need too terribly much knowledge of a species (or however you want to classify “fish”) to conclude that a merchant probably does not intend to display for retail large numbers of obviously dead animals. Unless they were pining for the fjords…
Used to breed bettas. Really neat - and easy - fish.
Assuming you changed the water extremely frequently and provided occasional food, they could probably survive until they died of old age. Of course, their life quality would be poor. However, if you don’t change the water extremely often, a couple of times a day given the extremely small water volume of those typical store containers, their health will rapidly deteriorate due to poisoning from their own waste.
I bought a healthier-looking male in one of those small containers, once. I housed it in its own 6 gallon aquarium and it lived for about 3 years. If you introduce it in a community tank, you have to be very careful about choosing proper tankmates and setting up the tank environment properly, as Anaamika’s experience demonstrates. I have seen some local fish stores successfully house single betta males in their community tanks, but they know what they’re doing. Most stores resort to the “small plastic cup” betta displays for simplicity.
If your local PetCo is negligent in the dead Bettas all over the store, what else could they be negligent about in other areas of the store? It could be more than just fish.
Next time, get in the manager’s face right then and there.
Until then, your penance is to call Corporate now. Follow it up with an email. Now.
Or a fish. They were really pretty… except for the nagging detail of looking dead. I love looking at the animals when I go in there, but I am enough of an animal rights wacko that it irks me when living things are treated like merchandise. I do patronize the animal rescue groups who do adoption days in the store, but that’s all.
Pleasedon’ttakemycommentassexistIamafeminist.