Look,.... It's a miniature Keiko!

Okay,.... so how many people here remember Keiko
the whale from "Free Willy"?.....
I can't see your hands yet,....
hold them a bit higher please,....
Okay, there's 1,... 2,.... 3,.... 4,....
Well you get the point,.... If so many people can be so much in love with one whale,....
who was captured as an adolescent,....  and contained in an environment that was not proper
for his needs,....  who became sick and underweight due to those conditions,.....
then how can some of those some loving people commit the same crime, by not thinking and just
following the bad advise of  SOME individuals.  I'm not saying the environment is completely bad
either,....  I myself think this is a really cool looking setup,....
but is it condusive to the needs of the creature who inhabits it.

Okay,.... so now I drop the bomb,...
I'm talking about a fish,....  A Betta,
pronounced bet (like to place a bet in Las Vegas) - ta,(these are not beta video tapes here)...
and the peace lily vase,...  the vase and the plant are not 100% my concern,...
but I draw the line at not feeding them.   Yes a betta can live in a vase for a long time with
no food (they do not eat the roots),...  they might be finding a few infrasoria created by the
dying plant roots,.... but the only thing that will come of it in the long run is a dead betta.
My husband and I have talked to many people about all this before we took a stand on one side
or the other,...  People that have written hundreds of articles and a few books on how to care
for bettas,....  and all of them agree that a betta in a vase without food already has one fin
in the fishy graveyard.

Now on the other hand there are a few places telling people to feed their fish,...
Robert's Florist for one,...
who really do understand about the fish,....
living in plant roots is what they do in nature,...  maybe not a peace lilly, but who wants to
grow rice in your house :) (my husband and I want to,...but we are a bit strange at times,...)
so I guess a substitute was called for.   The only thing I can say is that you need to make sure
there is an air space between the top of the water,... and the bottom of the plant cup so that
they can surface breath if the oxegyn level of the water goes down.  And change the water as
needed, at least once a week,...  use dechlorinated water,  not tap water.  Also make sure there
is enough room in the container for the roots,... as well as space for the betta to swim,....
if the roots of your plant are cut, or stubby,.... leave extra room for when they fill in.
Do not use garden type plant food,... it will kill the fish.
Use aquarium type plant food available at your local petstore.
We all need the room to strech out once and awhile,... why not our fish.
If you have any more questions please post them on our discussion groups listed on the
main page of this site.  email tends to get full fast, and we can oly answer so much a day.
If you do not get the answer there,... then drop us a line.