by Matt Maerowitz

Created on: July 18, 2008

While betta fish are absolutely gorgeous, they are one of the most territorial and aggressive breeds of freshwater fish available on the market, and the male bettas cannot be housed with any other fish including their own kind (it's no wonder they are referred to as betta fighting fish). Nonetheless, betta fish are excellent fish to experiment with for the amateur breeder because they normally do not entail much of an investment in that they are inexpensive and even generic pet stores tend to carry betta fish. Here is a step-by-step guide for anyone interested in breeding betta fish:

1. Locate an appropriate aquarium. Stay away from fish-bowl aquariums. While these are great for housing an individual betta, they are almost a guaranteed disaster when it comes to breeding. Some aquarium stores will carry a long rectangular tank designed for breeding betta fighting fish. These such tanks will contain a slit down the middle of the tank designed for separating the male betta from the female betta before they can breed. These tanks are ideal, but if you cannot find such a tank a long rectangular tank should do. The tank doesn't need to be very big (less than five-gallons ideally). If you purchase only one rectangular tank, you will need access to a clear plastic or aquarium-safe glass slit that can adequately divide the rectangular tank into two separate pieces. You may also purchase two small square or rectangular tanks and place them side by side, although I would not recommend this strategy as it can cause unnecessary stress on the fish.

2. Set up the right conditions in your tank. Ideally you should use purified water because tap water has minerals that can be harmful for your fish. While betta are freshwater fish, an extremely small amount of aquarium salt (not to be confused with table salt) can be added to the tank. While salt is by no means necessary, in very small doses salt can ward off disease and reduce stress without causing harm to the fish. Betta prefer water at around a pH of 7. Purified water is awfully close to 7, so testing pH is not necessary. You will want to place a thin layer of aquarium pebbles. A bit of plant life in your aquarium is also recommended.

3. Find your fish. At most local pet stores you will see small containers of water that contain a single fish. These fish have enormous fins and come in a wide variety of colors - that's the male version of the betta fish. The female fish are slightly more difficult to come across. While I have

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