Betta in a vase

Is this ever a good idea?
I will fully admit that I know NOTHING about bettas.
My mom wants to do a nice sized vase with a plant growing in it and a betta in there too with the roots growing down in the bettas territory. She wants it for her desk. She's at work 7 days a week for something (she's the superintendent of a juvenile facility - work is always calling) so she'd be able to change water as many times as necessary. Fish are supposed to be calming and her job is high stress.
Is there a good way to get her the set up she wants? If there is, what is the ideal way to do the vase+plant+betta set up? Obviously I don't want to do anything that's going to be dangerous for the fish or give it a miserable life so if there isn't a good way to do it then I'll figure out another set up for her (I think I still have a 2 gallon tank here somewhere, but she really really really likes the plant set up)

i think those set ups are bad... bettas have some organ that i cant remember what its called but they have to be able to hit the top of the water and get air so the plant thing growing on top isnt a good idea....

I would sjut get her a small tank from petco with the whole set up (light hood and filter) and maybe put some small plants in there with sand and that way the betta will have filtration too i got one the other day for a holding place for fry i think its only a gallon or a 1.5 but its nice and it only costed me like 20 bucks :)

petsmart does still have that 10gallon set up for $25 after tax...maybe I can talk her into that for her office since i did talk her into one for me...that I don't exactly know for sure what I want to do with it (probably planted with shrimp)
I have these little filter things, I don't know exactly what they're called - but its a clear plastic square with carbon on one side and polyfil or something on the other and you hook an air pump to it and its a filter of some sort. I forgot I had it, but I went through this box of stuff that came with one of my aquariums from forever ago and it was in there with a couple of air pumps (score!) some air stones (score!) bubble strips (score!) and some Asian themed decor. I figured I could use that little filter thing for the vase idea, but if they need the surface to survive then it might not be too hot of an idea!
Apparently is a pretty common office gift - all her friends at her old psych hospital got one with their promotions and she was jealous because there was no where to promote her lol They're beautiful fish...but I want her to have a happy and healthy fish too, not just pretty

I have done a betta in a vase with bamboo growing in the vase and it did just fine. Depending on the size of the vase (and how much she feeds it), she would need to do water changes every other day to once a week. The only thing with a vase, it can go down hill very, very fast. I would recomend a 2 1/2 gal tank though; it is still something small, and she can have plants in it too and it will still look professional.

Betta's have a labyrinth organ which helps them to pocess air so they can breath when there is not enough oxygen in the water.

Set up a tank. The vase plant idea is wrong in so many ways. Bettas are labyrinth breathers and have to breath air from the top of the water. They do not use oxygen from the water like other fish do. They must be able to get to the top. With plants in the way he won't be able to do that. Plus when the plant roots grow where will he have to swim. I could go on and on. Get him a nice little 2g tank that would fit nicely on her desk with a small filter,heater and light.

will do :) Like I said, I'd rather have a happy healthy fish than have the set up the cool kids have.
Do bettas like plants in their tanks anyway? I prefer to have all the tanks planted because live plants are beautiful. If they don't, she's just getting a really pretty guppy and I'll convince her its a betta lol

oh and thank you guys for your help. I have been fishkeeping for 15 years off and on BUT only the same 3 fish - guppies, mollies and platies. I won't venture into anything else without knowing a good bit about what I'm getting into. If I still have that little 2 gallon and I end up setting it up for her, expect a lot more questions! I will NOT get a pet that I don't know how to care for.

Yes Bettas love broad leaved plants. You will see him resting on it at times. There fins get heavy and they like to have something they can lay down on.

I agree with whisper especially in an office where on days off you never know what may happen. A tank with filtration and a heater is warranted. If she wants a plant do a little planted tank like a 5 gal hex planted tank would be so neat and relaxing on a desk. Hex tanks work well for desk tops.

she literally doesn't have a day off. She's logged well over 90hrs this week alone. She's been at this job since June and has never had a single day where she's not been in the office BUT she does get pretty swamped and a little 2-5gallon would take up little space (even though a 10g would be more fun for me to set up for her) and require less work for me (going through security just sucks, it takes forever and I hate the stink eye the gaurds give everyone!)

the best thing about an office tank for her is that we'd never have to worry about power outages - the facility has back up generators (another perk of my house, we're on the facilities generator too!) so the fishie would never be without heat or filtrations!

What kind of plants do bettas like? Are they snail friendly? Are they ok being alone or do they prefer a companion fish (and what kind, from what I understand the males are aggressive to eachother, right?)

whisper wrote:

Yes Bettas love broad leaved plants. You will see him resting on it at times. There fins get heavy and they like to have something they can lay down on.

sorry! I didn't see your post when I posted last! I have one plant in my tank right now with broad green/pink leaves that sounds like it would fit the bill if it recovers well. (had a plant transaction from hell on ebay - the seller thought it was a good idea to "forget" my heat pack when there was snow on the ground here and there so my plants arrived frozen with wet papertowels frozen to them. 2 died right off the bat, one died shortly after that, 2 are kinda sorta hangin on with a lot of love and attention)

In a small tank even females are fighter and will kill each other. I would suggest only a snail and no other fish in a tank 5 gal or under.

I'm trying out a really cool vase I found at TJ Max. It's about 17 - 20 inches tall and 6 inches in diameter. only paid $10 for it.(same vase at Hobby Lobby was $40) I filled it with red and black gravel and I'mgrowing a plant in it. I plan on it being for a betta. To put in my master bathroom. If you get her something like that or just a really cool looking vase as a tank with a plant then that might work for a desk. Check out similar discount stores for interesting shaped vases. The possibilities are endless. Not to mention I'll be unique to all her coworkers! Just an Idea I wanted to pass across.

Shellie I hate to say it but bettas like filtered, heated and stable water conditions. They breathe air from the surface so they need more than a vase opening and not blocked with a plant. Yes breeders keep bettas in small containers but are connected to a filter system usually of some kind. Anything under 2 gal is not recommended by serious fish keepers for bettas.

Sorry Vixen but you can have a sorority tank of females. In fact I have one right now with about ten females in it. But you can't put two males together nor a male and a female together. You could put a little albino cory cat in it to help with the cleaning or an oto catfish.

I think cory cats are SOOO stinkin cute, but my mom thinks they're the ugliest things ever!
would it be ok to put 2 female bettas in a 2 gallon or would 1 male (or female) be happier in there alone? I don't want to crowd them and I'm pretty sure I have a 2 gallon hanging around here somewhere so I'd rather stick with that than buy her another tiny tank.

Whisper they are not in a small tank I'm sure.

If she wants the 'pretty' fish I would get her a single beautiful male and a snail and leave it at that in your two gallon. Her water will stay much cleaner with the lower load and the fish will be nice & happy!

I have 5 in a 10 gallon, nothin happened wasn't mean to each other so I think it would be fine

Vixen that is funny. No they are in a 20g.

5-10g one male betta and some plants. If you get a snail make sure it is one that wont breed in freshwater or the tank will soon have many of them!

Remember bettas are jumpers so a lid is a must.

See if she likes kuhili loaches, if she does 2 of them in there if the bottom is done in sand would work.

Get a dorky little hang on filter. Just make sure you get a sponge to go over the intake.

Many years ago I set up a vase/betta habitat and the kids and I gave it to my husband for father's day. Vase was the largest type - used for 2 dozen rose arrangements, plant was a varigated spider plant. Plenty of surface around plant for betta to get air.

Even though my husband is not the best at remembering to care for fish (I called him every-other-day to remind him to feed it)... The betta lived for 3 years on his desk. A good length of time for any Betta to live.

It can be done - if planned and set up correctly.

I hate to be a Debbie Downer but I hate the idea of a Betta in a vase, I just don't think its fair to the fish.

I have a 5 gallon for mine with plants and a fake plant that hangs from the top. He actually sleeps in it.

I think the happier the fish is the more personality you will see in your fish.

cwillis wrote:

I hate to be a Debbie Downer but I hate the idea of a Betta in a vase, I just don't think its fair to the fish.

I have a 5 gallon for mine with plants and a fake plant that hangs from the top. He actually sleeps in it.

I think the happier the fish is the more personality you will see in your fish.

exactly why I asked :)
I don't want her to just have a pretty fish that will die in a week or two because its in miserable living conditions.
I want to give her a fish that will live a nice happy live in a place that meets all its needs. No Debbie Downer at all - the general concensus is a fish in a vase is an unhappy fish without its needs met. Noted and learned from.
I will set up something bigger for her, I'm perfectly fine with her having ONE fish in there, but I wanted to make sure the fish is happy being a loner. I know bettas are usually loners but are they happier that way? I'll probably just do a planted tank with 1 betta (if that's their happy way to be) and any snails will be accidental snails from my tanks and I can always go in and clean them out as needed because I LOVE them in my tanks!

Fern wrote:

5-10g one male betta and some plants. If you get a snail make sure it is one that wont breed in freshwater or the tank will soon have many of them!

Remember bettas are jumpers so a lid is a must.

See if she likes kuhili loaches, if she does 2 of them in there if the bottom is done in sand would work.

Get a dorky little hang on filter. Just make sure you get a sponge to go over the intake.

eek I did NOT know they were jumpers! I had a few mollies jump ship and one angel when I was..maybe 10? We had a lid but they jumped where the filter/heater holes were because the water was too high. It was like fish jerky! I refused to touch them lol it totally icked me out!