She is in there, I promise, you just can't see her! It is time to change the water again!!I met Erik at the door asking him to move Dora to her own bowl. He suggested that we give them more time to get used to eachother, but I wasn't sure she would live another hour with Zack attacking her. I was feeling a sense of urgency about the whole ordeal.
Erik was not.
He suggested that we look it up on the internet. He said he would look for an informative website about Bettas and read about whether we could keep two in the same bowl. He then proceeded to sit down at the computer. . . I paced in the kitchen while keeping my eye on sweet Dora. After about 15 minutes, Zack began terrorizing Dora again. So, I came running over to the computer to see what Erik had found out. . . Dora's life was in danger! We had to save her! What had Erik found out?
Nothing.
Nothing at all.
And, do you want to know why?
Because ( big surprise) Dan Patrick's website doesn't offer vast quantities of information on Betta fish. In fact, I'm quite certain that the word Betta does not appear anywhere on his site. But, he is a great reporter, and I wish him the best on all his future endeavors.
After I, once again, expressed the urgency of Dora's situation to Erik, he left Dan Patrick's website and searched for information that would save Dora's life. The information we read agreed with the instructions I read on the way home from the pet store. Due to the aggressive nature of the male betta only one Betta should be in a bowl.
And, in case you were wondering about the mating habits of the Betta fish, the male and female should only be put in a bowl together for an hour and a half to two hours at a time to mate. I cringe to think Dora was left alone with Zack in a small bowl for over 12 hours. Too bad there aren't therapists for fish. Surely, she could use one. I am just praying over her bowl daily.
JCT and I took a special trip to Wal-Mart and picked out a new bowl and some colorful decor fit for a lady. And, she likes it in her new trendy home. She is thriving. At least I think she is - the best I can tell. She is eating her food, and I think that is a good indication. Zack on the other hand is not eating. Bless his heart, maybe he misses her. He ate when she was in his bowl. I'm a bit concerned about him. But, I'm not losing any sleep over it.
Oh, and a note about fish to those who don't have them. I don't necessarily recommend fish if you are a neat and clean person. No one warned me about how dirty these creatures are. We have had them for 3 days, and I have changed their water like 5 times. It gets all cloudy, and it smells nasty when you dump it in the sink. They aren't the clean little pet I thought they would be. Big Mama was right - the honeymoon phase is short lived. Oh, and the food smells, too.
But, I still say it was worth it just to hear Joshua gasp when he saw his fish for the first time!
3 comments:
Amen! I have to say there were no tears shed by this mama when the last of our bettas passed away (even though weeks earlier I had literally prayed for a miraculous healing for the very same fish!).
The smell and the cloudy water on my kitchen counter were finally just too much for me to handle. If I needed a fun time I would change a diaper, for heaven's sake, right!? Who needed a bowl to clean?
Still, it is a parenting rite of passage, and worth the inconvenience to watch your child and their thrill at their own pet.
:-)
Zach is that abusive type who acts awful and then later, is all like "I'm so sorry, please come back to our bowl".
She's better off without him.
Okay, you're going to think I'm nuts, but we have a 30 gallon aquarium, and it is WAY less maintenance than a betta bowl--no true changing of the water, and the filter does all the work. All I do is turn on the light and feed them in the morning, then turn it off at night. My kind of pets :)
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