we have one lonely beta fish or japenese fighting fish whatever you call them ad he looks so lonely!!!! is there any thing you ca put in witht them that they wont try to eat??? or fight? he stays o my computer desk beside me but he just looks so lonely in his litttle bowl!!we have had him for 1.5 yrs now so i would like to find him a friend!! :)

Generally a bowl is not good for it, and even if your betta was peaceful, you would overstock it's bowl.

In a bowl, there's no room for other animals. Male bettas will attack fish that look anything like another male betta. If you put the male betta into a tank of at least 10 gallons, then you could add other peaceful, short-finned fish. If you are going to upgrade him, I can give you a list of fish that could live with him, or you can ask about a particular species. Another option is to get another male betta and put him in a separate bowl next to the other one. They will fight through the glass which is good for exercise but torture if they're next to each other 24/7 so I don't really recommend this. Bettas shouldn't really be kept in tiny bowls. They want to swim like any other fish.

i have a crowntail beta with guppies (3), black mollies (3), mickey mouse plattys (2), rasboras (3), a couple zebra danios (3) and neon tetras (2) in a 29 gallon. he chases other fish every once in a while, but not for long, he normally keeps to himself, but those black mollies chase him too sometimes.

he is i a actual beta tank i bought from walmart but i think it is only like 2.5 gl. so do you reccomend upgrading ad giving him a buddy or just upgrading him?

Here is a list of some compatible fish if he is put in a proper tank:

Neon tetra
Zebra danio
Leopard danio
Molly
Platy
Bristlenose pleco
Corydoras catfish
Coolie/Kuhlie loach
African dwarf frog (sometimes)

Also, is it a betta cocina or a betta splendans?

I suggest getting a bigger tank, and you might as well put some "buddies" in there with him so the tank doesn't look too bare. Keep an eye on how the fish interact with the betta and vice versa for potential problems.

If you bought it at Walmart it's more than likely betta splendens. If you wanna put "buddies" with him I'd suggest at LEAST a 10 gallon tank & some fast, schooling fish. The ones Jayesh listed are good however I won't put an adf (frog)w/anything that aggressive because I've seen them rip the feet & arms off the little guys. That's just my opinion based on experience with friends' fish. Also be aware of overcrowding.

i just bought a 30 gal tank ad am lettig water set for a few days before addig my beta how may other fish could i add in there? i would love to have a full colorful tank but y beta goes first!! i would also like to have a few of each so the neons ad mollies woudl they be good?? thanks for everybodies help!!

With a 30 gallon tank, you could eventually add a few dozen inches (at mature size) of fish. Schooling fish do better in schools. Neon tetras and mollies may be okay as long as their fins aren't too long. I've had trouble keeping neons alive (even with soft water) and some other people have as well. I'm partial to small danios, cories, white clouds, small barbs, etc. Be sure they are small, peaceful, non-fin nipping, short-finned fish that you choose. Don't put all the fish in at once but maybe half a dozen, wait a few weeks, and then more, etc.

are any of thoose colorful? i love colorful fish but i guess that may not be a good idea with a beta

Yes, some are colorful! Cherry barbs are bright red. White clouds have all sorts of colors. Various non-nippy tetras come in all sorts of colors. Danios have interesting patterns if not too much color although there are colored ones of those too. Cories are just plain neat.

souds great i will be adding a few small ones here and there will keep you posted on how it goes!! should i add like 4-6 of same kind at onwe time?

As long as the fish are small, and the tank is large enough, it's best to add small schooling fish in groups like you mention of 4-6. Then, wait a while to add more fish after seeing how these do and monitoring the nitrogen cycle (see http://www.fishpondinfo.com/chem.htm for more on that).

I usually don't buy cherry barbs because most are wild caught and they are endangered species in their natural habitat.

We had a lot of trouble with our Neon Tetra's as well until we started PH testing the tank every day ( for the first few days ) the PH was very low, once we got that right we have hardly lost any - same as the Guppies... Also some filters which have too strong a suction for the size tank seem to almost magnetize any little fish to them & because they are so small they can't always get off the filter... I gave up keeping Neon's at home because of this...
Sometimes at the shop we have one too many Fighters so we have to whack one into one of the other tanks, I have put them in with the Neon's & Danio's & they've all been ok, also in with the female Guppies, female Fighters & Black Widow Tetra's & also in with the male Guppies...
Actually perhaps if I list the fish I've put them in with would be better...
Danio's, Neon Tetra's, Guppies, Log Fin & Short Fin Black Widow's, Gold Widow's, White Clouds, Rummy Nose Tetra's, Blind Cave Fish, Small Ghost Knives, Bristle Nose Catfish, Small Pleco's, Pencil Fish, Corydora's ( Bronze, Albino & Julli ) Upside Down Catfish, Glass Catfish, Fresh Water Dolphin's, Clown Loaches...
I would not put them with any kind of Barb, one of ours accidently got out while I was catching another fish & within 20 seconds he had no fins, no Cichlids or Angel Fish ( altho I have a customer who swears blind she has her's in with Angels & it's fine... ) No Mollies esp the SailFin ones, definantly no Swords or Platties or Gourami's... Another customer has his in with an Axolotl & it's been ok for the last 6 months altho the Axolotl is very well fed & also they are quite slow so that could be another idea...
Ummm...
Here at home we have ours in with a Bristle Nose Catfish & they have both been fine for many many months so there's another idea...
Otherwise you could just get some nice plants & colourful ornaments for him, I don't really think they get lonely on their own, we have the Bristle Nose in with ours just to help keep the algae down...
Another one is Licorice Gourami, I had a Fighter in with those & they were fine - altho bear in mind this is only usually for a few days because as soon as I have a space for them I'll put them in it...
Hope this helps
Jodie

Some guppies aren't very good to put in with a betta. The fancy guppies... you need to stay away from those if you want guppies to put in the same tank as a betta.

If you like guppies, then you can put a few in your 2.5 gallon tank - mind you that they breed amazingly fast so you need to be prepared for that... guppies are best in groups that contain 1 male for every 2 females.

As for mollies, they are actually really good with bettas. I have 2 community tanks that have mollies and a betta in them. They do amazingly well with the betta and the other fish. Yes, occasionally the betta will chase after the mollies and the mollies will do that same to the betta, but i've never seen nipping or anything.

Mollies would be great for your 30 gallon tank and they come in many different colors. Careful though, mollies can breed fast too.

Oh another word of caution - plecos pooh alot so they can raise your ammonia pretty high. I'd hold off on the pleco until you have a more established tank. I'd suggest corys if you want some fish on the gravel. Corys do best in groups of 3 or more.

If you see another fish at the store, just research it and find out if its compatible with the fish you have, your water parameters, and if it is an easy fish to care for. If all is okay, then you can probably add it to your tank - just be careful not to over stock your tank.

HI I have 5 betta males (not in the same tank of course) and I am thinking about breeding and I have learnt some stuff from books but i thought it might be better if I talked to some one who has breed them before can you please give me any handy tips you might have