Brutus Silhouette

This is one of my rescues. I got him from a friend's roommate who basically neglected to clean his less than one inch of crowded water for months and fed him once every few weeks. She was also feeding him something high in protein but not much else, so he was basically hanging on by a thread and couldn't even swim because his body was wasting away that badly. His water was practically orange, he was in a bowl with no lid so a film was over the surface, making breathing more difficult, the bowl was a short, nubby designer bowl with a light which was way too small and badly modeled to begin with, and was only half full (and half of that was rocks) so he had less than an inch up and down and maybe 4 inches all around. Keep in mind, the fish is over 2 inches long itself.

I went to her apartment when she wasn't home, my friend (her roommate) let me in, and I filled a small cup with tap water and took him home with me. Surprisingly, the dirty tap water seemed to liven him up a lot and he went from practically dead to curious as can be as soon as I put him in the cleaner water. And you can't imagine how happy he was to have food.

After a few days he could wiggle around better but it took weeks to handle more than an inch of water, and about a month and a half before he could be in a full tank without being too exhausted to surface for air. I slowly built him up over time so he wasn't in danger of drowning, because yes, bettas can drown (they use their gills, but need to breathe air as well). Now he's made his way into a 10 gallon and enjoys every minute of it.


This guy still has tangled fins and a permanent scar on both sides of his nose, but he's made it! All it takes is a caring heart and dedication.


Spread betta awareness! These guys deserve AT LEAST 3 gallons of water, and no matter how poor you are, if you have a fish, you can afford to put them in a cup while you give them fresh water at least once a week or two depending on the size and setup of the tank. And you most surely can afford a small bottle of betta pellets that will last frickin' forever. I have more than 10 bettas at any given time and the food lasts so long I think I've gone through one container's worth in the past year. Granted, I feed them a variety of foods like shrimp and bloodworms and some bugs, but I have so many fish!

Also be known, I don't have filters or heaters, but I keep the room warm and I hand clean all the tanks as needed for the tank sizes and all of my fish are healthy. I don't understand how people can't handle one little fish.

They're wonderful, rewarding animals who deserve better!