Well, Dolphin, the spoiled rotten betta, has been a bit lazy lately. Probably the cooler air in the house has chilled his little bowl and is making him sluggish? That's ok. We do not actually expect a lot from him. He is more than friendly and entertaining enough... especially for a fish! Yesterday though, he earned his keep.
We've apparently hit mosquito and housefly season. I do not know what has caused the upswing in their population, but it is a real pain. For Honor, quite literally. She gets WELTS from mosquito bites. They don't get her as bad as they used to... she used to get these big red lumps all over, bad enough I actually took her to the doctor to be checked, on more than one occasion. Poor little bit. Now she just gets red bumps - still big enough to be annoying and it has earned at least one note from the nurses' office: 'Not pox, just bug bites'! We generally apply Benadryl cream, sometimes hydrocortisone too. Aveeno is also recommended, but we have not been able to find that for awhile. (I actually gave up looking, maybe I ought to try again).
One way to deal with the mosquitoes, is to leave the exhaust fans on in the bathrooms full time.. the mosquitoes don't seem to be able to handle that small bit of air flow. But in winter, with our very poorly insulated apartment, the inside that gets hotter than outside temps in summer, also gets colder inside than out when the seasons change. The house will get chilled overnight (temps in the 50's that easily seep in) and without a quick run of the heater in the AM, will stay that way even if it warms up to 70F outside. The exhaust fans just make the house chilly, so we turn them off... and the mosquitoes seem happy about that.
Plan 2, for dealing with the mosquitoes, is essential oils to repel them. I have hung small plush ornaments (little cats similar to these, which gives the oil something to permeate) in each room on ceiling fans, vents, etc. I mix the oils (which I order from The Crystal Fox) that are thought to have mosquito repellent qualities. I generally use catnip, geranium, patchouli, and citronella. I have heard that cinnamon is also a good repellent, but I haven't tried that. The first four oils, when blended, have a very pleasant, woody scent. Also, the following scents have a good reputation for insect repellent properties: Peppermint, Eucalyptus, Lemongrass, and others.
These oils are not 100% effective, but what is? And we like them so much more than spraying chemicals all over... they are probably no more effective than the oils anyway! I would definitely recommend using the oils on something like ornaments too. Some oils can be too harsh/strong. I would never put them directly on my skin in high concentrations... I definitely would not apply them to children.
Anyway...
As for the flies. Ew. I think they are getting in because we've had to have work on the house and the doors are open more often. Maybe they are also taking advantage of the exhaust fans being off? Unlike the mosquitoes - they are FAST and hard to swat. And totally annoying. At least they don't bite.
One fly made the mistake of teasing the fish. It went into the bowl, actually landed on the water - to drink I guess - and flew off again. Dolphin didn't need any encouragement. Next time that fly landed, Dolphin was ready. Hit that bug like a miniature, rainbow colored Orca. The fly was tough, he fought back, but quickly learned the hard way that you just don't mess around with our fish. I hope flies aren't bad for betta fish - Dolphin ate the whole thing. Now, if I could just get the mosquitoes aimed at the fish bowl...
Showing posts with label Dolphin. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Dolphin. Show all posts
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
Friday, November 28, 2008
Happy Thanksgiving!!!
We hope that everyone had a very Happy Thanksgiving. We spent the day lazing about the house, cooking, and just enjoying the time together. Turkey dinner was a great way to wrap up the day - something that made the cats, and even the fish, thankful too. Love ya!
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
Mighty hunter
We have the most spoiled fish in the world. He's a Betta Splendens, aka a Siamese fighting fish, and looks somewhat like this guy in color:
This is not our fish. I got the image here. Our fish is a bit scruffier, and has a lot more attitude. His fins are a prettier turquois shade as well. He'd never just sit peacefully at the top posing for a pretty photo. No, he turns toward the camera - either out of curiousity, aggression, or search for food. I give up. Thank goodness for the internet.
Anyway, the kids had been asking about fish, lizards, and other pets. We have 2 cats, and I thought that was enough, but they kept asking. I decided to get them a fish in a bowl at the beginning of school last year. I thought about getting a little aquarium, but several sites actually recommended against a tank with a filter. So, he has a bowl. After voting on a variety of names, like Rainbow, Kitten, Gladiator, etc. he was dubbed, "Dolphin". Dolphin has lived happily on our dining room table for over a year now. May seem strange to keep an animal on the table, but it keeps him, and us, entertained.
The kids talk to the fish and like to watch him. Bettas are interesting and interactive fish. The cats don't bug him beyond drinking out of his bowl. The kids are a bit worried about what we will do when we leave. They want to take Dolphin with us, but I do not think it is possible to safely transport him. We will have to find someone willing to take in a very spoiled fish.
How do we manage to keep a fish here, and how did we spoil him? Well, we use bottled water, with a few bits of 'chlor' crystal... no idea what it is exactly, but it works to keep his bowl nice. We were sold some pellets for food, but they are more for tropical fish. The diet for a betta is recommended as follows: "Diet: Carnivorous - Prefers live foods such as bloodworms, brine shrimp, krill and tubifex worms. Will also eat frozen foods. Some high protein flake or pellet food may be used as well depending on the fish." um...? Where do I get these things?? Not here! I also worried about feeding raw foods, or thawing bits of frozen, etc. So I just started him on cooked meat scraps, with the odd vegetable added once a week for helping his digestion. If it works for us and the cats, why not a carnivorous fish?
I wanted to start him slowly on the new foods as I didn't want to hurt him, but he quickly developed an attitude. After giving him meat, the next feeding was to be pellets. I put the pellets in. He just looked at them... then swam to the side of the bowl and looked at me with his brow furrowed. I don't even bother with those pellets anymore - he won't eat them.
We brought back some betta food pellets from the US when we were on leave, and he likes those... ok... but he prefers the good stuff. He watches when we eat and definitely makes it known that he wants his share. I usually cut his food into tiny crumb-sized bites, but if the food is soft, like broccoli, or a very tender meat, I give him a bigger chunk. He likes to stalk, attack, carry his victim around the bowl a few times, and finally rend his prey to shreds in a stealthy and dramatic fashion... you know... how wild bettas usually take down cows in their natural habitat (or mosquito larva - whatever.)
Yea... and Dolphin really loves that beef brisket I made on Saturday. He ate what I gave him, and his broccoli, then went begging on Brad's side of the bowl. Spoiled rotten!
This is not our fish. I got the image here. Our fish is a bit scruffier, and has a lot more attitude. His fins are a prettier turquois shade as well. He'd never just sit peacefully at the top posing for a pretty photo. No, he turns toward the camera - either out of curiousity, aggression, or search for food. I give up. Thank goodness for the internet.
Anyway, the kids had been asking about fish, lizards, and other pets. We have 2 cats, and I thought that was enough, but they kept asking. I decided to get them a fish in a bowl at the beginning of school last year. I thought about getting a little aquarium, but several sites actually recommended against a tank with a filter. So, he has a bowl. After voting on a variety of names, like Rainbow, Kitten, Gladiator, etc. he was dubbed, "Dolphin". Dolphin has lived happily on our dining room table for over a year now. May seem strange to keep an animal on the table, but it keeps him, and us, entertained.
The kids talk to the fish and like to watch him. Bettas are interesting and interactive fish. The cats don't bug him beyond drinking out of his bowl. The kids are a bit worried about what we will do when we leave. They want to take Dolphin with us, but I do not think it is possible to safely transport him. We will have to find someone willing to take in a very spoiled fish.
How do we manage to keep a fish here, and how did we spoil him? Well, we use bottled water, with a few bits of 'chlor' crystal... no idea what it is exactly, but it works to keep his bowl nice. We were sold some pellets for food, but they are more for tropical fish. The diet for a betta is recommended as follows: "Diet: Carnivorous - Prefers live foods such as bloodworms, brine shrimp, krill and tubifex worms. Will also eat frozen foods. Some high protein flake or pellet food may be used as well depending on the fish." um...? Where do I get these things?? Not here! I also worried about feeding raw foods, or thawing bits of frozen, etc. So I just started him on cooked meat scraps, with the odd vegetable added once a week for helping his digestion. If it works for us and the cats, why not a carnivorous fish?
I wanted to start him slowly on the new foods as I didn't want to hurt him, but he quickly developed an attitude. After giving him meat, the next feeding was to be pellets. I put the pellets in. He just looked at them... then swam to the side of the bowl and looked at me with his brow furrowed. I don't even bother with those pellets anymore - he won't eat them.
We brought back some betta food pellets from the US when we were on leave, and he likes those... ok... but he prefers the good stuff. He watches when we eat and definitely makes it known that he wants his share. I usually cut his food into tiny crumb-sized bites, but if the food is soft, like broccoli, or a very tender meat, I give him a bigger chunk. He likes to stalk, attack, carry his victim around the bowl a few times, and finally rend his prey to shreds in a stealthy and dramatic fashion... you know... how wild bettas usually take down cows in their natural habitat (or mosquito larva - whatever.)
Yea... and Dolphin really loves that beef brisket I made on Saturday. He ate what I gave him, and his broccoli, then went begging on Brad's side of the bowl. Spoiled rotten!
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