Small pets do not come as care free packages. Keeping small pets in small spaces takes dedication. You may not have to do much, but you do have to commit to doing it on a regular basis. Feeding, cleaning and caring are required by your pets as much as you require them. I will not try to convince you that each fish needs 75 gallons of space to be happy or that you must have every available piece of equipment in the industry to keep a single fish in your home or office. But I will be honest about what a particular critter does need. I will provide accurate information based on 40 years of experience.

  I do not endorse or try to create ecospheres. The myths of such systems are great but depend on everything working perfect all the time. The truth is, they don't. Variations in temperature and lighting, the unplanned death of one occupant or failed birth of another will crash a system like this in no time. We see this every day in nature. Pools dry up for lack of rain, too much sun or the drainage changes. A cold snap or heat wave will wipe out a population or its food. This is why, even in an open system you need to spend time with your pet to make sure conditions stay healthy.

  I also do not recommend keeping your pets in cups or small vases. The argument here is what is actually small. My healthiest and apparently happiest pets are kept in 1-2.5 gallons of water. Those that are solo usually don't have filtration but do have plants, snails and regular water changes. When I get to the 2.5 tanks we usually add a small bottom fish or two but care must be given to attitudes. Some aquatics can be aggressive and you must make sure that whatever you put in a tank will get along.

  Whether you want a small pet for companionship or because you think they look nice on a shelf you need to allow time to observe them and learn the signs of distress. To the trained eye a lot of problems can be detected and fixed quickly. Your pets may not speak but their body language speaks volumes. They will show you when they are hungry, over fed, cold, hot, lonely, crowded, sick or blissfully happy. You need simply to pay attention.

  Each critter will have a personality, individual preferences or quirks that make them unique even from other members of their species. They may like it a little warmer or cooler, brighter or darker, more space or even less. Some like to have a hiding place even if they never use it. Some will be shy while others come right to the front to say hi. The variables are endless.

  You will also need to understand how the wild version of your pet lives. We build our homes according to how we move, what we do in our homes and what we are comfortable with. The same must be true for our pets. For example, a fish or plant that lives in fast flowing water will not be happy in slow or still water. With care we can simulate their natural environment in a small space. Even though they may have lived naturally in hundred mile river systems, many aquatics spend their whole lives in very small areas and only leave when forced to because of predators, competitors or food/breeding. Given the opportunity they will stay in their own territory their whole lives. This is why Nano Tanks work.

  Now let's consider where and how you live. Everyone has their own temperature preferences as well as lighting and activity schedules. You will need to consider these factors when keeping aquatic pets. Either find pets that match your preferences or make accommodations to adjust their environment to their needs. Heaters, coolers, additional lights, indirect lighting, location of the tank and so on can mean additional expense.

  Another thing to consider is the stability of your water and power supply. Depending on the number and size of my tanks I use natural bottled spring water or reverse osmosis water from the local vending machine. When I have larger tanks I do use tap water but it must be treated if there is chlorine, chloramines or heavy metals in it. Even the trace contaminates allowable for humans can kill aquatics. As for power supply, know what you will need to do if the power is out. Are you in an area that will freeze or if the AC goes out can you cool your tanks when needed?

  One thing I ask all aquatic pet keepers to commit to is a very important issue: Invasive species. Almost all aquatic pets we keep are not native to our areas. Learning proper disposal techniques is a must for our environment and the well being of local fauna. Eventually the inevitable will happen; a pet or plant will die even if only from old age. You should never flush or throw them out. They should be dried out and incinerated. Even if you are keeping local species, they may have been exposed to imported illnesses or developed mutated viruses that could wipe out local populations. Even healthy unwanted pets could be carriers. Unwanted healthy aquatics should be donated or sold. Culls from breeding populations should be treated in the same manner. And always be aware of what is legal to keep or trade/sell in your area. One irresponsible pet owner can cause others to lose their right to keep these pets.

  And finally we must discuss decorating your thanks. Decorations as such mean little to the creatures you are keeping. Care must be given to what is put in a tank. Make sure it is non-toxic. Consider the size of your creatures and their habits. Be aware of openings in your decorations that might allow your pet to get stuck or trapped. Watch for sharp or rough spots that may damage your pets.

  The most successful tanks are those that are maintained consistently. Stable temps in the appropriate range for your pets, consistent water quality, feeding routines and cleaning will assure you and your pet will be happy and content.

   I am going to start with Bettas because that is what I currently have the most of and have had the longest. My Betta tanks range from 1 gallon gather Vases to 2.5 gallon square tanks. The 1 gallon gather vases are the most common because they are the cheapest. Our local big chain department store sells them for about $5.00 or less. They make a very attractive decoration, provide room for the Betta and the neck slows evaporation but is open enough to allow cleaning and surface area. Bettas are air breathers, although they appear to have gills, closer inspection will reveal they are very small and nearly useless. Bettas must be able to come to the surface to gulp air to survive.

  Wild Bettas spend most of their time in a very small territory unless chasing off intruders, searching for food or in the case of females, searching for a mate. The male is very much a stay at home dad. He will build a bubble nest on the surface, preferably anchored to a leaf, and guard that day and night. He will only leave it when chasing an intruder or chasing food. Females on the other hand will travel from male to male, often laying eggs in any nest protected by what she considers a competent male. I have heard of Betta keepers who make sure males never see each other because this will stress them. I don't agree with this at all. I don't think males should be kept in the same tanks, or even side by side where they feel threatened at all times, but should have the stimulus of other males to keep them from boredom.

  When setting up these tanks I stick to the basics. Enough gravel or glass stones to cover the bottom about 1 inch thick, a Java fern or small sword plant will appear to add volume to the body of the tank yet leave room for your fish to swim. I like to add an ornament of some kind, usually a small frog or turtle figurine or pretty stone or small drift wood. The driftwood is usually only a knot left from a larger piece. Very small snails work well as long as you keep their breeding under control. Larger "Mystery" type snails attract too much attention from your Betta and they will spend too much time nipping at the tentacles of the snail which means the snail stays tucked in its shell. A snail in its shell is not able to eat and will starve. I like the small tadpole snails the best.

  All this, plant, decoration, gravel/stones and snails will help keep the water clean but it is still necessary to change about 20% weekly and I will completely reset these about 1 a month or 6 weeks. I feed morning and evening but very lightly and skip a day or two each week. Wild Bettas eat life foods such as small worms, insect larva, (particularly mosquito larva), and any other wiggly thing they think will fit in their mouths. This also means that feeding is erratic. Some days/nights there will be feast, some famine. I don't want to starve my fish but missing a meal will not hurt them and many argue this is even good for them in the long run. Because we do keep the males separate and limit the stimulus of competition and mating, too much food creates a fat, short-lived pet.

  If for whatever reason you decide not to include plants in your Betta habitat, provide a decoration the Betta can hide in. They can be skittish of movement in the room and need a secure spot to go. Most Bettas provided with a hide will be secure enough that they never use it. Those without plants or caves will stay near the bottom, in a curve of the glass or tight to the surface, wherever they can find a sense of safety. Bettas also do not like heavy currents or bright lights. If you do keep them in larger tanks or with filters, make sure they have low flow areas to be in. Our breeding for bigger, fancier fins makes it very hard to fight currents.

  It is because of currents that I don't use air stones in my Betta tanks unless I keep the bubble flow very low. They don't need the added oxygen in the water so the only purpose of the air stone is decoration or to create surface motion. Some tanks will develop a protein film on the surface and this is not good for the Betta or the tank in general as it does keep gasses in the water from escaping. Air stones and diffusers also create airflow above the surface and will collapse the bubble nest the male works so hard to maintain. One of the surest signs of a happy, healthy male Betta is his bubble nest. A male in his prime will have a nest that almost looks like milky Styrofoam. It will stay together and protrude above the surface as much as half an inch.

  This overall technique works on larger glassware as well. My favorite and oldest Betta is in a 2.25 gallon Brandy Snifter.