Need a Good cubicle fish?

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I work in a cubicle and I am looking for a fish that can live in a fishbowl and don't require a lot of natural light.
And no goldfish! they need filters and crap. And no betas! They die too quickly! :)
 
All fish need filters. Depending on the size of your bowl, the betta is probably your only option. But they need filters and heaters. And at least 2.5 gallons. Dont get me wrong here, when I say depending on the size of the bowl, Im not fond of putting fish in bowls. But if the bowl is filtered and heated, and at least 2.5 gallons, then its no different than a tank.

Bettas can actually live for probably about 2-3 years on average, thats not exactly quickly. They are probably one of the easier fish to house and care for. If you get them a filter and heater. And a lid for the bowl. They like to bail sometimes...

Paradise fish get larger than bettas. Therefore, they cant live in the same tanks bettas can. Every one of the sites I went to for information about them said they required a 10 gallon if they were by themself, and at least a 20 gallon if they were to be with other fish. Paradise fish are gouramis basically. Gouramis and bettas are pretty closely related, so you will see alot of similarities between the two species. If you cant keep a betta alive, most likely, you cant keep a paradise fish alive. They still need filters. Paradise fish would actually do fine without a heater, but their colors would fade out as with most fish.

And keeping a fish in a jar? Tsk tsk. That doesnt prove how hardy the fish was, it proves how irresponsible you are.
 
No fish can live in a fish bowl, so you can forget that.

The only time you could keep a fish without a filter is if you did 100% water changes at least once a week and had a tank (not a bowl) of at least 2.5 gallons, and the only fish you could keep like this is a betta. Also, bettas need heaters, since they're tropical fish.

Bettas SHOULD live for 2-3 years, so if they've been dieing "quickly" on you, you haven't been caring for them properly.

Fish are living creatures and need to be cared for just like any other pet. It sounds like you aren't really willing to give them that care, so I suggest finding something else to decorate your office.

If you ARE willing to put in the time and effort it takes to care for a fish, then a blue paradise fish is actually a pretty good idea. You would need a tank of at least 5 gallons, absolutely no less than that. You wouldn't need a heater, but you WOULD need a filter, and you'd have to learn about tank cycling--that's not an option, that's a requirement for keeping your fish alive.

I have my male blue paradise fish in a 5.5 gallon heavily planted tank with a small sponge filter. He's extremely active and curious, and will go absolutely nuts the minute he sees me. He also "follows" me around the room, zooming over to whichever corner of the tank I'm closest to and watching me. I'd love to get him a 10 gallon tank, and when I get the space for one in the future he'll be upgraded.

Paradise fish are awesome little guys, but again, they, like any fish, require a lot more care than you seem to think is necessary.
 
nothing

the smallest non betta tank would be a 5-10 gallon filtered and heated tank


bettas live for over 3 years if kept in filtered heated tank over 2.5 gallons

all fish need filters and most need heaters and airpumps

so the smallest tank would be a betta tank
2.5 gallon tank
gravel
small low current filter
aquatic heater (bettas are tropical)
food
dechlorinator
silk/live plants
net
gravel siphon/turkey baster

edit: yada yada blue paradise fish need atleast 10 gallons filtered and goldfish should live for over 15 years if properly cared for
 
No fish can live in a fishbowl or live without a filter/heater.

The only thing you stated correct on your question was that Goldfish need filters.

All fish need filters and heaters (except for Goldfish, they don't need a heater).

Bettas don't die quickly, you just weren't taking the proper care of them. They need a 2.5 gallon tank minimum with a filter and heater.

If you place a goldfish in a bowl, it'll get stunted and die. Stunting is when its body stops growing but its organs don't.

If you don't want to buy the tank, filter "and crap", then you shouldn't be keeping fish.
 
People here have no imagination or experience. Just ignore what people say about you having to have a Betta. Bettas are crap fish that die in a week in a jar. Goldfish are crap fish that die overnight in a jar. What you want is a Blue Paradisefish. They are not inbred like Bettas but they take a gulp of air to live on like them. They are not the most beautiful fish in the world, but they are calm and sturdy and watch what you are doing. I kept one in a one gallon jar for about a year and a half until someone thought they'd be funny and stuck the jar in the freezer and froze the water. I was upset. I dumped it in the toilet and it thawed out and I didn't realize until it was going down the drain that it recovered, somehow, and was still alive! That's pretty sturdy, but I wouldn't try it. I have also had one jump out onto the floor and seemed to be nearly dried up and I put it back in the water (I don't know why...) and once it hydrated again it started swimming around again! I wouldn't try that either though... So, Blue Paradisefish is what you need. Any other color is too inbred to live in a cubicle though so get a Blue Paradisefish.
 
Um, no fish should never be in a bowl unless its being transported. Betas are really the only thing that can be put in a small bowl and survive, they wont thrive but they'll live. Bettas die quickly if you dont take care of them properly, just like any other fish. They can live anywhere from 2-7 years. Goldfish shouldnt be in bowls either, the majority of them get big. The very least you would ever want to go for is 5gal but as with any small tank they are a lot harder to maintain the water and dont give you many good stocking options. Even in a 5 gal you're limited to bettas, white cloud minnows, small tetras, stuff like that. Any tank is going to need "filters and crap". You cant just expect to put a fish in a bowl of tapwater, feed it some flakes every now and then, theres a lot more to keeping fish than that!

Oh, and Yada Yada, you have got to be one of the dumbest people Ive come across on here, you have no idea what you're talking about, Paradise Fish, like any other gourami need bigger tanks than a 5gal
 
If you want something that can live in a small biotope go with shrimp, a 2.5 or a 5 gallon would be wonderlands for shrimp.
Also, a good encorporated system is the BiOrb or BiUbe. http://www.casco-group.com/biorbbiube.html

You can find one that will work and look awesome, then by doing some research on the internet find a great price.

If you can't go with something that pricey you can always get one of these at Petsmart:
http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2753107

Or one of these at WalMart for $30:
http://www.petmountain.com/show_product/105536/?utm_source=froogle&utm_medium=datafeed&utm_term=105536

The 5 gallon would be your minimum for a betta, the biorb or biube could house two or three small fish such as platys or mollies, or a school of 6-8 neon tetra or cardinal tetra, or small rasboras like the harlequinn.
 
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