basic betta ?

Question
1. how do you tell the age of a betta?
2. How often do you feed them?
3.what is a good water treatment product? How often to change water?
How can I maintain the heat of the tank without buying a heater..the fish in the stores I am sure don't have heaters.

I just had a very lively betta die but he had very long fins and was white around his gills and face area, but he was so perky until his last 2 day. I wonder if I overfed him I only had him for 3 months

Answer
hey jackie

1) I'm not sure how to tell the age, i dont know if there really is a way.

2) The way I feed my betta is to put in the food and see how much is eaten in five minutes. if any remains (unless he is still eating) net it out. try doing this two times a day unless he doesnt seem to eat during the second feeding.

3) basically, the only way to keep an unheated tank warm is to keep it in a warm room. you can get some descent heaters for only like $9.00 that will work nicely in a small tank. Also, since winter is coming (im not sure where you live so I dont know if this applys to you) you could keep it near a heater in your home.
Yes, you are right the pet store ones dont have heaters but it isnt good for their health to be really cold. they are tropical, so they need relatively warm temperatures (75-80 is perfect, but room temperature is fine. as long as its not freezing =] )

i hope everything goes well with your new betta, feel free to ask any more questions in the future.
best wishes, chelsey