Betta Fish & Stress

Our fish, Flynn

You’re probably wondering right about now, “What in the world do Betta fish have to do with stress?”

Believe it or not, but I have observed just how much stress can affect us while learning about the tropical, colorful fish. I better start explaining from the beginning...

A little over a month ago, a couple of my coworkers bought some Betta fish for their offices. I didn’t know much about these fish, but I was immediately intrigued by their graceful fins and vibrant colors. These fish actually have different personalities and are somewhat intelligent and curious.

So what did I do next? Yup, you guessed it! I bought a Betta fish. When I brought him home about a month ago, my husband’s first response was, “Are you kidding?” But now, he enjoys the fish as much as I do. We got our Betta fish, Flynn, a bigger tank and added more fish to it. (Side note: There are only a few types of fish that you can include in a tank with a Betta fish. We chose four Zebra Danios.)

Since I suddenly have this urge to nurture, I decided one Betta fish was not enough and got a Betta fish for my office. Sadly, that Betta fish didn’t even make it a week and a half. I had been more prepared to take care of this fish, but he wasn’t very active or eating much since day one. Of course, I worried about what was wrong with him. Why wasn’t he eating? Why wasn’t he swimming very much? Why was his fins clamped? What could I do to help him? While he might have been just a fish, he was still a living creature (with a personality) and it was difficult watching him suffer.

Captain Jack with fear stripes

A few days later, I bought another Betta fish that I named Captain Jack after one of my favorite movie characters. At first, he seemed fearless just like the fictional pirate, but shortly after I put him in his new home, he was not eating or swimming around much. His colors faded, and his fins became clamped and started to rot. Then, I noticed two horizontal dark lines on his body. After doing some research, I discovered that these were “fear stripes.” They are more common on female Bettas, but they also can appear on male Bettas when they are stressed out. I started to notice that he got these stripes whenever I changed his water or tried to get debris out of the tank. When he knew he was safe again, the stripes would disappear. So I had a fish that was a worrywart. How fitting, huh?

I was determined not to lose this fish, so I gave him medicine for the fin rot and did more water changes. After about five days, his vibrant red and purple colors returned and his fins opened up. He is now swimming everywhere and eating regularly!

So what do Betta fish have to do with stress? Well, first of all, having these fish have helped me to concentrate on something other than my fictional problems. Focusing my worrying energy on them helps to distract my overactive imagination.

A healthy Captain Jack

Second, these fish have shown me just how much stress can affect our bodies (just look at the photos to see the differences). Both fish have very different personalities. While Flynn is more laid back and doesn’t let much stress him out, Captain Jack scares easily. It’s obvious to see what happens to Captain Jack’s body when he worries: he gets pale and fear stripes appear. Bottom line, if he continues to stress himself out, he will get sick and his lifespan will be shortened. Flynn, on the other hand, seems to just go with the flow and has yet to exhibit any of Captain Jack’s symptoms.

It may seem silly to compare, but stress can affect us just like it affects these fish. We may not get fear stripes, but worrying and stress can cause our immune systems to weaken, as well. So the next time I begin to worry, I need to remember the example of the fear stripes...