The bettas appear to “survive” in these tiny bowls, mostly because you don’t see the dozens of dead bettas that are found and removed before the store opens in the morning! Just because an animal can survive a month or two in these conditions doesn’t mean they are good for a long, healthy life – many bettas die within a month or two of coming home as well. Contrast this to a betta bought from a hobby breeder or a high end aquarium supply store – these are fish which have been kept in an appropriate container their whole lives, and they often live three years or more.

The reason pet stores sell inappropriate sized tanks marketed for these fish is the same reason they still sell cedar wood marketed for rodents, or seeds marketed for rabbits: the consumer wants to believe that pets can be maintained using the cheapest, smallest environments, and the manufacturers would rather endanger the animals than waste money educating (and potentially lose) customers. Animals are commodities and products which are manipulated to increase the bottom line – nothing more.