Enrichment and Flare Training

Betta Gillfriend care rules: one betta per tank. Mirror or flare practice: one 2-minute session a day, with at least 2 rest days a week. Train: up to 10 minutes a week.

A betta in a well-planted tank with places to explore is a more active, more natural betta. Welfare studies found that bettas in furnished tanks (gravel, plants, refuges) swam more and showed fewer abnormal behaviours, such as hovering and pacing, than bettas in bare tanks, even when the bare tank was the same size. Enrichment isn't a luxury. It's part of good care.

This section covers everyday enrichment, and how to use flaring practice (mirrors, screens and the app's flare mode) in a way that puts your betta's welfare first.

What flaring is, and what it costs

Flaring is a male betta's threat display: fins spread, gill covers opened, the dark "beard" showing, the body sometimes turned side-on with the tail beating. It's natural behaviour, and short bouts can be a healthy bit of exercise and stimulation.

But flaring isn't free:

It costs oxygen. A 2013 study found that while a betta's gill covers are flared, oxygen uptake through the gills drops, and the fish depends more on gulping air.
It's a stress response. A 2023 study found that watching a video of another male triggered threat displays and attacks just like a live opponent, and cortisol (a stress hormone) rose nearly three-fold after 30 minutes of video. Screens count as "real" rivals to a betta.
Domesticated bettas don't know when to quit. A 2023 study comparing wild and domesticated bettas found that domesticated males kept fighting far longer than wild ones, which tended to back off within minutes.

Safe flaring practice

These are Betta Gillfriend's conservative guidelines.

Guideline	Recommendation
Duration	One 2-minute session a day, no longer.
Frequency	No more than once a day.
Rest days	At least 2 rest days a week with no mirror or screen.
Timing	Not straight after feeding, not just before lights out, not after a water change or move.
Who should skip it	Sick, injured or recovering fish; fish in quarantine; very old fish; fish with torn fins; anyone breathing hard or resting a lot; juveniles still growing.
Never	Leave a mirror in the tank or against the glass. RSPCA Australia advises against mirrors in the tank. Constant exposure means constant stress.

A good session looks like this:

Make sure your betta is active, eating well, and the water tests are good.
Show the mirror or screen side-on to the tank glass, outside the tank.
Let him display. Most bettas flare within seconds (in the 2026 study, the first flare took around 7 seconds on average).
End the session while he's still keen: well before he tires, and immediately if you see any stop sign below.
Remove the mirror or screen, and reward with calm: lights normal, no more stimulation for the day. You could offer one pellet from his daily ration as a "well done" (see target training).

Warning: Stop immediately if your betta: loses colour or shows stress stripes; clamps his fins; breathes rapidly or gasps at the surface; rams or bites at the glass repeatedly; turns away, hides, or seems unable to stop flaring after the mirror is gone; or if fins split or tear. Give him a rest of several days and check water quality.

Tip: Plakats like Rip are short-finned and athletic, so they often flare enthusiastically. That doesn't mean they need more sessions. Keep to the same limits. For giants, the extra size means more oxygen demand, so keep sessions short and the water well oxygenated.

Mirrors vs screens

Tool	Notes
Small handheld mirror	Simple and easy to remove. Hold it briefly against the outside of the glass.
Phone or tablet screen (including this app's flare mode)	Bettas respond to on-screen bettas much like live rivals. The 2023 video study found the cortisol response could be just as strong. Same limits apply. Keep screen brightness moderate.
Reflections in the tank glass	Night-time reflections (a dark room with the tank light on) can cause constant flaring. Add a background, dim room lights, or adjust the lighting.
A neighbouring betta	Divided tanks or side-by-side tanks with clear glass mean a rival in view all day. Put an opaque barrier between them.

Overstimulation and stress

Signs your betta is getting too much stimulation, from flare sessions, reflections, busy rooms or tank mates:

Constant flaring or "glass surfing"
Long-lasting horizontal stress stripes
Clamped fins or loss of colour
Fin damage (from ramming or tail biting)
Poor appetite
Hiding most of the day

What to do: stop all flaring sessions, cover reflective surfaces, add plants or a background, move the tank to a quieter spot, and check water quality. Most bettas recover within days when the stressor is removed.

Everyday enrichment

Leaf hammocks and resting spots

A small leaf-shaped platform near the surface (a "betta hammock") gives a resting spot close to the air. RSPCA Australia recommends tall plants with large leaves for the same reason. Many bettas use them daily, especially at night.
Place it a few centimetres below the surface, near the front, so you can see him resting.
Broad-leaved live plants (and floating plants with dangling roots) do the same job naturally.

Ping-pong balls and floating objects

A clean, new ping-pong ball (or a floating fish-safe toy) gives some bettas something to nudge and investigate. Not every betta cares, and that's fine.
Use only items made for aquariums, or new, untreated plastic balls rinsed in plain water. Never use soap.
Remove them if your betta flares at them constantly or ignores them for weeks. Keep them out during medication.

Target training

Bettas can learn. Classic lab studies trained bettas to swim through rings or touch targets, using a brief view of a mirror as the reward. At home, you can use food instead, which avoids the stress of flaring.

How to start:

Choose a target: the tip of a clean chopstick, a coloured bead on an aquarium-safe stick, or your finger outside the glass.
Hold the target in the tank (or against the glass). The moment your betta swims towards it, offer one pellet from his daily ration, using tweezers or by dropping it next to the target.
Repeat 3–5 times per session, a few sessions a week. Keep it short.
Gradually move the target before rewarding, so he follows it around the tank, or through a hoop.
Count training pellets as part of the day's food (see Diet and feeding).

Tip: Keep training sessions shorter than you think. One minute that ends with success is better than ten minutes of frustration.

Rescaping

Changing the layout every so often (moving a plant, adding a new cave, introducing a floating plant patch) gives your betta something new to explore.
Don't change everything at once. A complete overhaul removes his familiar hiding spots and can stress him, and disturbing the substrate can release waste.
Make changes during a water change, a little at a time, and check new items for sharp edges.

More ideas

Live food hunts: a few cultured daphnia or baby brine shrimp let him hunt (as part of the day's ration).
Varied flow: RSPCA Australia suggests that changing the direction of gentle water flow can add interest. Keep the current gentle.
Leaf litter: Indian almond leaves give him something to explore and rest under (see Tank setup).
Floating plants: dappled light and shade, plus dangling roots to weave through.
Interaction: many bettas learn to recognise their keeper. Simply spending time at the tank, moving slowly, is enrichment too.

Sources

Care guide by Betta Gillfriend (Bespok Labs, BC, Canada). It is general information, not vet advice. If your betta is sick, ask an aquatic vet.