My female betta Is showing stripes and flaring at the male. Does she like him or hate him?

Question

I put a male and female betta next to each other in their bowls so they could meet because I want to breed them. As soon as I did that, she started to show dark vertical stripes and she was flaring at him and he was flaring at her. Is this a good thing?? Please only answer if you are 100% sure that you know! I don't want one that says yes and one that says no, 'cause then I'll be all confused!! I am 100% sure one is a girl and one is a boy, so don't tell me I have two boys! Also any tips on how to introduce the female to the male in the same tank would be great!! Thanks!

10 POINTS FOR BEST ANSWER!

Answer 1

Since you are absolutely sure you have a male and female, I guess you know all about the other species of betta (pronounced bet-tah, not bay-tah) where the males have short fins like the females.  Betta imbellis is one of those.  Don't believe everything the kid at the fish store tells you, most of them will be back in high school in a few days.

The dark vertical stripes and white dot behind a very fat belly are a sure sign that your female is in condition and ready to spawn.

If he has built a bubble nest, he is ready for her to be introduced.  When you place her in his aquarium, watch them very closely for the next 2-3 hours.  They may spar a bit, but should get down to the spawning embrace shortly.  If he starts beating her up and she starts hiding from him, then one or the other is not ready or is not mature enough for spawning.  For good results, they should be conditioned on very high protein food (BettaMin flakes, frozen adult brine shrimp and frozen bloodworms) for about 2 weeks prior to even showing them to each other.  Pellets are not good conditioning food, I never feed pellets to my bettas, I believe they can cause intestinal blockages if they are not softened when the betta eats them.  Just too much bother for me to put them in tank water and soften them before feeding.

Some males just don't ever get past the beating up the female stage and you have to replace them.

Answer 2

The stripes are a sign that she is ready to breed. You always have to be careful when introducing the fish if you want them to breed. Male and female bettas should never be kept together long term, the female should be removed after mating. Also, bowls are not suitable homes for bettas. They are tropical fish, they need a heater and a filter. REgardless of what you may have been told, 2.5 gallons is the absolute minimum for a single betta to thrive. You shouldnt put the pair in anything less than a 10 to breed.