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Lethargic and Pale

696 views 6 replies 2 participants last post by  DarkMoon17 
#1 ·
I really hoped I wouldn't have to post in this section so soon but I'm worried about my little guy, Pallas. He was doing fine yesterday afternoon; very alert and swimming. I moved him into my new big tank later on in the night. He seemed to be doing okay for the rest of the evening but when I woke up this morning, he was at the bottom of the tank, barely moving.

He's in his little QT tank right now and is just hanging around at the surface, still not really moving. He's also gone pretty pale and doesn't seem interested in a little pellet of food I left in there for him (he always goes crazy when my hand comes even remotely near the tank surface because he knows it's dinnertime). He's always done great with new tank moves and I haven't done anything different with this one. D: He's my favorite little guy and I'd hate to lose him like this. Any help or advice would really be appreciated.
 
#2 ·
Forgot to add this

Housing
What size is your tank? Was originally in a 2.5 before moved to a 5 gallon last night
What temperature is your tank? 78
Does your tank have a filter? Yes
Does your tank have an air stone or other type of aeration? No
Is your tank heated? Yes
What tank mates does your betta fish live with? None

Food
What type of food do you feed your betta fish? Aqueon betta food pellets
How often do you feed your betta fish? 2-3 Pellets every night

Maintenance
How often do you perform a water change? 2 times for old tank. None for new tank yet
What percentage of the water do you change when you perform a water change? 50% and then 100% each week for old tank. New tank hasn't gotten any yet
What type of additives do you add to the water when you perform a water change? Water conditioner

Water Parameters:
Have you tested your water? If so, what are the following parameters? Haven't tested. Will probably stop over at work to have them test the new tank for me.

Ammonia:
Nitrite:
Nitrate:
pH:
Hardness:
Alkalinity:

Symptoms and Treatment
How has your betta fish's appearance changed?
He's become very pale. He has a mostly white body so it's hard to tell with that part. His fins however went from a bright blue to a grey color in one night.
How has your betta fish's behavior changed?
He's very lethargic and lays at the bottom of the tank. Since I moved him to his QT tank, he just floats on the surface. He won't eat either. He also ALWAYS comes when I wiggle my finger near the front of the tank to say hi. When he didn't this morning, I knew something wasn't right.
When did you start noticing the symptoms?
He was perfectly fine last night and didn't show any signs of stress in the new tank. This morning is when I found him at the bottom.
Have you started treating your fish? If so, how?
Nothing yet other than putting him in a QT tank
Does your fish have any history of being ill?
No
How old is your fish (approximately)?
Not quite sure. Had him for a month and he was small when I got him. Got to see his short little fins grow into huge colorful things so I'm going to say he's fairly young.
 
#3 ·
Sorry to hear you are having trouble.
It is possible that he is just stressed from the move or sudden water quality changes. How did you let him adjust to the new tank? Did you forget the dechlorinator in the new tank?

The only husbandry concern I have is that it is usually best to feed them in the morning or morning and night. Feeding at night right before bed is not all that great for their metabolism. Temps usually drop slightly at night which will slow metabolism and can cause bloating.
 
#4 ·
That's what I'm starting to think happened to him and thank you for the advice on feeding. I never knew about that. It's the same water from my kitchen downstairs that I used to fill the new 5 gallon tank. I added the dechlorinator too. I also made sure they were the same temperature too. Everytime I buy a neat heater I watch it like a hawk for 3 hours to make sure it's working right.

I usually catch him with the cup he came in (I've heard that nets are a little too stressful/cause fin damage). I let that float at the top for 5 minutes and then gradually start adding some of the new tank water to his cup. Probably 10 minutes later I emptied some water from the cup and plopped him into the new tank.

I took some of the water over to work and my manager tested it for me (She keeps a huge tank and is my fishy mentor) Can't remember the exact numbers but everything looked fine. He's still really lethargic in his QT tank right now. I'm gonna keep an eye on him and see if he perks up. Till then, I'm going to empty out the new tank and rewash everything in hot water to make sure there's nothing in there that's causing it.
 
#5 ·
I'm guessing he's just stressed from the change. After you clean the tank, let the water age for about 24 hours then add him back in. Maybe give him an hour or so to adjust this time to see if it helps.

Have you baffled the filter? That might stress him out too. Try turning it off.
 
#6 ·
He looks a tad more perky now so I think you're right. I think I'll keep him in the temporary tank until he's back to his old self. I'll try introducing my other betta, Atlas, to his side of new tank after I let the water sit. You know what, the filter did look a little too strong. I'll pick up a sponge at work tomorrow and baffle it before I turn it on again.

Thank you for the advice, Darkmoon!
 
#7 ·
No problem, just glad to help! I'm sure he'll do better next time with a baffled filter :)
 
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