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is Betta sleeping or dying??

2K views 26 replies 11 participants last post by  Hallyx 
#1 ·
From yesterday, I have been observing that my Betta is lying low in the tank

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If I feed or gently poke the glass, the Betta sarts swimming around...also the tail fin, the cuts are getting longer...

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Please advice what I need to do...I checked in Petsmart store, they said its doing fine..but am really scared that it's going to die...

Help plzzz....
 
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#2 ·
Does your tank have a heater? Bettas are tropical fish and often become sluggish if the water temperature drops too low.

Also, your tank doesn't look to offer much in the way of cover and for some bettas this can be disconcerting. When my bettas feel too exposed they often sit motionless on the bottom of the tank and clamp their fins in much the same way your male is doing. A couple of fake or live plants could help if this is the reason for your male's inactivity.

The tears on his tail could be caused by the ornament. It looks quite rough in the picture and betta's fins are quite fragile. A betta safe ornament should mean that you can run a stocking over it without getting snagged. Otherwise there is the chance the ornament could cause damage to fins.
 
#3 ·
From yesterday, I have been observing that my Betta is lying low in the tank

View attachment 249794

If I feed or gently poke the glass, the Betta sarts swimming around...also the tail fin, the cuts are getting longer...

View attachment 249786

Please advice what I need to do...I checked in Petsmart store, they said its doing fine..but am really scared that it's going to die...

Help plzzz....
My betta does that too. He's just sleeping or resting or being sluggish or conserving energy. But when I raise the temperature, he starts swimming like normal. Hope this helps
 
#6 ·
Does he have a hidey? Mine all love theirs. Make sure you get one that has big enough holes for him to swim through without bumping the sides. It gives them a place to hide and rest. That being said, my girl Ellie wedges herself into one of her plastic plants to sleep. She never went into her castle until today and she was in there looking like, "HEY! This is pretty neat!" Maybe your boy just needs a castle.
 
#10 ·
Housing
Tank Spec? Mini Bow Aqueon 5 Gallon [http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=4056278]
What size is your tank? 5.0 Gal
What temperature is your tank? 79 F
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? Freeze Dried Bloodworms
How often do you feed your betta fish? Daily once [2 or 3 bloodworms]

Maintenance
How often do you perform a water change? once a week
What percentage of the water do you change when you perform a water change? Sunday: 25%
What type of additives do you add to the water when you perform a water change? AquaSafe Plus, Prime, Aquarium Salt

Water Parameters:
Have you tested your water? If so, what are the following parameters? Last Sunday, tested water and its perfect by Petsmart

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

Symptoms and Treatment
How has your betta fish's appearance changed? looks dullish, fins are drooping
How has your betta fish's behavior changed? Lays down in the tank bottom more often
When did you start noticing the symptoms? 3 days ago
Have you started treating your fish? Treating with BettaFix [Heals Betta Fins and Skins] as adviced by Store Owner for next 7 days. No water chnage in between.
Does your fish have any history of being ill? No idea
How old is your fish (approximately)? No idea

The Tank was set up 3 weeks back, Betta added 2 weeks back and water cycled 1 week back
 
#13 ·
First of all, stop using salt and Bettafix. Use only Prime conditioner. Change his water 50% twice a week. Eventually your tank will cycle (No, it's not cycled yet.) OK That takes care of water quality.

Don't feed him for a few days. Then....

You should upgrade his diet. New Life Spectrum Betta and Omega One betta Buffet are among the best pellets you can easily get. Dump the freeze-dried bloodworms and get frozen ones, maybe get some frozen brine shrimp too. These are just twice-a-week treats.

Plants: For starters, get some Anubias and float it in the tank for shade and sleeping spots. Java fern is a rugged plant. Tie it to a rock. Hornwort and Anacharis are good ammonia eaters and don't need much light. Get more plant info in the Betta Planted Tank section of this forum.
 
#17 ·
Thanks for all your suggestions...am on my way out to get Omega One betta Buffet pellets from Petsmart..How many pellets should I feed him and how many times a day?

Also for thanksgiving..I will be away from my home for 3 days..so planning to get him the 3 days fish food feeder....will do a 50% water change before leaving and do another 50% after coming back..

Hope this is fine to keep him hale and healthy...
 
#19 ·
thanks for advice Hallyx....

I read in the forum to cover the tank with towels to relieve the Betta of stress...in my case, should I not switch on the tank lights and just allow room lights?
I live in apartment and tank is located on the kitchen counter...so no sunlight creeping...only lights would from tubelights from living and kitchen..

What about night time, when I pretty much switch off all lights and its pitch dark other than some street lights creeping in..
 
#22 ·
Oh. Should be the new tank syndrome taking effect. This happens to my bettas too when I first brought them home. Not eating, laying low at the bottom for sometime. After sometime, it will be okay. My bettas now are super active that they are like dancin when they see me comin near them.

And oh. Water condition is King. Make sure it is in the ideal water condition like perfect temperature, putting anti Chlorine etc. I personally keep dry Indian almond leaves with them for a few days until the water turns yellowish. These leaves work wonders.
 
#24 ·
Per suggestion in this thread, have been changing 50% water every 4 to 5 days. Feeding him with Omega One pellets mostly 2 or 3 twice a day and occasionally Dried blood worms...Am attaching the latest pics taken yesterday after water change...

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Feeder fish Fish Organism Fish Tree frog


Fish Freshwater aquarium Feeder fish Fish Tail



Am still concerned about the Tail fin...is there a way I can help him regrow his fins??? ;(

Also I have added two Silk plants...should I add more?
 
#25 · (Edited)
Per suggestion in this thread, have been changing 50% water every 4 to 5 days. Feeding him with Omega One pellets mostly 2 or 3 twice a day and occasionally Dried blood worms...Am attaching the latest pics taken yesterday after water change...

View attachment 259650

View attachment 259658

View attachment 259666


Am still concerned about the Tail fin...is there a way I can help him regrow his fins??? ;(

Also I have added two Silk plants...should I add more?
API Stress+ helps with regrowing fins a bit, but it'll still take some time. Keep up with the water changes to make sure he doesn't get fin rot. Maybe do 50% water changes every three days since you're in the process of cycling your tank. (Example: I do a water-only change on Tuesday; a water + gravel siphon on Saturday.) Doing a water change every 5 days is almost equivalent to doing a water change once a week, when you should be doing it twice a week. Remember, one of the two water changes per week has to include siphoning through the gravel to remove waste, etc.

Possibly add one or two more plants to your tank to help him feel a bit more sheltered, and definitely consider adding a cave of some sort (one with multiple openings, but still provides a bit of darkness inside so he can hide). I personally like having about 30~40% of my tank open with only one or two plants that don't take up much space and a couple small/medium-sized rocks to add interest to the terrain, while the remaining 60~70% of the tank has a pretty large cave and more plants. That way, there's a good balance between sufficient hiding space and open water.

If the cave you buy has multiple holes, do a thumb test for each hole. If your thumb can't fit through a hole, be sure to plug it up to avoid having your betta getting stuck. You can use hot glue to plug up a hole, or aquarium sealant. You can also be creative and tear apart your moss ball to plug up the holes as well.
 
#26 ·
My next water change is due tomorrow, since last I did was Tuesday...so should I add API Stress + then?

Will this also help my Betta, regain some of the lost color as well?

Also initially I did a sort of cave, but then later removed it as it might cause rupture to the fish.

below pic was taken 2 weeks back

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